How to Sell Something the Market Isn't Ready For

Welcome everybody to the Advanced Selling Podcast, the longest running sales training podcast in the history of podcasts. My name is Brian Neal. My name is Bill Kaske on the good mic. I'm on the bad mic still.

We are in day two of recording with my AirPods. You know, I think I know it's not good audio quality. Uh newscasters use them though. I see that.

I don't know that it's for speaking, it's more for listening. They use AirPods, so they got to be doing some service there. And then I also see some famous people on interviews, which is always interesting to me, with AirPods in. They're like famous people that you would think would have a decent microphone who are in entertainment business.

I think the AirPods are a better choice than the onboard mic. I think there's a better sound, it's a little closer to it for some somehow it's a better sound. So I I don't I don't mind on you know the AirPods. The onboard mic where the computer is sitting six feet away.

That that's awesome. But 100%. So if you haven't joined, what's going to get go ahead. I was gonna give a little question.

Tell everybody to join Insider, and you're gonna tell them why. But the if you're not in part of the Insider program coming in at the end of the year, going into 2027, you got to join. And we got stuff, good stuff coming up in September, correct, Bill? Yeah, September 1st Friday, we're going to talk about how you can use AI to grow your business.

And we're not telling you how to write emails with it. We're gonna go a whole lot deeper than that on in terms of how you can use it to actually build assets, construct assets in your business that you can use in your sales process in business life. So we're gonna do that. Uh go to advanced linepodcast.

com slash insider tuition, 97 smackers a month. You don't get 97 of value out of each of these things. You can email me and we will gladly refund your money. Gladly.

So I've got a uh, you know, um, you have pet peeves, and you talked about one last week where people cut in line in front of you. Uh, and now you're cutting line in front of them. So I'm glad you've made that trick. I don't do that.

No, I let them go ahead. I do get a little snarky with it though, sometimes. Like when they go in front of me, they don't even respond. I go, go ahead.

Go ahead. You're good. I'm like, oh, sorry. I'm like, no, it's fine.

Um one thing that has bothered me recently, and I know it's an AI thing, is all of the AI slop that's out there, and all of the sometimes you'll be watching a video of you know, a YouTube video, and you you tap on it because it looks like something of interest, and then you realize quickly, oh, this is an AI bot reading this. This is not a human. This is this is an AI bot. And you can always tell, and this speaking of body, you can always tell because the AI talks like this really close to the microphone.

I did not know that. Yeah, you listen to this, and and I was listening to one the other day, and my wife, I said, That's that's AI. She goes, How do you know? Because because it's sound the the shot of them is like this, but there's no microphone anywhere, even if it's a boom mic, those don't sound oh that's funny.

And so all these anytime you hear a video or watch somebody, even though their mouth seems to be moving, it's AI. And interesting. So here's so part two to that is uh don't you get tired of pre pre-written statements by political leaders and politicians? I just feel like, aren't we in the we always talk about the age of authenticity?

And yeah, we're not there, we're not even close to there. And all these, whether it's a commercial, whether it's a speaker, sometimes it's like, can't you just go off script? Can't you just say, you know what? My team prepared some notes for me to be today.

You know what I'm gonna do? I'm gonna pitch them out because I didn't like them. Here's the deal. I mean, wouldn't that be refreshing?

And I'm not talking about Trump does that, I'm not talking to him as I'm just talking about general. Wouldn't it be nice to really have some authenticity instead of having everything be prepared? Oh, the the politician didn't write the statement, they have an interns that wrote it, so it's not his or her words. So, how authentic is it?

If it's not even your words, you're just reading it, and totally. So, anyway, that's yeah, I yes, that well, that and I I I I've talked about this before. This generation coming up, these Gen Zers, because I raised four of them. I'm telling you, they see right through this BS.

They they do not like inauthentic things, they're the most authentic generation. Who you are is who you are, what you are is what you are. They catch a lot of crap because of being on socials, but they communicate and they can tell, they know they hate AI, not because it's even going to take their jobs, they just think it's stupid, they can tell things fake, they don't like fake stuff. So there's a there's a gap there.

I'm telling you, you got to connect with people on a real raw level, you know. I mean, even this whole uh, I'm not a huge fan of this necessarily for uh for culture reasons, but they're also in this um uh income transparency thing. And so when people try to BS about why, you know, some well, this and that, you know, about income, they're just like, just tell me what you make. I don't care.

