During an interview early this week Herman Cain showed complete ignorance to a sensitive political issue about President Obama's handling of Libya.
Rather than admit he didn't know anything about the issue he made a few feeble attempts to answer the questions but it was apparent that he didn't have a clue about the issue. Here's the interview in case you didn't see it.
Sales people often make a similar mistake.
A prospect asks a question that the sales person can't answer but instead of saying, "I don't know, let me find out" they struggle to find an appropriate response. They use the "baffle them with BS" approach and end up giving a response that doesn't actually address the key issue.
In most cases, the prospect sees through their approach, and as a result, loses respect for the sales person and/or their company.
Sales people can learn from Cain's blunder by being well-prepared before sales calls, meeting and appointments.
They need to anticipate potential objections, hidden issues and other concerns that could prevent their prospect from buying their product or service (aka "voting their way").
They need to be aware of sensitive, internal issues that may derail the sale.
Today's business world is more challenging which means sales people need to be more prepared than ever.
Herman Cain is a business person, not a politician. However, as a presidential candidate, he needs to make sure that he is well-informed about any sensitive issue that may arise during his campaign. Sales people need to the same.