Erica Keswin

How to be the Expert you Are with Dorie Clark

How can you give yourself permission to sell in the midst of a pandemic? Afterall, no one likes to feel pressured in a sales transaction, much less in the middle of a global health crisis. Guest Dorie Clark will be the first to tell you—selling is nothing to be ashamed of—if you’re honest and authentic, that is. Join Erica as she sits down with this author, speaker, strategist, and Duke professor to hear about how to build professional relationships with genuine connection and service. Dorie also shows us what NOT to do by sharing a cringeworthy story of a time when she found herself in a rather untransparent situation. She’s also the master of working from home, having been in the #WFH crew since 2006, so her insight on this way of working, that we all now find ourselves in, is especially prescient. Listen to this episode especially if you need a little encouragement to be the expert that you already are. The world needs you! Oh, and you’ll love her wholesome daily ritual.

Quotes

9:33 – On selling authentically: “I think that there is really nothing wrong, now or ever, with taking the approach, ‘Hey! I have a thing. This thing might be useful to you. If it is, I would be glad to tell you more about it. If it is not, please click here, and you will not hear one more word about it.’”

10:50 – On selling during the quarantine: “As long as we are super clear, and no one feels tricked and no one feels pressured, then I actually think it’s a great time to be selling things. That people might really feel like, ‘Gosh, actually, I have more time to devote to this,’ or ‘This is exactly what I need right now.’”

13:03 – On honoring relationships: “I think the most important thing that we can be doing as professionals who are selling in some capacity—it’s just being really honest and transparent about what is what.”

26:00 – On using her best skills to be helpful: “I don’t really want to give my opinion just to hear myself talk. Ideally the goal is to give my opinion in a way that can be useful to people. So when I feel like I’m able to do that, that really feels like, ‘Ah yes! That’s the idea!’”