The Art of the Sale, Vol. 4

So how does one manipulate their way into sales? Honestly, way too many ways—but most importantly, it must be done in a skillful manner. When manipulating your way into a sale, you must always conceal your true intentions. In the case of sales, the manipulation strategy must remain in the friendship-forming stage—nothing more.

Let’s talk about why manipulation works: a manipulator will use charm, praise, or flattery in order to get the person to lower their defenses and give their trust and loyalty. They also offer help with the intent to gain the person’s full trust.

I know what you’re thinking… why would you manipulate someone just to get a sale out of them? Well, after all, this is an article about the art of sales and its many devious strategies. So have a seat, grab a coffee, and let me walk you through it.

The “Only 3 Left!” Trick

Ah yes, the classic scarcity move. They’re eyeing a hand pipe online and suddenly it says, “Only 1 left!” Panic hits. They click “Buy Now.” Later, they refresh the page… still “1 left.”

Coincidence? Probably not.

This tactic makes customers feel like they’re in a race. The goal is to have your customers override logic with urgency. Your job is to make them feel that the product they are looking at is a product everyone wants.

The “Only 3 Left!” Trick

“This deal ends tonight!”

Except it doesn’t. It’ll still be there tomorrow.

This is one of the most uncomplicated tactics, using countdown timers or “limited-time” language that resets every day. It’s artificial urgency, designed to make customers act fast—which means no time to think about it.

Bait and Switch

You create an ad for a super cheap deal—let’s say a $50 hand-blown water pipe. Sounds like a steal, right?

A customer will call in or show up, and suddenly the $50 version is “sold out,” but you’ve got this much better one for $150. Convenient.

Emotional Pressure: Guilt, Fear, and All That Fun Stuff

Ever had a salesperson say something like, “Well, if you care about your family’s safety…” right before they try to sell you a home security system?

That’s emotional manipulation. You tap into the customer’s feelings—especially fear or guilt—to push them toward a yes. It works because we, as humans, aren’t robots. It’s also kind of messed up when it’s used this way, but again, this is all about devious strategies.

To break it down, Consignment is essentially a situation where a brand gives someone—like a distributor—permission to sell their products, but the brand still owns the goods until they’re sold to the end customer. It’s like saying, “Here, take my stuff and sell it for me, but I still technically own it until it’s gone.” The distributor takes care of the product, and the brand gets paid once it moves off the shelf.

Personally, I like to think of Consignment as the ultimate “no strings attached” deal. If the product sells, great—everyone’s happy! But if it doesn’t, guess what? You’ve got nothing to lose. That’s where the beauty of Consignment lies. It takes the pressure off you because you don’t have to worry about getting stuck with products that just aren’t moving. Of course, You’ll have to push the product as hard as you can, but if it doesn’t sell, well, it is what it is.

Now, let’s talk about the terms of Consignment. This is where things can get interesting because it’s ultimately up to the brand to decide. Some brands prefer to do net 20 or net 30 deals—meaning the distributor pays after 20 or 30 days, regardless of whether the product has sold or not. But then, there’s the sweet spot: pay as you sell. That’s my favorite. It’s the golden ticket because I’m only paying for the products that actually move. Pretty smart, right? Sadly, not every brand is willing to go this route. It’s mostly smaller brands that need a little push and are open to consignment because they can’t afford to just give their products away upfront. But when they’re willing to take that risk, it’s a win-win.

Another reason why Consignment is clever is that it lets you test the waters. When you bring a new product on Consignment, you get a pretty good idea of how well it will perform in the long term. You push it, see how it sells, and start to get a feel for whether it’s a good fit for your audience. Once you know the product is moving and trust has built up between you and the brand, it’s easy to transition out of Consignment and into a pay-upfront process.

At that point, you’ve built a solid relationship with the brand and proven that the product can sell. The fear of being stuck with a product no longer exists because you know it works, and you know that you’ll continue selling it. That’s the sweet spot of Consignment—the ability to test out a product without the financial risk and then move into a more stable, predictable arrangement once you’re confident in its success.

So, while consignment might be a dirty word for some brands, it’s honestly one of the best strategies a distributor can have in their toolkit. You get to test, sell, and build trust—all without worrying about getting stuck with products that won’t move. What’s not to love about that?