#InterviewTips #SellMeThisPen #JobInterview #SalesSkills
Hey everyone! 🌟 Let’s talk about a classic interview question that often catches candidates off guard: “Sell me this pen.” 🖊️ What is the best response you’ve ever heard for this challenging question?
Here are a few possible solutions that could help you ace this tricky question:
– Highlight the features and benefits of the pen: Start by discussing the pen’s quality, sleek design, and smooth writing experience. Emphasize how it can make the user’s life easier and more efficient.
– Create a sense of urgency: Showcase why the pen is a must-have item, and how it can solve the user’s immediate need for a reliable writing instrument.
– Use a storytelling approach: Share a personal anecdote or success story related to the pen to create an emotional connection with the interviewer.
What other strategies do you think could work well for tackling this common interview question? Let’s share our insights and help each other succeed in our job interviews! 💼💡 #JobInterviewSuccess #AceTheInterview
“Write this down for me…”
A comedian talks about how he was asked to sell a laptop to a hiring manager. He picked it up off the desk stuck it under his arm and walked out. A couple hours later they called him and said we want our back. He said I’ll give it to you for $200.
i’ve got your package here, just need you to sign it
You already have it. Why would you buy it again?
“Go fuck yourself, I’ll apply to a better company.”
My life without you is like this broken pen: pointless.
I rolled my eyes grabbed the pen holder off his desk and sat it on an end table next to me. “There, now that I’ve got all the pens, I’ll lease this one back to you for one cent. Given what I expect you make, a penny is far cheaper than getting up and getting another pen, or negotiating for the rest of them. As a bonus at the end of this interview, I will throw in my entire supply of pens here.”
I then stated that I hated that question.
Got hired, and within a year was director of three of the most profitable divisions of the company.
The trick is to ask questions… what pen do you use now. What do you love about it. What would you improve if you could, etc. Once you find the pain, you have your selling point. That said, I agree with the guy who commented “go fuck yourself” because this is a stupid interview question and it’s offensive to people in sales.
I tried this in a group interview that asked this n got the job going last for a retail clothing company “you want this pen not because it’s just a pen but because it’s an “x company” pen, see how smooth it twirls (I could spin in), it happens because it’s perfectly balanced as a x pen, most pens you can’t do this because they don’t care about the little details but at x we care to make it perfect for not just writing but anything you need it to be
If you’ve ever seen the movie, *Wolf of Wallstreet*, then you’ll know what scene I’m about to reference.
DiCaprio: “Sell me this pen.”
Bernthal: “Go ahead and write your name down for me…*supply and demand mfers*
Great scene within an overall great movie.
“This is not an ordinary pen and you are not an ordinary person . I don’t know you that long but I’m sure you are very successful in what you do.
Sooner or later you will need a pen to sign a contract or write a resignation letter (because you got offered a better job) or fill out a form to start a company.
When that moment comes you need a special pen, a pen that you can hold onto afterwards to remember this great milestone in your life. That pen… is this pen! Buy it now or, when the moment comes, you will regret it.”
I’m not sure this is the right pen for you, may I ask you a few questions to make sure we are discussing the right product for your needs?
“Buy this pen for $20,000 and you get a free car!”
I have this pen here, but it might be outside of your price range. Let me see if I have anything more economically friendly for someone of your status
All nuns are lesbians.
Unless your in sales, it’s a very irrelevant question
It would normally cost $30 but as an investment in our relationship, I’ll give it to you for the price of zero.
Do u still use pens?
I see why the last guy left
I’m not in sales, but have worked closely with lots of business development execs (who mostly hate this question). The value they ascribe to it is less about their been a precise correct answer and more about the persons ability to talk up whatever they’re selling and induce interest in something that’s otherwise uninteresting. The vast majority of sales jobs have people selling mediocre products to marginally interested customers, so identifying people that will just dive in and pitch something that most people would scoff at is what they’re targeting moreso than some precise pitch.
“Bob, this isn’t just a pen. This is the key to your future.”
Bob snorted. “A pen? Really?”
