Do you know how to sell safety?

The other day I was talking to a client who just happens to be a health and safety practitioner.  He was telling me all the reasons why he could never be a salesperson. 

In fact, I’m pretty sure his story about a lying salesperson that he once worked with was from the 1970’s.  And I’m doubly sure this guy was wearing a brown suit with a big wide, garishly patterned tie.  I could just see it.

So I mentioned to my safety client that every person has to sell in their job – salesperson or not.

He kind of confessed he knew this to be true, but the stereotype of the lying salesperson in the brown suit (okay, I added that bit) was just too strong in his mind.  He really didn’t want to be the dodgy car salesman type that manipulates and lies all in the name of making a sale.  Ironically, he kept trying to sell to me the reasons why he could never be a salesman.

Yet, the big truth is that if you want to be successful at safety, you can’t hide behind your desk reading your compliance notes and shyly handing out pieces of paper explaining company safety processes to anyone who walks past. 

If you want to get people on board, you have to sell why safety processes and compliance are important to the individual.  Why it should matter to them.  You also need to sell safety to senior management, so that you get the right amount of budget for company safety programs.

As Brian Tracy, a motivational coach and author says, “From the time you get up in the morning until the time you go to bed at night, you are continually negotiating, communicating, persuading, influencing and trying to get people to cooperate with you to do the things that you want them to do.“

If you’ve got kids, you just know about much wheeling and dealing you have to do every night just to get them into bed or do their homework.  That, my friend, is selling.

The Changing Role of the Safety Professional

You all know that the role of the safety professional is collecting hazard and associated risk data, analysing it and determining corrective action.  Then, developing and maintaining the safety management system, while creating safety documents and training materials to educate others to keep safe.

Yet, the traditional role of the safety professional is no longer enough.  We’re moving away from left-brain centric jobs to more right-brain focused empathetic, innovative and expressive capabilities.  This means new right-brain skills are required.

Enjoy the rest of the article HERE