It's really interesting to see this. Interesting. I didn't know that. I didn't know yeah, income transparency is a thing, so they just talk about it, they don't care.

They tell each other how much either each other makes and stuff like that, and they also don't judge it much, you know what I mean? They're just like, Yeah, whatever. Um interesting. So I'm I'm with you, man.

They yeah, you know, and I know I don't want to get when we're on a political show, but um Kevin Fetterm Fetterman, you know, he's he's very authentic to me. Or John Fetterman, that's Kevin, yeah. Yeah, John Fetterman's line who's uh exactly who is that, right? He's an actor or something.

Well, what are you doing? Britney Spears or something, or Kevin. Oh, that's right. That's who that is.

That's who that is. I'm much too old to be able to tap into that, but anyway. Speaking of authentic, Brittany Spears is doing great. God bless her, man.

Will someone help that woman? Uh well, you know, sometimes you just can't you can't look away. That's right. It's impossible not to watch.

That's why I tell people that with video for sales. I'm like, send someone a video and dare me to not watch it, they'll watch it anyway. I'm with you on that, and I think the world is yearning for some um just authenticity, just talk real. Everyone knows no one's perfect, and so when the perfect statement comes out, we know it's baloney because no one talks that way.

You don't talk that way. Anyway, I'm with you on that one. Well, we're gonna be doing AI and insider, so you're probably saying, Well, Bill, how can you justify doing an AI session aside? We're not going to have AI read anything for us, or we're gonna have it help us build things, and then we are going to be the ones that go out to the world and and do it in our voice, not in someone else's voice.

So just so yes. Okay, so here's the topic today, and and I want to get into this and see if you feel like we can do two so episodes, we can pick it up next time. But I've got a c uh friend who I uh meet with occasionally. He's a we used to work out together and we kind of lost touch.

And uh, and so we met the other day. We'll call him Eric just so we have a name, it's not his name. But Eric and I met for lunch, and he's a partner in a business where they're trying they're creating a software solution for hospital systems, and it's it's going to revolutionize the way billing is done and the way some of this stuff is done. I don't understand it, but let's suffice it to say that it's brand new and it's going to cause if uh it's gonna create a lot of revenue for hospitals, a lot of cost savings because of Medicare and Medicaid and stuff like that.

Anyway, it doesn't matter what the product is. But he goes when he goes in and he's kind of the business development arm right now, kind of part-time. Well, he goes in and talks to CEOs of hospitals and CFOs, he says they're they're very resistant to these new things. He said, because we said one of the guys even said, Look, I get 10 calls a day from people who say, Oh, it's gonna revolutionize the world.

And they're not, but when you come in and say that, yeah, I just put you in the same bucket with everybody else who lies to me. And and his response to that is, yeah, but ours is, you know, ours is right. So I thought it would be good to talk about when you have a product or a solution that's this revolutionary or that's that's different enough that there's some you're gonna have to convince them that the old way is no longer the way and the new way is the way, and that requires a lot of belief change on their part.

It requires you to not be pitchy because if you start pitching too early, it's easy for them to say, nah, we already got that, we don't need that. So I want to know from you how would you um how would you help my friend think about now what are some ways that you can fix this problem? And it's not one thing, it's probably a bunch, but how would you how would you look at it if you're him? This is a very, very good topic, and it's one that's uh I mean we we have this problem with our offering because we're we've modified our business to uh not be training anymore, and then people say, Oh, it's training.

I'm like, it's not training, and they go, sure it's not, and they keep talking about it like it's that. So it's really hard when you're sort of creating a category or something that doesn't exist. And even if it's new, even even if even if it's a bit some a product that's been around and it has a nuance that's gonna change something. That that's a that's a thing.

So here's where my brain went when you were uh setting it up for your friend Eric. Um he's gonna love that his stage name is Eric, by the way. He's gonna love um is this the sorting of prospects becomes really important here by tolerance for change or innovation. And so here's how I think about that.

I think the normal approach is I'm gonna go to these hospital systems, right? So I'm gonna go to IU Health, that's you know, here in Indianapolis, or I'm gonna go to St. Vincent Ascension Health System, and I'm gonna tell them this product's gonna revolutionize everything. Those are gigantic, high inertia, high bureaucracy places.

