Why your gun-factor is so powerful in sales

18 months ago I experienced my very first business meeting in Holland. That was also the first time I heard of the Dutch word, the ‘gunfactor’. It was explained to me that this word contained a tremendous amount of buy-in incentives, meaning that if you had the gun-factor – you’d get the sale.

Although the result of having it may be equally convincing, the English “gun” is not the same as the Dutch gun.

Your gunfactor is why someone sympathizes with you because of who you are or what you represent. It’s why someone wants to do business with you rather than someone else.

I used to think that I could manipulate my gun by saying the things that I thought the other person wanted to hear. But since your gun comes naturally I found a much easier solution:

Regardless if you’ve sold a product or managed to convince your wife to go see the new Hobbit movie – you’ve probably succeeded with help from your gun. So depending on what you want to achieve, look back on successful deals to find out who thinks you have the gun-factor .

The stronger the gun, the more likely you are to get what you want. Therefore, identify common indicators from your best ‘customers’ that you can find in others. That’ll increase your chances of dealing with someone who thinks you have the gun-factor – which increases your chances of getting that sale.

Some of you may be thinking: “Hey Sherlock, obviously people are more likely to do business with someone they like!”

– Well, congrats to you for having made that conclusion. Now think about all the people, including myself, who want to please and make people like them.

Instead of chasing someone’s approval, just be you. And look harder for the ‘customers’ that like you for who you are.

What indicators do you think embody your gunfactor ?

Thanks for reading!