Media and The Message

by Nicholas G. Licata, M.A.

The Road to Success [Back to Columns]

I recently attended a function sponsored by my local Chamber of Commerce, called a "New Member Power Hour." It was designed to help new chamber members learn how to use the Chamber of Commerce to get the most for their investment. During one of the presentations, I was reminded of an Important lesson that I learned selling advertising.

The speaker was recounting her first days in business and how she had to convince herself and others that she should be taken seriously. She explained how she did all the important things that we were discussing: making contacts, networking, advertising, and promoting her business. She told us how the Chamber had helped her and how she eventually became successful. I listened to her as did the others in the room. But of all the advice she gave, I fixated on her comment about convincing herself.

When I was involved in sales, I learned that when I believed in the product I was selling, I made the sale more easily. When I was unsure whether the client would benefit from an ad in our publication, it was more difficult to make the sale. And, when I knew that there was no way a client was going to be successful in our publication, I could hardly bring myself to pitch the sale.

The bottom line is that in order to convince others that there is value in a product, service, or even yourself, you have to first convince yourself. This especially holds true for a person starting a new business. So why am I discussing believing in yourself in a column devoted to communication issues? Because believing in yourself is a communication issue.

We all use both verbal and non-verbal forms of communication. When we do not believe in what we are saying, our non-verbal cues give us away. Salespeople learn to interpret a person's nonverbal cues and adjust their pitch accordingly. They learn to read a person and can tell if they are connecting or not. But, this phenomenon goes both ways. People can also read a salesperson's non verbal cues. They are more likely to be sold, if they see that the salesperson truly believes in what is being said.

If you believe in yourself, while you are out there networking and promoting yourself, your potential customers will see a confident, optimistic professional. Your confidence will be passed on to them. They will be more likely to buy your product, use your service, or turn to you as a credible source of information.

Once you have established yourself in business, it is relatively easy to believe in yourself. You have customers; you are earning a living; your efforts and abilities have been validated. When you are first starting out, however, it is more difficult to ignore society's failure messages and truly believe in your god given potential. But to do so, is the first step on the road to success.