So I'd rather sort on tolerance for innovation or tolerance for um experimentation. And so I would leave with that messaging first and think, hey, we've got something new, we've got it beta tested or whatever, we've got some information, we're ready to go to that stage two. We're looking for a group or a hospital system, or maybe a subgroup within a hospital system that is ripe for innovation or really open to dabbling in the new and unknown to see if this thing can do what we think it can do.

Um, I've seen, I don't know if it's documented this way. The uh um, you know, there's the the the the the people that go first. I don't know what you call those, the early adopters, there's something like that, and there's the first follower. So early adopters are the ones that are more risk, they'll take the risk first.

But the once the first follower goes, there's a video on this, it's cool. It's a dancing video. Guys, some guy's dancing in a field by himself. All of a sudden, one person comes along and starts dancing with them, and then 50 come.

It's called first follower, it's really cool. I think about that. I mean, even with you know, I think about Ascension Health. I've got you know, that's a big and I'm Catholic, so I can say these things.

I always say, if you with Ascension Health, it's run by nuns in St. Louis. I'm like, remember Blues brothers when they had to go see the penguin, the the one who owned the so I always say, hey, you know, if you know, if you're not ready to go see the penguin, don't go yet. Maybe you should dial down and go to a regional hospital system that's a little smaller, trying to stay relevant.

So that's what I first do. Sort on tolerance for um innovation or change. So I'm gonna I'm gonna take that and this is this is valuable. That's really good.

And uh I think he listens. If not, I'll send it to him. Um good old Eric. Um what up, Eric?

Uh I think I would take that a little further and say, look, we're only opening up this opportunity to 20 hospitals over the next over the next year. And let me tell you what the requirements for these hospitals are. One tolerance for change, whatever though those things. Just write down the virtues that that person needs to have in order to make your to make your squad and and position it that way.

That way, when you when they say, well, what is it? Well, let me let me let me you wouldn't keep saying, let me see if you qualify, but let me tell you a little bit about it, and then you can tell me if that is something that you'd like to get on a wait list for. It could be a wait list, it could be like what we're installing three, we're working on January through, but you've got to change the dynamic. You can't be calling people up saying, I got the greatest things to slice bread.

They've heard that too many times. That's an old term. I don't know why. Too many times, so you you cannot if if you if you sell the old way, you'll get the old results, and the old results never work, especially today.

So figure out a way to reposition the entire offer, so it's not this is the greatest thing, it's hey, we've got something that we think is really special, it's not for everybody. In fact, if you're a billion-dollar hospital, it ain't for you. We're not ready for you, we don't want you. Well, that'll make them want you even more, but that's not what we're saying.

We're saying, look, this is the sweet spot. Here's who we're working with. We're only working with 20. Do you want to put your name in the ring?

And yes, because their competitors are probably hospitals like them, they're not the sections in the IU health. So there's a little bit of FOMO going on where it's like, Well, I'm gonna be talking to people in certain areas. Maybe you say, Look, I'm only I'm working with 20, and we're not going to work with anybody who's a competitor. Uh at first, we're gonna work.

Yeah, so there's a lot of different ways to slice this, so it's not just you pitching. Because when he when we were at lunch and he and he, I said, Well, what do you say? So you got a CFO on the phone or CEO. What do you say?

And he went through his pitch, and it was it was a pitch, it was a pitch. And I was like, Oh god, he's you know, he's buying lunch, but I'm not sure. I'm because his yeah, anyway, so it ain't my I that's why I'm doing I want to help him. Go ahead.

I I love the precision, and I love that precision of what I'm doing with some numbers. So I love that idea of so first, so we beta tested with three. Our next stage is we want to go to 20 early adopters, so we're in the process of sorting through who wants to be in that pool and who doesn't. That's an easy opt-out pool.

A lot of a lot of hospital systems go that we're not into that. Uh you know, early adopter, first follower. Call us when after those guys go for a couple years. So the first thing is the invitation to do you want to think about being in the pool?

Then we're gonna you know get those rolling, and then we'll have some better data, then we'll go upstream down the road. The saying the number 20 or any number doesn't matter before shit or before you're a you're really developing a partnership. Everybody throws the firm around. But this is more of a it's it's two of us on the same side of the desk looking at the problem and saying, here's how we're going to do this.

