102: Jeremy Miner, 7th Level Founder and Chairman

Daniel Giordano

SUMMARY:

The biggest problem in sales is … not knowing what the problem is. That’s why Host Dan Giordano’s guest on this episode of The All-In Podcast is taking us a layer deeper to understand that closing deals correlates with understanding human behavior. If you want to see sales soar, you’ve got to get past resistance, says Jeremy Miner, who built his highly successful career on a science-based understanding of what drives prospects. As founder of 7^th Level, he is now helping others learn to manifest sales – rather than shut them down by unconsciously triggering negative responses from prospective buyers right out of the gate. Jeremy’s NEPQ (Neuro-Emotional Persuasion Questioning) framework is all about leveraging universal principles for attracting – rather than driving towards – outcomes. It all starts with identifying behaviors that communicate self-serving quotas and neediness, then changing the message. As you’ll learn on this episode, genuine curiosity, understanding customer pain points and making human connections are what’s key to cementing long-term sales relationships (and closing deals). You’ll come away from this high-level conversation with a new sales model based in neutralizing resistance. Imagine a world in which your prospects have let down their walls

If you’re interested in hearing much more from Jeremy, you can check out his podcast – Closers are Losers – at this link. You can also ask for a free taste of NEPQ 101 Minicourse by visiting his Facebook group here.

You can enjoy additional episodes of All-In here.

KEY TOPICS:

Understanding Jeremy’s “Crazy” Career Path: From door-to-door product sales at 21 to a curbside “aha” moment totally different from the received sales wisdom he’d heard!
Behavioral Science & Human Psychology: How Jeremy’s college major and on-the-ground sales experience collided to reveal how we make decisions.
Leveraging his knowledge of human behavior, Jeremy flipped the entire sales process, closing deals by using attraction rather than pushing and promotion.
Jeremy’s 17-year career has encompassed B2B and B2C models and a variety of industries (including alarm systems, debt reconstruction, network marketing and high-ticket sales).
Jeremy’s NEPQ (Neuro-Emotional Persuasion Questioning) Framework:
- Optimizes understanding of human behavior.
- Compensates for intuitive responses (and resistance) to verbal and non-verbal body language and tonality.
- Moderates undesirable social cues like aggressiveness, neediness or reactivity.
- Identifies approaches that send prospects into a fight-or-flight response.
Getting quick and decisive rejections? Your sales pitch is likely coming across in a way that is triggering prospects.
The key to engaging prospects is finding a genuine connection, based on curiosity and without any pressure to close a sale right away.
When you focus on your prospects’ actual problems and goals, rather than selling them something, they will be much more willing to open up.
Recipe for Failure: Drive too hard towards a sales endgame without engaging at a deeper level. You haven’t learned how to get your prospects to dive deeper with you.
Jeremy’s All-In Moment: After retiring several years back and looking around at the advice that so-called sales gurus were giving, it became clear that he had something to share about how to turn sales resistance and rejection into collaboration and success.
Why Personality Selling (with no replicable process) is not sustainable.
Regardless industry, Jeremy’s sales training process has been getting “massive results.”
Word to the Wise: Don’t get sidelined by all the transgenerational sales myths that are out there – and plain wrong!
Salespeople used to be a bridge, providing information, but today’s prospects know they can turn to the internet for background, comparables and alternatives.
Are you a problem-finder? You can’t solve a problem until you’ve identified it and brought a prospect to understand (and purchase a remedy for) that pain point.
Become a trusted authority or advisor instead of another pushy salesperson trying to push a one-size-fits-all product.
Jeremy’s Entrepreneurial Challenges:
- The first year of skeleton staffing stretched resources thin.
- It was critical for Jeremy to understand that managing his growing business was not a zone of strength. He had to get out of the weeds!
- Figuring out how to engage with partners who had skill sets Jeremy did not.
- Controlling runaway growth in order to protect the brand and client satisfaction.

KEY QUOTES:

“Everybody is taught skills. The people who fail are the ones who are not taught the right ones.” (Jeremy)
“I’d always thought skills were skills; selling was all the same and every technique was all the same … but skills can be outdated and maybe just not work that well..” (Jeremy)
“I started learning how to use techniques that work with human behavior, where I was getting my prospects to pull me in rather than me trying to push them. And overnight selling became very, very easy and profitable.” (Jeremy)
“Once I conquer something, I need to be challenged a little bit more.” (Jeremy)
“Any sales interaction that you’re ever involved in … in person or on a doorstep, on the phone or virtually on Zoom, your prospects are picking up on your social cues.” (Jeremy)
“(Fight or flight) is a triggered reaction based on what a salesperson is saying and how we’re saying it. And that’s where the prospect tries to get rid of you very quickly.” (Jeremy)
“Keep the idea that we have to close a sale to yourself because the moment you are just there to sell them is the moment your prospects emotionally shut down.” (Jeremy)
“The biggest problem in sales is the problem you don’t know you have. Because if you don’t know what your problem is, then how do you know how to fix it. You can’t!” (Jeremy)
“Instead of triggering (prospects) to keep their guard up, you have to learn how to trigger them to let their guard down.” (Jeremy)
“When you have a structured sales process that works, you can take that into any industry.” (Jeremy)
“(There) is a real problem in the industry with gurus spouting a bunch of stuff that isn’t true, and that isn’t really going to help people.” (Dan)
“Because of the newfound power (of the internet) prospects will no longer be manipulated or pressured by pushy salespeople … so you have to get really good at becoming a problem finder who is asking the right questions.” (Jeremy)
“What you’re weak in, you want to find another business partner with that strength. You don’t want to have a business partner that has the same strengths you do 100%.” (Jeremy)
“Sometimes we will quite literally slow down because we’re growing too fast and have to hire more people. When you’re more focused and care about client results over the money you make, things really happen pretty quick.” (Jeremy)

LINKS/RESOURCES MENTIONED:

“Pre-Suasion: A Revolutionary Way to Influence and Persuade,” by Paul Cialdini.

Contacts for Jeremy:

WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | LINKEDIN | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE

About the All In Podcast Show:

The All-In Podcast Show presents top Entrepreneurs, Innovators and World Changers willing to share their breakthrough moments and how they are changing the world. Focused on being “All-In” on the four areas of life: faith, family, finances, and health, host Daniel Giordano invites mentors who exemplify balance and a commitment to building a bold life of excellence.

Previous episodes of the The All-In Podcast can be found here.