Regardless what the group is called conservatives have
missed the most important aspect of campaigning. A political campaign is in fact a sales
pitch. It must be delivered using basic
salesmanship. First it is important to
get the prospect’s (voter) attention, and then get him/her interested in the
pitch. The third and for sure the most
important part is convince the prospect of the benefits to him/her of agreeing
with what is being said. The Democrats
have dangled bright shiny beads and sparkling trinkets in front of the voters;
“free stuff”. Facts, logic, and reason do not evoke any emotional response,
except perhaps resentment. That is not
the emotion that will get people to agree with you. After showing and convincing the voter that
your ideas are of great benefit to him/her, the next step is to put the voter
into comfortable, happy, and safe place.
This is done by describing the pleasant situation that will be the
result of agreeing with what you are “pitching”. The finally of any speech must be a call to
action. If the first four parts are done
correctly the audience is ripe to follow a suggestion. Now is the time to “ask for the order”;
finalize the sales. Ask for their
support with specific suggestions.
Include how they will benefit through their support. Present precinct walking and phone banking as
a fun social event. If you are asking
for donations, show how and where they are to be used and how important it is
to raise whatever amount you need to raise.
It never ceases to amaze me how terrible our candidates
are at the art of salesmanship. I
attended several of Sarah Palin’s rallies. She really had as all in the palm of
her hand but there was no effective call to action at the end. The people left there eager to do something,
she should have given us better and specific direction.
Republican candidates will continue to come in second
best if they do not check out Dale Carnegie’s salesmanship courses. Let go of all previous conceptions about
campaigning. Realize you are selling something
and don’t be shy to use blatant sales tactics.
It might feel strange at first as it did to me. But once I took this approach seriously, it
worked wonders for me. I increased my
sales volume tenfold. I went from $20K to $200K a month after applying these
principles.
