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Wired West: Volume 11, no. 4

SLA 2008: The 7:00 am Sale

By Christina Struik

This topic was obviously of interest to many information professionals, as we had standing room only. Tesse Santoro faced a room full of people who were half-asleep and hungry from getting up early and rushing straight to the meeting room. She chose her speaking style well to get the most enthusiasm and information retention from her audience that morning: storytelling.

Tesse used personal stories to elaborate on the many tips she shared with us. It was only partway through the session that I realized I was discovering numerous ways to sell myself in addition to good reasons for learning how to do it well.

The tips were embedded in the stories. She stressed the importance of a prepared delivery speech for different time segments (30 seconds, 60 seconds) and the incredible impact such a small delivery can have when made to the right person at the right time. What would you say if someone high up in your company (or a company you'd like to work for) asked, "So what do you actually do?" What would you say if you weren't asked at all but could finally get the CEO's attention for 30 seconds in an elevator, on the stairs, or while waiting for a meeting to start? To help, build a list of what you have accomplished, jot down your accomplishments as you finish them and keep tabs on praise so that you can actually bring these up when selling yourself. We tend to move on the next item quickly in our fast-paced profession and forgetting our accomplishments can be altogether too easy later on.

More hints came in the form of informal personal sales. Learning to focus on the positive and being vocal about it wins more hearts than bad-mouthing people or places. This information tied in well with the conference theme of building bridges, as opposed to burning them. It really is a small info-world after all. We just fit mammoth amounts of information into it!

The next section spoke to the first part of the conference theme, breaking rules. Be bold. If you want to work for an organization without information services, study them and present to them exactly how they could use your services for their specific needs. Often, you can find a unique selling point for yourself. Bring this item up and make it whatever you can think of that may separate you from the crowd. It will make you more desirable, providing the unique skill is of use to the organization. Tailor it! And don't be afraid of saying you are willing to learn a new skill even if you currently don't use it. Potential employees have ruined their chances at a job simply by saying "Oh, I don't do that" when asked about performing a certain task during an interview.

The speaker had good energy while not being too perky for the morning hour, and she managed to fill our heads with new ideas for what to emphasize, why to emphasize, and how to do it when presenting ourselves to someone else. We left mentally sated and in search of provisions to fill our bellies as we had our heads before reasserting our quest for knowledge at another session.

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