“Yes, really,” I said, leaning in with the intensity of a game show host revealing the final prize. “This pen has powers, Bob. You see, it once belonged to the legendary pirate Captain Inkbeard. He was feared across the seven seas, not for his sword, but for his impeccable calligraphy. His enemies would flee in terror, not from cannonballs, but from his perfectly penned threats.”
Bob’s eyebrow rose higher, defying all known laws of physics. “Go on.”
“Captain Inkbeard wrote his treasure map with this very pen,” I continued. “Legend has it, anyone who writes with this pen will find themselves on a journey to unimaginable riches. But that’s not all! This pen has a built-in, self-replenishing ink cartridge. It’s like having a fountain of youth for your writing.”
Bob looked at the pen with a glimmer of interest. “Self-replenishing, you say?”
“Absolutely,” I said, nodding sagely. “This pen has been passed down through generations of extraordinary writers. Shakespeare wrote his lost play, ‘Much Ado About Penguins,’ with this pen. Hemingway drafted ‘The Old Man and the Sea’ using it, but he initially titled it ‘The Elderly Gentleman and the Ocean.’ He changed it later, of course, but the pen remained constant.”
Bob chuckled despite himself. “You’re quite the storyteller.”
“But wait, there’s more!” I said, now on a roll. “This pen has saved lives. During World War II, a spy used it to scribble a note that stopped a train carrying enemy spies. The note simply said, ‘Stop this train,’ and the conductor, impressed by the pen’s smooth writing, obeyed without question.”
Bob was almost smiling now. “A life-saving pen, huh?”
“Indeed,” I replied. “And imagine this: you’re at a party. Everyone’s talking about their latest gadgets, their fancy phones. You pull out this pen and casually mention its history. Instant conversation starter. You’ll be the most interesting person in the room.”
Bob picked up the pen, twirling it between his fingers. “Alright, you’ve convinced me. How much?”
I leaned back, grinning. “For you, Bob, and because I like your skeptical eyebrow, it’s free. Just promise me one thing.”
“What’s that?” he asked, intrigued.
“Write your own legend with it,” I said. “And maybe, just maybe, send me a postcard from your adventures.”
Bob laughed, shaking his head as he pocketed the pen. “Deal.”
And that, my friends, is how you sell a pen.
Take the pen. Then offer the person $100 if they can write there name on piece of paper within 30 seconds. Sell them the pen for $50. Make it take long enough that they just miss the cut off time. You made $50.
“it has AI”
No. It is easier to sell to 50 people in the market for a pen than 1 person who is not in the market for a pen. A pen is a low value consumer good with generally low margins and the cost to sell to a person not in the market for a pen far exceeds the profits
If you dont write something with this pen in the next 2 minutes, one of your family will die……
…..the cost of the pen is $5k
“Do you need a pen?”
Hi sir, thanks for your time.
You mentioned you were looking at upgrading your pens. So we can find the best pen options for you, can I start by finding out more about what you wanted to achieve from doing that?
Perfect. Tell me about your current pens? Why do you not see them working longer term?
and so on and so forth.
OK, so based on what you have said, we want to achieve X and Y and we want to avoid this and that. The perfect option for you is this new Pen 15. Can you imagine your secretary with the new Pen 15 in hand? Gee, that’d be great wouldn’t it.
We have them on the shelves ready to go – how many would you like?
The best response is “no.” When they ask why, say that when you are ready to get a pen, I will be the one who will knows the most about pens and you will come to me because I will be the best person to set you up with the right pen for your needs, but I’m not going to sell you something you don’t need. If you want that find someone to do cold calls.
In all seriousness, this question is to find out how you ask questions relating to your product and find pain points that the customers never considered or thought of
I’ve lodged this pen deeeep in your asshole. What does it cost you ask? $1500 3 months from now, a co-pay of $50, a 5 hour wait.
Oh, wait. That’s the health insurance system. I’ll fish it out of there for $1000. And, I’ll even let you keep the pen.
“Sell me this pen”
“It’s an NFT”
How about: buy this “pen” and I’ll give you the “15” for free. ?
“No, that’s stupid, I’m here to make real money, sir!”