COFFEE Is for CLOSERS
 

Howdy Sowpubbers

I still have NOT seen this movie in its entirety however I was just forwarded this clip. The movie was mentioned before here on Sowpub. Glengarry Glen Ross

Excellent Old School Sales Motivation. Look Out Zig! Move over Dan Kennedy Here comes the man from "DOWNTOWN"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TROhlThs9qY

WARNING THIS CLIP CONTAINS FOUL LANGUAGE

- So What Does it really take to sell Real Estate?
- What is the one character/attitude or trait that this guy, Dan Pena and Dan Kennedy and other highly successful business people share?

The "SECRET" is given when Alec Baldwin answers this question:

"What's Your name"???

Ha! I love it.

Re: COFFEE Is for CLOSERS
 

Hi Duane!

For me, Glengarry Glen Ross is a bit of a "guilty pleasure"... I like the movie...!

However, it does show a "sleazy" side of sales... Without really showing the corresponding "good" side of it... The dialogue is pretty powerful stuff though!

If you want some riveting viewing, get or borrow the documentary "Salesman". Some people believe that "Salesman" was a big inspiration for "Glengarry Glen Ross".

"Salesman" is about door-to-door Bible salesmen in the late 1960s. The camera follows four salesmen as they sell these expensive Bibles to Catholic families in Boston and Miami.

You can really see the differences between those who sell, and those who don't.

The "main character" of the documentary is Paul, nicknamed "The Badger". His sales aren't doing too well nowadays (reminiscent of Jack Lemmon's character in "Glengarry Glen Ross").

But the guy to watch for as a good salesman I believe is James, nicknamed "The Rabbit". Why?

You can see the enthusiasm he has when he talks about these intricate, expensive Bibles, the craftsmanship that went into making them, and so on. He's a great illustration of what Zig Ziglar teaches, that sales is at its core "emotional transference". James is emotional about the product, and as a result, he makes sales.

Anyway, I highly recommend it. Although the documentary mainly focuses on Paul "The Badger", make sure you pay attention to James "The Rabbit"! And notice how the two are quite different - and have different levels of success in sales as a result!

Other interesting sales-related movies (from Gordon's earlier recommendations)...

Elmer Gantry. Burt Lancaster, playing Elmer Gantry, is a master "salesman", and pretty charismatic to boot.

The Music Man. Another great salesman played by Robert Preson, who's a traveling salesman, selling musical instruments. In the end (despite himself), he does good for the community - showing the positive power that sales can really have. If you don't believe that sales can do good, then watch this movie.

And on another note...

Another one of my favorite movies is The Sweet Smell of Success. It's not really about sales - it's actually about the working relation between a publicity man and a columnist - so it's still relevant to business. People often like Glengarry Glen Ross for the dialogue, but I think the dialogue in The Sweet Smell of Success is the best I've ever heard in film! I find it riveting... :)

There are a whole bunch of other "sales-related" films I haven't seen yet... Any other recommendations?

- Dien

F*** YOU, that's my name!! You know why, Mister? 'Cause...
 

Duane,

Thanks for the link.

For the text version try this...

http://www.whysanity.net/monos/ggr2.html

Michael Ross

Re: COFFEE Is for CLOSERS
 

Hi Dien,

Thanks for the movie list. "Salesman" sounds particularly interesting. I will have to add these to my "already loooong list" :->

I'm begin to see more and more of this "emotional transference" everywhere I go, in personal and business situations.

Other than the movie "Boiler Room" I cannot recall other specific sales type movies that I found interesting.

That said, since in a previous post you mentioned that YOU were currently studying STRATEGY.

One of my favorite movies (besides The Matrix...Part One of course) is THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION. I think anybody that enjoys Strategy will find this movie inspirational, and yet it has nothing to do with business.

I was going to post a link to wikipedia, but MY GOODNESS THEY TELL YOU the entire Movie Plot...TWISTS and all.

So if you have not seen it. Just go and rent it. DO NOT look it up online. It will just kill it.

