An airplane is a surprisingly effective place to study how poorly people introduce themselves. If you’re hunting for what not to do in sales, air travel is like a Serengeti safari where half-blind, three-legged lions stumble after gazelles.
It’s a live-action documentary of missed opportunities—and, considering nearly 600,000 businesses die each year—more than a few starving creatures.
Last Friday, I found myself in the aisle seat of exit row 16 on a 10:09 a.m. flight from LaGuardia to DFW. I was returning from a strategic selling workshop with a building materials distributor in New Jersey. Our primary focus was pipeline management. On our first post-workshop Accountability Call, we’ll shift to intelligent introductions.
Now, if you think scripting your self-introduction is beneath you, I’d strongly encourage you to reconsider. Documenting the specific words that instinctively tumble out of your mouth at a Home Builders Association meeting, the LBM Strategies Conference, or even a Saturday BBQ when you meet new people is the fastest path to improve it.
After meeting hundreds of sales professionals during my days at PulteGroup and coaching thousands more since, I can confidently say this: most salespeople trip over the very first step toward earning a new opportunity.
Whether it’s on a job site, the Serengeti, or a 747, most sales reps stink at intelligent introductions.
As my fellow exit row passengers exchanged the usual small talk, I felt a mindless self-introduction looming.
Then, I heard this:
Middle Seat: So, what kind of work do you do?
Window Seat: You ever walk into a building and realize you have no phone reception?
Middle Seat: (chuckles) Yeah, all the time.
Window Seat: We solve that problem for businesses and wealthy clients in older buildings.
Middle Seat: Hmm. We need that in our building.
Window Seat: Here’s my card. That’s my cell. We work 24/7/365—because buildings don’t care about holidays, and neither do we.
If the TSA allowed me to travel with confetti cannons, I would have set them all off. This lion over here in 16A wasn’t blind at all!
In just three sentences, Window executed our Feel–Know–Do Next framework—an approach that predictably delivers intelligent introductions.
It’s worth noting what he didn’t do: He didn’t mention his company’s name, headquarters, founding date, or how many offices they had. He didn’t use jargon like high-frequency dB loss, RF propagation, bi-directional amplifiers, or even Faraday cages.
Window knew Middle didn’t care.
What Middle was really asking was, “Do you do anything interesting that might help me, my business, or someone I care about?”
Window passed the test by doing three things:
1. He made Middle feel something—frustration over spotty reception.2. He let him know he could fix that pain—and which customers he specialized in serving.
3. He gave him something to do next—take the card and follow up.
The Feel–Know–Do Next Framework
- Feel: Make them feel the pain your business removes.
- Know: Let them know you exist to solve it.
- Do Next: Offer a clear next step.
Middle examined the business card while simultaneously feeling for his phone. He then texted Window on the spot and said, “This is my cell. Call me next Thursday afternoon.”
Turns out Middle owns a healthcare company in Dallas, the building he works out of (with terrible cell service), as well as a 1930s home in the swanky Preston Hollow neighborhood with the same problem.
Most reps introduce themselves like those half-blind lions on the Serengeti—wandering, winded, and easy to ignore. But every so often, you see a hunter who’s sharp, focused, and hungry.
Next time someone asks what you do, don’t stumble. Make them feel the pain, let them know you solve it, and offer a clear next step.
Be that lion.
Script your introduction.
Use the voice recorder app on your phone to record your introduction. Listen to it through the lens of the Feel-Know-Do Next framework. Be vulnerable for a moment and share it with your manager or a colleague. Ask for candid feedback and suggestions for improvement.
Want expert feedback on your introduction?
Send us your MP3 or written script at info@bradleyhartmannandco.com. We’ll review it and share practical coaching to help you improve.
Thanks for reading.
I’ll be back next Thursday.
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Bradley Hartmann & Co.
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Contact Bradley Hartmann:
bradley@bradleyhartmannandco.com
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