"If you don't make yourself irreplaceable, somebody will replace you. Being different is being remembered. Being the same is being forgotten."

Holly Smale

In a sales world where many strive for conformity, embracing your uniqueness sets you apart and ensures that you're remembered.

I encourage you to focus on becoming irreplaceable. This not only enhances your personal brand, but this also enriches the environments you're a part of. Now, think about your clients and for that matter, your future clients, and their environments.

Psalm 139:14 states,

"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made."

This is signifying that God created everyone with unique characteristics, making no two people exactly alike; essentially, each person is "wonderfully made" by God with their own special qualities.

As we apply this passage, my question to all of you... Why do so many in sales walk, talk and act the same? Isn't this interesting?

Embrace your strengths and weaknesses, and do not succumb to the sales sea of sameness.

The sales world is full of mediocrity. Unfortunately, many are swimming or should I say drowning in the vast ocean of sameness.

Y'all might think you're bringing something different, but the real question lies here... Do your clients or future clients believe that you're bringing something different?

Are you being remembered or are you being forgotten?

As we kick off our time together, I must ask... How hard would it be for one of your clients to replace you with an alternative provider?

Simmer on that question for a moment. Because it contains a massively powerful lesson.

Imagine being so utterly valuable to your clients that they send competitors away, uninterested in hearing about their lower prices, better deals or pearls of wisdom.

What are you doing to become downright irreplaceable?

One makes themselves irreplaceable by building trust. They’ve earned that trust by doing phenomenal work over the long haul. They've earned trust by being extremely reliable, someone their clients can count on, and most of all, they are heart centered.

I believe you earn and re-earn being irreplaceable. Yes, you heard me correctly. You re-earn it. If you earn trust and then lackadaisically assume you’re permanently irreplaceable, you’ll soon be replaced by someone who out maneuvers you.

Taking a casual approach to your clients causes client casualties.

Therefore, every interaction with your clients should be viewed as an opportunity to increase your value and status.

IRREPLACEABLE

Becoming irreplaceable is not an overnight achievement; it requires dedication, continuous improvement, and a proactive approach to your personal and professional development.

In today's sales world where there is more competition, more options, and even more distractions, the question for all of you... How do you continue to maintain your clients’ attention?

This Coco Chanel quote is spot on,

"In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different."

The pure essence of being "irreplaceable" lies in your courage to be different and to embrace your individuality. Recognize and value your unique traits. In a world that often encourages conformity, being different is a powerful way to make a lasting impact.

You become irreplaceable by getting crystal clear on your client's vision. You make this a commitment. You do this so you can get out in front of them and be ready when they get there.

Irreplaceability... This might be your mirror moment.

To be irreplaceable means to possess qualities or attributes that are so unique, valuable, or essential that they cannot be substituted or replaced by anything or anyone else.

Now, think about client attrition? Do I have you thinking a bit about becoming irreplaceable?

You must become open minded with embracing your unique self. You must set aside the cookie cutter sales personalities, practicing common actions and molding yourself to be similar to what you know to be safe, that of all the other salespeople.

GIVE A RIP, BECOME IRREPLACEABLE

"One shouldn't gamble with what is irreplaceable and precious."

Naomi Klein

I encourage you to value your skills and what you bring to your clients. Recognize your unique talents. Guard and protect your intellectual property. Start becoming hyper aware and mindful of how you present yourself.

To become irreplaceable, you must understand how your clients' business makes money, and then figure out how you can connect the dots and deliver them results.

This all starts with understanding them better.

The best way to understand your clients better is to ask them deep and meaningful questions, then close your mouth and let them talk. Intentionally listen to their responses.

What they share with you becomes your pot of gold.

This allows you to serve them better.

I believe when you create the mindset of serving your clients, then you’ll always have their best interests at heart.

Your client relationships aren’t about a mere transaction. It's about serving, helping, and creating business betterment for them.

Become irreplaceable by simply just giving a rip.

Giving a rip means you care enough about the relationship to become your client's library of knowledge.

You establish this by creating resources that your clients will value. You become their educator, their teacher, and their go-to when it comes to learning new things.

One huge way you can serve your clients is to stretch their thinking. Help them consider new opportunities that they haven't thought of before.

This means becoming their guide, their north star. This means supporting them. And this means serving them at the highest of levels, so they not only see your value, but also their own.

ARE YOU BECOMING IRREPLACEABLE?

The more you know about your clients, the more you grow with your clients.

Business author Roger Von Oech said,

“Things are changing quickly. What worked last week may not be the best way to solve today’s problems or the best way to take advantage of next week’s opportunities. The more we know, the more opportunities we can create."

Please focus in on the last sentence for a moment, as I put a bit of a sales twist on it.

The more you know about your clients and their business, the more opportunities you can create for them. The more opportunities you create for them, the more you become irreplaceable.

Helping your clients grow becomes mission critical to you building long-term, mutually beneficial relationships.

When your clients trust that they can rely on you for business growth strategies, they are more likely to invest more with you, give you a larger piece of their business and refer other businesses to you.

Building your client’s business leads to building your business.

Sales professionals intimately know their clients' business. They understand the competitive environment they operate within. They develop powerful strategies along with solutions to help them look forward so they can anticipate and prepare for new business challenges and opportunities.

They are relationship connectors. They go the extra mile by making connections for their clients with other individuals or groups within their network that could become helpful to them.

They do all this because they care. They do this because they give a rip.

This is how you become irreplaceable.

ENTRENCH YOURSELF IN YOUR CLIENT'S BUSINESS

Your next mirror moment is right now.

Are woven into the fabric of your client's business?

Please think about what I just asked you. Deeply stew on it. Curious as to what you're thinking about right now?

A true Selling from the Heart professional becomes entrenched in their client's business by opening the business hood.

They gain a deep understanding of what their clients are talking about, and they share their perspectives.

They ask them thought provoking questions encouraging them to investigate the good, the bad and the ugly within their company.

They ask:

• What's your unique corporate value statement?

• What kinds of headaches are your competitors dishing out?

• What are your client's coming to you to answer?

• What do you see as potential roadblocks to your growth over the next 6 months?

• Where do you see your business a year from now?

Aristotle famously wrote,

"The more you know, the more you realize you don't know."

Now, think about this statement for a moment...

Who is gathering more internal information about your clients, you or one of your competitors? Would you even know? And worse, would someone even tell you?

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER IN BECOMING IRREPLACEABLE

Knowledge as a path to irreplaceability.

I encourage you to constantly and with consistency, acquire new knowledge to remain relevant and ahead of trends.

Use this knowledge to creatively develop new ideas. Use this knowledge to bring new insights. Use this knowledge to help problem solve.

As we bring our time together to a close... I would like to leave you with the following questions:

• How can you apply institutional client knowledge to build, grow and enhance your client relationships?

• How can you become an integral part of your client's business?

• How can you become irreplaceable?

• How can you not be viewed as a commodity?

Are you willing to take massive action to avoid being viewed as a commodity and start being viewed as being irreplaceable?

Originally published on Larry Levine's LinkedIn.