Issue 1 - January 2005

Selling is a science
By James W. Parker, DC

1960 — Occasionally a born salesman arrives on the horizon and he seems to slide effortlessly to the top. The key to his success is his inherent ability to sell scientifically by seeing things through the eyes of others.

Improved scientific selling increases profit — just like continued research into how to sell chiropractic increases the number of satisfied patients and referrals.

Here are some examples of scientific selling (outside of chiropractic):

• The father of John Dewey, the great educator, ran a store in Burlington, Vt. He sold more goods than anyone else in town. His sign simply read: “Hams and Cigars — Smoked and Unsmoked.”

• A friend of mine in Fort Worth went into the service station business. I sent him a note recommending he put up a sign: “Your tank full free if you guess how much it takes.” He printed the big sign and doubled his sales in six weeks. The advertising venture cost him about a dozen correct guesses or less than $40.

• One day a businessman looked out of his office window and saw three boys with shoeshine kits across the street. He noticed one of them was continuously busy, while the other two snared only an occasional customer.

Curious, he investigated. He found that the two less successful boys were just as eager and energetic as the busy one, but they merely inquired, “Shine, Mister?” The successful lad suggested: “Shine for Sunday, Mister?” Scientific selling!

• I suggested to my realtor brother that he put on his sign the words “Too Late” instead of “Sold” after selling one of his houses. It attracted so much attention he got a write-up about it in the state realtors journal, to say nothing of the interest it created to future customers.

• A member of the Rotary Club told how he answered a competitor’s situation when he was undersold: “I have no quarrel with anyone who sells for less. After all, they ought to know what their merchandise is worth.”

Selling is logic; selling is convincing; selling is a science.

• I saw a sign in a California store: “We buy old furniture. We sell antiques.” Scientific selling made the difference.

• Scientific selling often turns a liability into an asset. A potential real estate customer was looking over a house and noticed water running down the walls. “It’s a bit damp, isn’t it?” he asked. “Damp!” echoed the salesman. “Of course it’s damp. Think what an enormous advantage that would be in case of a fire!”

And so chiropractic practice building and office procedure are a science, also. Whether one is answering the question of “How much do you charge?” or “Can you cure headaches?” or “Do I have to be x-rayed?” or merely using proper procedure to subtly instill the referral concept in the patient's mind, selling patients and keeping them sold is as much a science as adjusting.

To keep up to date with the science of selling our chiropractic services to the parade of patients is a link of study we all need to pursue to fulfill our destiny, mission and talents for our profession, to our colleagues, to our town, to our sick and suffering brethren who must be “sold.”