MAN

One of the more successful international trading companies is 3M. It is one of 30 companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and is also a component of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index. 3M’s sales for 2007 touched US$24.462 billion while its net income was US$4.096 billion. 3M used to be called Minnesota Mining and Minerals before its name was shortened to 3M.

3M’s success is in its training program. It is said to have the best training module for its salesmen and it is also said there is nothing a 3M salesman can’t sell. For example, the salesmen are taught, to successfully close a sale, you must sell to the MAN. MAN here means: Means, Authority and Need. The person making that decision to buy must have the means (money or budget), authority (power to make that decision to buy) and need (they require the item you are trying to sell). If one of these three ingredients is missing then you will never be able to close the sale.

So, if you are a salesman and you want to successfully close that sale, go look for the MAN. Only the person who has the three ingredients of the MAN will make, or be able to make, that decision whether to buy from you or not.

Raja Petra Kamarudin's 3M="Money Motivates Man (man as in humankind rather than gender description)". Yes, money is the greatest motivator of man. Nevertheless, there are also other motivators; sex and power. However, once you have money, then these others can come easily and naturally.

Ever wondered why wealth, power and sex always seem to come together? In fact, you can exchange one for the other. If you have money you can buy power or if you have power you can make money. And sex can also be used as a ‘commodity’ to ‘sell’ for money and power -- or, if you have money and/or power, you can buy sex easily.