Frank Bettger—From Failure to Success in Selling
弗兰克·贝特格——成功销售秘籍
Sale is primarily a game of numbers and communication， and if you ever needed to be convinced of that， the story of Frank Bettger is one of the best examples. Frank Bettger is one of the most successful life insurance salesmen in America. When he was twenty-nine， he was just a failed insurance salesman. By the time he was forty he has owned a country villa and could have retired. What are the selling secrets that turned Bettger's life around from defeat to unparalleled success and great fame as one of the highest paid salesmen in America？
Frank had been an American baseball player until a shoulder injury forced him suddenly to quit the game and the team， with no business training and experience at that time. Eventually， after struggling financially and realizing the responsibility of supporting his wife and their baby， Frank got himself into the life insurance business as a professional salesman.
After only 10 months in the business， Frank， like around 100，000 life insurance sales people at that time， dropped out as a failure. In fact， his company dumped him even though he was on commission only. Frank just couldn't make a success.
Still unable to find a job， Frank had been called from his former office one day to collect something he'd left behind. Fate really and truly smiled on Frank that day， because unconsciously he was lucky enough to overhear a meeting being addressed by company president Walter Le Mar Talbot. What Walter said in just one sentence catapulted Frank back into selling business：
“Gentlemen， this business of selling narrows down to one thing—just one thing—seeing the people face to face and communicating with them！ Show me a man of ordinary ability who will go out and earnestly tell his story to four or five persons every day， and I will show you a man who just can't help making good！”
And in the next 10 weeks Frank sold more life insurance than he'd sold the previous 10 months！ Frank had been inspired to get out and see the customers. But soon later， Frank failed again. The reason why he started to fail was that Frank had stopped making the calls and his appointments with his customers naturally became a vicious circle. In Frank's words， using a baseball saying， “you can't hit them if you don't see them”.
After locking himself in his office for a serious soul-searching， Frank finally realized that the basic principle of a salesman was to make close communication with his customers and he had to plan over again and prioritize to keep records， or his business would keep slumping and he would never be as successful as he did.
Frank proceeded to plan his schedule， keeping meticulous records， so that he could see on a daily basis how he was doing and thereby set and achieve just about next goal he chose. The most important thing is that he started to get out and see his customers again. Finally， he came to his big success and became one of the highest paid salesmen in America.
As you saw from Frank Bettger's story， the moment he stopped seeing his customers was the moment he began to fail. Therefore， if you are a salesman or you are a would-be one， you're entitled to have absolute confidence in reaching any sales target you set， and to assure that， you must keep in touch with your customers very closely and record the condition for every one of your customers on a daily basis.
Later on， Frank Bettger published his own book called How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling. In it， Frank reveals his personal experiences and explains the foolproof principles that he developed and perfected. He shares instructive anecdotes and step-by-step guidelines on how to develop the style and spirit of a winning salesperson.
If you have read Frank's book， you'll see that the secret of his success lies in the communication with his customers and in those close contacts he developed an exquisite ability to see the world through his customers' eyes. That， combined with his perfect strategies， is what put him into great success.
