I was in Sri Lanka in October 2004 (still blissfully unaware of the devastation that the country was to suffer a month later). One thing that struck me about the Sri Lankans was their ability to sell you exactly what you want at a price you’re happy to pay. A classic example of this occurred one day in a gem store (of which there are a vast number in Sri Lanka).

My wife, Anne and my daughter, Jo were doing a tour of the gem stores. As beautiful as the stones were, I had reached overload but Anne and Jo had insatiable appetites for ‘bling’. While they were oohing and ahhing, I took a seat and relaxed. I noticed that the salesman behind the counter was watching a middle-aged couple intently as they browsed around. It seemed clear to me that they were just browsing with no intention of making a purchase and I wondered if he had seen something in their body language that I had missed.

As they were about to leave the store without having bought anything, he said: “Excuse me Madam” addressing the woman specifically “I notice you love sapphires as much as I do. Can I show you something?”

“Oh, no thank you,” she said, “We were just looking”

“Of course. No. This is not for sale. It’s an exhibition piece but I love sapphires too. You must see this before you go” and he produced the biggest and most exquisite sapphire I had ever seen. The effect was as if he had hooked her with a fishing line and reeled her over to the counter with her husband in tow. I hadn’t noticed she was paying particular attention to sapphires but he had. He talked enthusiastically about sapphires as she nodded in complete agreement. Here was a man who understood the beauty of what was surely the most spectacular of all gems. They were on safe ground. This gem was clearly way beyond the means of all but the very rich. He wasn’t selling but sharing a mutual passion.

He dropped into the conversation that they had a number of extremely expensive sapphires that they couldn’t put on display for security reasons. Would she like to see them? You bet she would! He produced a tray that brought a gasp from her bosom. The most expensive gem on the tray was £10,000. She was in ecstasy. There were a number of smaller gems on the tray, some of which had been mounted onto rings. She admired each gem in turn until she came to one that looked as if it might possibly be withing their price range. “How much is this?” she asked but her husband was already shaking his head to remind her that they were looking, not buying. The salesman had spotted the husband’s gesture. “Oh that one is very expensive, I’m afraid. It’s because of the cut of the gem. I couldn’t let that go for less than £500″

She looked at her husband “Could we…?”

“No we can’t,” he insisted, “I told you – we’re looking, not buying “

The salesman looked sympathetically at her and said: “I’m so sorry, Madam” and was about to put the tray back when he seemed to have an idea. “Wait a minute” he said and produced a form. “We can sell to dealers at considerable discounts but only to dealers, you understand.”

“Oh, we’re tourists, not…” the man began but the salesman brought his finger to his lips and politely shushed him. “If you were to tell me you were dealers, I would be happy to take your word for it. We don’t always ask for evidence.”

“Oh, I see” the man said, getting the hint but still a little wary.

“Are you a dealer?” the salesman asked. The man’s wife was nodding vigorously, urging him to say yes.

“How much discount?” the man asked.

The salesman lowered his voice “I could let you have it for £350″

“Oh Steve!” his wife hissed excitedly. There was no way he could say no and stay on good terms with her for the rest of their holiday. He filled in the form and handed over his credit card.

Were they conned? No. Manipulated? Certainly. Misled? A little, but certainly not conned.

Although it is unlikely that the ring had ever had the £500 price tag, the salesman never expected to sell it at that price. He knew the answer would have been no even if he’d initially quoted £350 because her husband was clearly adamant that they were looking, not buying. However, judging by similar rings on display, it was certainly worth the £350 they paid for it. What the salesman did was pitch it just beyond their price range and then appear to go out on a limb to bring it just within their price range. This made it irresistible. It also rewarded the man’s ego. He could tell the folks back home that he told them he was a dealer and got them to knock £150 off the price, earning him a little kudos. He had also been able to impress the salesman by buying a ring that the salesman had clearly assumed to be beyond their means (“Oh that one is very expensive, I’m afraid…” ). He had made the man feel wealthy and powerful. The man was happy. The wife had the ring she wanted at a fair price and the salesman made a sale that was about to walk out the door. Everyone was happy and no one was ripped off.

The salesman had watched her and made a note of what pressed her buttons. He had also correctly estimated what they could afford to spend, perhaps by their dress or by their manner. He then lured her with the prospect of seeing sapphires she would be unlikely to see on display and fed her passion for them by expressing his own. Although the ring was no more beautiful than the rings on display she had already seen, it had become infused by the beauty of the gems that were way beyond their reach. He didn’t make her want it. He didn’t need to. The desire was already there but tethered by the knowledge that they were looking, not buying. He simply untethered her desire by feasting her eyes on unattainable gems before bringing one almost to within their reach. Then, when she had dared to hope that it might be within their reach and experienced the disappointment, he brought it actually within their reach. He had created a situation in which the husband could not say no and she couldn’t go home without it.

Despite the manipulation and the misleading initial quote – and, of course, the whole cock-and-bull story about dealers discounts, the salesman had essentially done nothing morally wrong. Quite the contrary. He had liberated them and he had empowered them. Their holiday budget might be £350 lighter but they would have no reason to regret the purchase. He had provided a rare and enriching experience that few get the opportunity to enjoy. How many of us have ever held a £10,000 sapphire in our hand? He had given them exactly what they wanted at a fair price that they were happy to pay. He had given them a moment they would cherish forever.

I was once told by a salesman that “Anybody can sell the people what they want. The trick is to sell ‘em what you’ve got.” This is not only a pretty shabby approach but it doesn’t hold true. We often see something we want that wouldn’t break the bank to buy but still we walk past because we don’t feel free to spend that much on ourselves. We feel it would be irresponsible. Heck! It’s our money! If we can’t afford it, we can’t buy it but, if it’s within our means then we do ourselves a disservice by denying ourselves what we want just because we feel it’s too indulgent. We do this all the time. This salesman liberated his customers from the constraints of their self-denial.

Fortunately, he didn’t pull the same stunt on my wife and daughter. I guess I must have looked every inch of the £25 I had in my pocket.

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Ron Tocknell – EzineArticles Expert Author

Tags: marketing, ethics, manipulating, unethical, strategy