Selling with NLP, Kerry L. Johnson

For someone who has never been in contact with NLP before, this book is undoubtedly a treasure (as it NLP offers after all an introduction to one of the most powerful brain management and persuasion techniques in the world ). For the seasoned NLP (Master) Practitioner, it offers little surprises.

In Part 1 Johnson describes how to build rapport, using representational systems and predicates in selling (selling to visually oriented, auditory, kinesthetics and to groups.)

In Part 2: Johnson describes to how to effectively listen, using the right keywords, persuasive words, reframing and metaphors, mirroring, eliciting outcomes, pacing and leading conversation. Then it goes in to how to turn a no in to a yes, and detect signals for closing.

At the end Johnson provides a 21 day plan to incorporate all of the skills.

I would recommend this book as a good starting point to people with no NLP skills at all. It is likely to be a good resource for people who have heard “something” about NLP, and are wondering if taking an NLP training is worth the investment (which is definitely is.) This book is by no means near to a substitute of the power that an NLP training can give a sales professional.

The book covers some NLP basics, and leaves the reader hungering for more. Particularly learning more in depth skills, techniques, nuances, (covert) hypnotic suggestion, etc.

With 223 pages, it is not the definitive guide to NLP, persuasion, or to selling.  (If such a book is there, I have yet to find it.)  Usually a book about NLP and selling translates in to a overview of NLP topics that are useful in selling. An extrapolation of certain techniques. This combined with some basic skills on selling. It highlights a great number of topics, but stays void of nuance and detail. The sales examples are not the greatest due to their simplicity, but do drive a point home.  There is in strength in presenting NLP knowledge in this simplified way though, if you prefer a quick informative read and want to learn some powerful skills quickly. The book is definitely an easy and fast read, which should be preferred anyway over hugely complicated books you spend many hours of reading without any specific result other then having read it.

“Selling with NLP” will be useful to those NLP practitioners whom are coming from a background opposite to sales, like therapy or education. Particularly if you have taken NLP training with your “therapists” or “self help” hat on. This book gets you in to the mood of thinking about NLP in terms of using for sales. As the topics described in this book, can be found in any NLP book or training, and basically offer a nice re-cap of the training with a sales focus. For detail and true mastery you may be better off reading NLP books that deal with more specific (specialized) topics, or expand more on topics like, future pacing, anchoring, persuasive language, setting well formed outcomes, modelling etc. If you already own some good NLP resources, you are probably better off reading those again with your “sales” hat on. Buy some basic resources on sales…and off you go. And then just do it, experiment, experiment, and experiment some more.

“Persuasion Engineering” is however something different, this is Bandler and LaValle teach. What the books do have is common is stressing that the most important thing you sell is a “feeling.” (Which is very true, and in my opinion key!)

If you want to know how to apply all NLP models in the sales arena, then I probably would recommend other books, like “Influencing with Integrity” by Laborde (Unfortunately out of print, but still available via non-chain book sellers, or Ebay.)  Another recommended read for sales I find Shelle Charvets, “Words that Change Minds: mastering the language of influence” (for those interested in metaprograms.)

As I have gone on the topic of recommending books, I have to mention Richard Bandlers “Persuasion Engineering“, of course. Of those who wish to know the creator of NLP viewpoint on selling with NLP. I would recommend this to NLP trained sales people, who want a hugely entertaining read, sprinkled with genius. I would however not recommend it to someone who doesn’t know anything about NLP at all, or is looking for a structured sales manual.

As for who is the real authority, Johnson or Bandler. Kerry Johnson may be a good tennis player, but where it comes to NLP he isn’t the creative genius that Richard Bandler is. As Johnson’s book is basically an exact recap, of what Bandler invented.  Johnson more traditional style of presenting and the assumption that the reader has never done anything with NLP, may appeal more to those that need to be initiated in to the topic of NLP.

Which leaves me to conclude, is this book NLP? Yes, but a very small part of it. For a sales professional this is a mere tip of the iceberg as to what NLP can do for them. There are currently no definitive guides that cover it all that NLP is on the market. NLP is something that is to be learned and experienced by taking an NLP training, that would be the consensus of anyone who has done NLP training and read books or online resources.

 ”Selling with NLP” by Kerry L. Johnson, you decide if you want to run to the bookstore to go get it.

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