When I tell people I paid for my Master's degree selling a musical instrument called a bowed psaltery they look at me like I'm crazy. Very few people have any idea what the instrument is, yet one lesson I learned pays dividends in my real estate practice to this day. Put this one lesson to work in your business and you're likely to see an increase in client satisfaction and loyalty, and with it, an increase in your business and your own level of satisfaction. What is this one secret? Before I can tell you, I need to set the context.

As I said, I was selling a musical instrument called a bowed psaltery. A bowed psaltery is a 20 inch long, 8 inch wide hollow triangle with 30 strings that you play with a bow. It sells for about $250 and I can teach anyone to play it in two minutes or less, even if they didn't think they could possibly play any instrument. I sold these weird little instruments at music festivals, craft shows, and renaissance festivals all over the country. In the process I put out two CDs, an instructional video that's still being sold 14 years later, and I even got one of the biggest rock bands in the world to play it on a recording and video, but knowing how to play the instrument isn't my secret.

The psaltery got so popular I had to hire crews and teach them everything I knew about selling psalteries so we could sell them at more shows. Eventually we built the company to number one in its niche and did several hundred thousand in business each year. Not bad for a weird little instrument. How did I do all this and how can what I learned help your business? Be patient.

When I did a show I could count on selling 25-30 of these instruments for every 10,000 people that walked in the gate. However, the crews I hired never seemed to be able to sell more than 5-6 instruments to a similar crowd. I trained them to play and teach the instruments very well, and I made sure they knew, almost verbatim, the words I used to sell the instruments, and I only hired people who were genuinely enthusiastic, but they could never match my productivity. It took me a long time to figure out why -- and what I learned is the secret that can help you.

The secret is this -- when I went to a show I didn't care whether I actually sold any instruments or not. I was, however, passionate about giving people the experience of making music. When I pulled out my instrument at a show I put all of my energy into showing people they could play lovely music, despite their own negative attitudes about their abilities. I would get so wrapped up in creating this experience for people that I would totally forget about trying to sell them anything. Of course, once they had the experience, they almost begged me to sell them an instrument -- and I was glad to do it.

It took me a long time to realize that my sales teams had a different attitude about what they were doing, and their attitude is what accounted for their inability to match my level of productivity. To them, selling an instrument meant a commission. Consequently, their attitude was one of, "try a psaltery, so you'll buy one and I can eat." Patrons could sense the difference and were far less likely to buy from them than from me. After all, would you rather deal with someone whose motivation is to "sell" you something, or someone you sensed was only interested in giving you a fun and engaging experience?

In a book called Top Performer, by Steve Lundin, PhD, and Carr Hagerman, my brother, about how to capture the energy street performers create in their audiences, they coined the term, Claim Your Pitch, and that's what I did with the psaltery. Claiming your pitch is about knowing who you want to be with your audience, then being that person with every fiber of your being while you're on stage. When I was selling psalteries, who I was being was someone who cared passionately about creating a great experience for my audience. That was my "pitch," and that was why I was successful. My teams' "pitch," who they were being, was, "let me show you this instrument so you'll buy one and I'll make money," and that's why they were less successful.

In real estate the "pitch" I claim today is, "I want to make sure you have the complete, accurate information, and honest advice, you need to make a good decision." Notice, nowhere in my pitch is there anything about being number one, or selling more, or anything like that. All I want to do is make sure my clients make good decisions. That attitude infects my clients and turns them into raving fans that send me lots of referrals. It builds a powerful relationship with them that keeps them coming back.

You don't need the same "pitch" I use. In fact, I recommend against it unless it fits with who you are deep inside. Claim Your Pitch is about knowing your values and being authentic in how you live into them with your clients. Claim Your Pitch is about knowing who you are being with your clients. If you're inauthentic, they'll know it and you're likely to have a lower success rate.

Success comes with authentically coming from a place that puts their needs first. If what lights you up from deep inside is, "I want to sell your house faster than you'd believe possible," that's fine. Claim it, make it your own, and live into it wholeheartedly with your clients. If what lights you up is, "Let's have a ball while we sell your house," then claim that.

Look at what you want the world to see about you and you're likely to find the same source of Natural Energy I did while I was selling psalteries. Natural Energy is the energy that is released anytime you see a street performer working a big crowd. Claim Your Pitch, and learn how to live into it with your clients, and you'll release that Natural Energy with them. In the process, you're likely to create a long-term relationship that energizes both of you, and your business.

(Top Performer will be released by Hyperian Press in January 2007. It was written by Steve Lundin, PhD, author of the bestselling FISH! series of business books, and by Carr Hagerman, Leadership consultant, author, speaker, and street performer).

Published: March 2, 2007

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