And it's not we're not trying to sell you anything, we're just seeing if you're interested in being a part of the pool, or I like that pool, yes. Um, and it just changes the dynamic away from sounding like every other sales clown that calls people up and does this amateur BS. Well, we got something really special for you. That's not the way to do it.

Well, and I would acknowledge that. I think you're you can differentiate in your language here by back to our earlier comments about authenticity. Just acknowledge this. Like, hey, here's being in and around hospitals.

Here's something I know software companies think and say, they all think they've got the greatest thing since sliced bread. Oh, they've got the greatest thing ever, and uh it's gonna revolutionize healthcare. Everybody says the same thing. Epic said I would use real hospital software things.

Epic says that this Metasource, this you know, all these people say that. Um, so we're in that camp. Um, we may believe that, but no one's gonna know until we get it out there and go. And you know what?

Nothing's that good. Nothing is that good. It just isn't, it's not realistic. Um, so just acknowledging that we we teach is one of our tools to list acknowledgements.

Let's acknowledge that. Let's acknowledge this is new and it's difficult to understand. I would acknowledge that people want to hang things they don't understand on things they do when it's not really what it is. So they go, oh, this is like a revenue cycle management software.

Well, it's not, it sounds like it, you know, and so it's really tough. And so um that I would acknowledge list acknowledgements out. Yeah, I like that too. We teach something a little different, and that's just meet them where they are, and a lot of times where they are is suspicious, not suspicious, but they're uh they're reluctant, they're hesitant, they've heard it before.

You're not the first rodeo that's come through town. And so understand where where they are when you show up, because if you can't meet them where they are, you're gonna try to move them, and they you were never in the same place. So, part of what you're saying is just acknowledge these things. Look, I know you you get calls every day from people like me, so I'm not gonna say that because I don't believe it.

Now, is it gonna be good? Yeah, it's gonna be good. It's not gonna be good for everybody because not everybody's a prospect. This is why we put this together here, pa.

So that's very helpful for him. I hope he listens. I will uh I'll send this to Eric. Uh is that Eric with a K or with a C?

I don't know. It's your guy, it's your stage name. I think we make it C K to make him use it. That's thank you.

I would do that. I would absolutely E-R-I-C-K. That's really well played. No, you haven't seen one of those, have you?

No, never, no. Okay, well, thank you for that. Uh that's really good. I like the qualifications, deciding who's taught who can tolerate change.

It's probably not the big, big, big dudes, it's probably the smaller or mid-sized people. Uh yeah, uh, it's it's kind of like getting on people's podcasts. You're probably not going to get on Adam Carolla's podcast or uh who has a big podcast in this space. Uh Joe Joe Rogan.

Joe Rogan, he has a pretty good size podcast. You know, I gotta you might you might get on a podcast like ours, or yeah, I got I got a pet peeve there too, but we'll say that for me too. Yeah, somebody else's, and then you work your way up, and then and then Joe Rogan says, You were on the you were on ASP. Oh, well, we should ask Joe Rogan to be on our podcast.

That's so true. We should pet peeve. This does people reach out to us all the time to be on our podcast. Oh, and it's so bad.

The pitchiness and the this person is this, and they sold 10,000 books and helped this many. No one ever says, Hey, I've got a guest, I've listened to a couple episodes of your show, but I don't know much about what you want to do with the angle on on the show. No, they never searched. No, they they say I love the episode about blah blah blah.

Yeah, exactly. Exactly. I'm just bumping this up in the timeline. Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god.

Yeah, I come on. We'll do it, we'll do a whole show on how to be a be a PR. Yeah, because we should read them, we should read them on air. They're real.

We get them all the time. We should read them. We should. All right, we won't read the names.

I don't want to, I don't want to how not to get your client booked on a podcast. I always like it when the when the first paragraph is, hey, we'll listen to show number 473 last week on uh how to prepare a PowerPoint presentation. It was really good. I took by the way, yeah.

Oh, geez. All right, yeah, you you've got a pretty good memory. What was episode 478? Do you remember that?

Oh, that's so that's when LinkedIn first came out. It was brand new then. So there's this new software called LinkedIn. We actually have one like that.

It's like it's from 07 or 08. Um so all right, good job today. Uh yeah, let us know in the in the uh LinkedIn group. If you're not a member, get to LinkedIn and join the ASP group, and we'll accept you quickly.

And let us know what you think of the show. If you have topics, we'd love to hear those from you too. We'll see you next time. All right, bye.