Stan Phelps - Sales through Compassion and Differentiation

In this episode of Selling From The Heart, co-hosts Darrell Amy and Larry Levine invite guest Stan Phelps to discuss the importance of compassion and differentiated experience in sales. Stan shares his perspective on compassion, emphasizing the need to go beyond empathy and truly care about clients. The conversation explores the concept of "upgrading your humanware" by understanding oneself and clients' behavioral styles. Stan introduces the Diamond Rule, a framework that combines elements of the Golden Rule and the Platinum Rule, emphasizing the value of treating clients the way they want to be treated. The episode also delves into the goldfish metaphor, highlighting five factors that contribute to growth in both goldfish and businesses. Stan's book series, featuring different colors to represent aspects of customer experience, is also discussed. Listeners are encouraged to connect with Stan Phelps on LinkedIn and explore his books on Amazon.ABOUT THE GUESTStan Phelps is a Forbes Contributor, TEDx Speaker, IBM Futurist, Certified Speaking Professional, and best-selling author of the Goldfish Series. He is also an Instructor for the ANA School of Marketing and Rutgers Business School.A show-and-tell speaker, Stan empowers audiences to take action that delivers bottom-line impact. He strives to change the paradigm of marketing by encouraging audiences to focus on experiences as the ultimate competitive differentiator. He believes purposeful DX wins the hearts of employees and customers, and differentiation ultimately boosts loyalty, retention, referrals, and results.A masterful storyteller who quickly connects with audiences, Stan has delivered keynotes and workshops for Fortune 100 brands including IBM, Target, and more. He works directly with you to customize content that matches your audience and your goals to create a memorable and meaningful experience every time. Count on Stan to show up early, arrive prepared, and disrupt the all-work-and-no-play methodology with his sharp wit and trademark showmanship. He makes it his mission to exceed expectations and inspire audiences in ways they just can’t help but talk about — and won’t soon forget. KEY TAKEAWAYSCompassion in Sales: Selling from the heart means conducting business with compassion, going beyond empathy to truly caring about the customer's needs and well-being.Importance of Warmth: Warmth and sincerity are valued more than competence in building trust and relationships with customers.Differentiated Experience: Differentiating yourself in sales is not just about what you do, but why you do it, how you do it, and the experience you provide.Five Factors of Growth: Just like goldfish, businesses have five factors that influence their growth: market size, competition, external environment, early performance, and differentiation.Controllable Factors: Of the five growth factors, you have control over differentiation—how you stand out, why you do what you do, and how you build relationships.Word of Mouth: Word of mouth and referrals are crucial for business growth, and they are earned by providing exceptional experiences and going above and beyond for customers.Lagniappe: The concept of "lagniappe" or "land yap" from New Orleans emphasizes the importance of doing a little extra to honor the customer relationship and create memorable experiences.Diamond Rule: The Diamond Rule combines elements of the Golden Rule (treat others as you want to be treated) and the Platinum Rule (treat others as they want to be treated) by first managing yourself under pressure and then understanding and reducing pressure for your clients.Understanding Behavioral Styles: Recognizing that people have different behavioral styles helps you adapt your approach to meet their specific needs and preferences.