销售，从根本上来讲是一个数字与交际的游戏，如果你需要对此观点进行证明的话，那么弗兰克·贝特格的故事便是最好的例子。弗兰克·贝特格是美国最成功的人寿保险推销员之一。二十九岁时，他还只是一名失意的保险推销员。但到四十岁时，弗兰克·贝特格已经拥有了一栋乡间别墅，并且可以退休养老了。究竟是什么秘诀使得贝特格，这位美国推销员中薪酬最高的人，从一个失败者转变成为了一个无比成功、且拥有很高名望的人呢？
弗兰克曾是一名美国棒球队员，一次意外的肩部受伤迫使他退出了比赛和球队。那时的他没有受过任何商业培训，也没有任何经商经验。由于经济所迫，加上意识到赡养妻儿的重任，最终弗兰克投身入行人寿保险业，成为了一名职业推销员。
与当时其他的大约十万名人寿保险推销员一样，弗兰克仅仅入行做了十个月便以失败告终。事实上，尽管弗兰克仍承担着保险业务，但公司却早已将他扫地出门。弗兰克无法获得成功。
弗兰克依旧找不到工作，一天，他接到了以前办公室打来的一个电话，让他回去收拾一些留在那里的物品。那一天，命运之神真正地向弗兰克露出了笑脸，他无意间很幸运地听到了一场由公司董事长沃尔特·塔尔博特致词演讲的会议。沃尔特的一句话使得弗兰克再次一头扎进了推销业之中：
“先生们，做销售这一行可以缩小到做一件事上——仅仅是一件事——那就是面对面的交流！如果让一个才华平庸的人，每天都出门对四到五个人真诚地讲述他的故事的话，那么这个人将会自然而然地做得好起来！”
在随后的十周里，弗兰克所推销出的人寿保险的数量要比他过去十个月里推销出的还要多！弗兰克受到了启发，开始走出房门与客户见面。但不久之后，弗兰克再一次失败了。这次失败的原因是由于他不再打电话和客户约会见面，这自然而然地变成了一种恶性循环。弗兰克引用棒球中的一句谚语：“如果你看不到目标，你就无法击中它们。”
弗兰克将自己锁在了办公室中进行了一次严肃的自我反省，最终，他意识到作为一名推销员，其基本准则便是与客户保持紧密的联系，他必须重新进行规划，把事情的优先顺序排好以保持他的销售记录，否则他的生意就会一直消沉下去，他将不会重演昔日的成功。
弗兰克开始着手规划他的时间表，一丝不苟地做着记录，以便看到自己每天都做了些什么，从而制定并达到他所选择的下一个目标。最为重要的是，弗兰克再一次开始走出房门与客户见面。最终弗兰克获得了巨大的成功，成为了美国薪酬最高的推销员之一。
从弗兰克·贝特格的故事中，我们可以看到他不再与客户见面时，便开始走向失败了。因此，如果你是一名推销员或是想要成为一名推销员，那么你完全有资格拥有绝对的信心去达到你所设定的任何销售目标。为了能确保这一点，你必须与你的客户保持密切的联系，并且以天为基础，每天记录下关于你的每一位顾客的情况。
后来，弗兰克·贝特格出版了一本名为《我如何从销售失败走向销售成功》的书。书中，弗兰克披露了他的个人经历并且解释了由他设计并完善的简单法则。此外，他还与大家分享了一些有教育意义的轶事，并就成为一名成功推销员所应具有的风格和精神进行了循序渐进的指导。
如果你已经读过弗兰克的这本书的话，你会发现他成功的秘诀便是与客户进行交流。在这些密切的接触中，弗兰克具备了一种从客户的角度来观察世界的敏锐的能力。这一点和他的那些完美的策略相结合便造就了弗兰克的巨大成功。
译者感言
弗兰克·贝特格，“国际大师级的推销员领袖”，美国人寿保险的创始人，被誉为世界最杰出的十大推销大师之一。他曾创下15分钟签约25万美元的最短签单记录。与那些白手起家的成功人士一样，弗兰克·贝特格并没有显赫的家世和很高的学历，但他凭借自身的执着与激情创造出了属于自己的神话。60岁高龄的他在全美各地演讲时曾引起了竞选总统般的轰动。连戴尔·卡耐基都曾在书中对其高度称赞。弗兰克·贝特格的推销技术曾在美国市场上引起过一场革命。一名推销员的本质工作便是与人接触、交流、进行沟通，而弗兰克·贝特格正是将这一最基本的推销理念加以自我完善并演绎到了极致，才有了他非凡的成就。因此说，交际在弗兰克·贝特格的成功中起到了至关重要的作用。从弗兰克·贝特格的人生经历中我们可以学到，与他人的沟通、交流往往会给我们的人生带来转机，我们的人生也许会因此变得更加精彩。
