On June 12, at 2:35 p.m., I went to Amazon.com and did a search under the books category. The single search term I used was “sales.” My search came back with 1,334,700 hits.

While my journalistic instincts are still strong, I confess that I didn’t go through the entire list to give you a sense of what I found.

Instead, I have a better idea. But let me invoke a cliché first: Everything starts with a sale. (Or something close to that.)

Everyone sells no matter what you do. It might not be a direct sale where you receive a financial reward for “selling” something. But selling includes trying to convince to do something they might not have to consider or are in opposition to.

The wide range of books that turned up in my Amazon search suggests both how important this subject is and that everyone has an opinion on it. Allow me to venture one. If you need to begin, improvise or fine-tune your selling skills, nothing beats narrowing the area of your specialty or concentration. (Or you’re left with the one million-plus hits).

That’s why I’m suggesting that you set aside Sept. 17 to 19 for HARDI’s Marketing and Sales Optimization Focus Forum at the Marriott Courtyard. HARDI has arranged 12 speakers to become part of your sales training during the conference with a content lineup that aligns nicely with those in the HVACR industry. My blog is obviously a teaser for what you will receive.  The presentations include: 7 B2B Consumer Behavior Secrets to Help You Improve the Impact of your Next Sales and Marketing Campaign; Your Sales Team is Making Junk Calls; and What Every HVACR Marketer Needs to Know. Now ask yourself that inevitable question: Is there any way that any of these topics can’t help but improve your sales or your teams’?

It is the last of the HARDI Focus Forum of the year. And for those in sales — every business’s lifeline — it just might be the most important.

And there is, of course, that “other” sales event that occurs at all these conferences. You’re networking, learning a new approach, listening to fresh ideas and making friends, some that might last a long time.

All that’s part of the sale too, isn’t it? If you want to “close” the sale and attend, visit hardinet.org.

Publication date: 6/14/2017