I’ve always been fascinated with persuasion. I blame my mother.
As a single parent, she had no time for tantrums, and would not tolerate them. There was a day when I was three, maybe four years old, and we drove past a Ms. Fields Cookie store. I demanded that she buy me one. I told her I wouldn’t love her anymore if she didn’t.
She told me that I would absolutely not get the cookie, especially with that attitude. Right then and there, she educated me on the ways of the world, for which I am forever grateful: if I wanted something, it was on me to convey to her exactly why I needed it. If I didn’t need it, then I could try to convince her I deserved it. And if I didn’t need nor deserve it, well then, why did I feel that I should ask for it?
And so began my education in the finer arts of communication.
Now, as an adult, I take the same view towards the brands that I work with. Great, you have a product. You think it’s fantastic, and can tell me all the ways that you think it’s the best product in the world. However, it doesn’t matter if you think it’s the best. It doesn’t even matter if I think it’s the best – though it does help in the process. It matters that we, together, as a team, can convince the customer that it’s the best.
Rebecca Runkle 