A “No” Brainer!

A “No” Brainer!

I sat down to coffee with my Swedish girlfriend last week. She asked me whether I found Sweden a “negative” country.

On exploring what she meant a little more deeply, she commented that she found Swedes to answer “no” as a first line answer, all too often, with no suggestion of possible alternatives.

She gave some examples.

On asking the girl at the coffee shop if they had lactose free milk, the answer was just plain “no”.

When asking the doctor about a certain medical treatment, the answer was “no, we don’t offer that”.

On arrival at the restaurant she had asked what the soup of the day was. Her question was met with “no the soup is finished”. When asking if they had salad instead, the answer was “no”. And of course the answer regarding the availability of a gluten free alternative, met with a blatant “no”.

If you are reading this blog, I am sure you are a marketing savvy person or someone with an entrepreneurial spirit (why else would you have stayed with me for so long on this spiel?). I am also sure you may be able come up with more positive ways to answer the questions above.

The negative answer results in a disappointed customer and no sale. A positive answer, offering alternatives, results in a happy customer / client and a potential sale or, at least, a positive exchange of dialogue.

A “no” brainer one may say. Pardon the pun.

But why are so many sales people and those in a service industry so negative?

It is so easy, I believe, to offer alternatives, engage in positive dialogue, smile and offer a service willingly. It ends in a win-win for all engaged.

To answer my girlfriend’s question, this is not just a phenomenon affecting Sweden. However, other countries do seem to have more outward positivity embedded in their culture.

In my sales training I work with positivity, finding solutions, offering alternatives. No is sometimes the answer, but seldom.

Lets ban “no” for a day, yes?! Try it!

Have you also noticed this behavioral trait? Do you think this is a cultural thing? Can people be trained to be more positive? Interested in your views.

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