Key to Selling Your Ideas

Whether you’re pitching a new business idea to prospective partners, or trying to drum up support for a web development project, you need to be aware of a critical obstacle to success and how to overcome it.

Pitching a Partner or Project

The We Barrier is an invisible force that stands between you and your target (prospective partner, colleague, whatever). It shows itself when you first describe your idea, as your target responds along the lines of “You can do…” The target might play things cool and try not to let you know what they’re thinking, but if at some point in the conversation they switch from “You could do…” to “We could do…” then they’ve jumped the We Barrier and you’ve got them hooked. They won’t even realize that they let that slip, so watch for it.

(BTW, I apologize for the use of “target” as I can’t think of a better euphemism for the person you’re talking to.)

Interviewing

The We Barrier also works in the interviewing process, only it goes both ways. If you are playing the part of the interviewer, watch for your candidate using “We can do…” phrases – in fact, try to tailor some of your questions to solicit this. (For example, describe a business situation in your department and ask the candidate how they think it should be handled – not how they’d handle it, but how it should be handled. You’ll either get a “You should do…” or a “We should do…” response.) This can help you more accurately gauge interest in your job opening.

As the interviewee, you can watch your own use of the We Barrier if you want to play your cards close to the vest. Alternately, you can choose to jump the barrier immediately, giving only “We can do…” responses to express your enthusiasm for the opportunity. In fact, it might be the tipping point that lands you the job!

Beating the We Barrier

So now that you know about this barrier to success, how do you get around it to sell your ideas?

• Tell your story — A great way to start is to just tell your story about what the idea is and where it came from. Don’t get too wordy, though – nobody likes a lecture. Remember, this is a conversation so you don’t want to do all the talking.
• Why them? — You could have talked to anybody about your idea, so they have to be wondering why you chose them. Explain what qualities they have that you think would bring success to your idea, and be sure to use your “We could do…” words. Make it clear that you plan on success either way, but you’d much rather have them with you.
• Engage your target — As I said, this should be a conversation not a lecture. Ask them questions, ask for feedback, ask for suggestions. Use your “We could do…” words, and watch for them using them too. Talk about some challenge that you foresee and ask how they think you could approach it. Watch for the We Barrier in their responses.
• Feed the passion — While you talk with your target, try to ignite the same fire of passion in them that your idea ignited in you. (Don’t tell me there isn’t any passion – there’s always passion in any new idea. Look for it, or start looking for a different idea.) Fires have a tendency to spread, and that’s what you want – to spread your passion to your target.
• Find allies — If you’re in a group setting, cast a wide net until you get members across the Web Barrier and then use them to pull their fellows across. If you’re building a new business team, bring the last person you convinced when you talk to the next ones. In fact, if at all possible take the approach of divide and conquer. Talk to the group members individually, so that any naysayers won’t bring the fence-sitters down on the wrong side of the We Barrier.
• Close the deal — Keep asking questions until you hear the We Barrier fall. Then, and only then, move in and close the deal. Ask them if they’re in or out, and you’ll get your ideas sold in no time.