Now there was another movie, that I really enjoyed but I for the life of me I cannot remember the name. It had a couple of lines which particularly stuck out in my mind

" The best trick the Devil ever played was to convince the world that he didn't exist" and

"Who is Kaiser Sosay"???

What movie was this??

Well my friends were bugging me for years to see it, because they said "I" would enjoy it...AND They were correct.

Especially because It did NOT have a predictable ending for me.

Hmmm ...."Who is Kaiser Sosay"???

Actually I think one of the guys (Kevin Spacey?) in Glenngary Glenn Ross is in the movie I'm thinking of ...

Re: F*** YOU, that's my name!! You know why, Mister? 'Cause...
 

Michael,

Thank You for the monologue page. I found some other Monologue texts that I particularly enjoyed.

When I heard the answer

"F*** YOU, that's my name!! You know why, Mister? 'Cause..."

I couldn't stop laughing.

Dan Pena says " Who Cares what the Dufus's Think", or "Who Cares what the Morons Think"

Dan Kennedy mentions: that some sales people have a "Hang up" about selling to People that they THINK "should not" or "could not" afford whatever HIGH PRICED item their selling.

He then proceeds to share his view, which is basically that those same People will be SPENDING THE money anyway, on some other worthless piece of crap, so you might as well sell them your wares.

Because in the end SOMEBODY is going to get the money....why not you?

Re: COFFEE Is for CLOSERS
 

Usual Suspects. Its an excellent movie. Brilliant acting. And superb ending.

If you want to understand strategy, may I recommend all the con movies?

Found this list:
http://www.amazon.com/Big-Con-artist...m/5YPAGWJA6CQ8

Some other Good / Enjoyable Movies...
 

Ankesh,

Thanks for that list.

I was thinking, Heist and CONfidence - they're on the list. :)

I'd like to Add a couple of movies...

The Score - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0227445/ - with Robert De Niro and Ed Norton. Another "aging crim does one last job" movie. But like Heist, it just begs for a twist.

Ronin - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0122690/ - also with Robert De Niro. A "group of people try to take something from another group of people" movie.

The Interview - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120714/ - with Hugo Weaving (played Agent Smith in the Matrix Trilogy). A guy is brought into custody on suspicion of multiple murder. This is his Interview.

V for Vendetta - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0434409/ - again with Hugo Weaving. Produced by the Matrix producers (and written by them from a Graphic Novel Adaptation). Besides having that annoying Natalie Portman in it, the movie is worth multiple watches to pick up something new at each watching. (Note: If you are ultra conservative you might get put off by what you Think is Conservative Bashing in the movie. Get over it; deal with it; and you'll see there is more to this movie. Also know, it was Originally Written during a period of hatred toward Margaret Thatcher which is why you could think there is Conservative bashing in it.)

last but not least...

Equilibrium - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0238380/ - staring the new Batman Christian Bale. Not a heist movie or Con movie. Just good "mindless violence" as I call Action Flicks. Set in the future in a rigidly government controlled time it... heck, just see it for the entertainment of it. :) (Here's a YouTube Film Clip Music Video made from bits of the movie and set to Evanescence's bring Me To Life http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPypRhzfiAY and another Song put to action scenes from the movie http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bGqnK0mFq4 - enjoy)

Michael Ross

Re: Some other Good / Enjoyable Movies...
 

Excellent list Michael!

I'll have to watch The Interview sometime soon...

I did some digging and found a list I had created long time back...
http://www.listsofbests.com/list/25323

I love watching con movies and movies with unpredictible and smart twists.

There was also this other old movie about a jury where 1 person persuades the other 11 in the room... but I forget the name... that was pretty good too.

Re: Some other Good / Enjoyable Movies...
 

Ankesh

film name- "Twelve Angry Men"

Re: Some other Good / Enjoyable Movies...
 

Check out the David Mamet films 'House of Games', 'The Spanish Prisoner' and 'Spartan', excellent psychological thrillers.