Fear - Uncertainty - Doubt

According to final polling, here in Michigan, John McCain goes into today's Presidential election trailing Barack Obama by 18 points. Nationally, in an average of over a dozen polls, Obama is enjoying a 7% cushion and appears to have all but locked up this election.

Plain and simply ... John McCain ran an awful campaign. It's quite commendable to run one of honor and truth, a campaign that mimics the character of the man. However, McCain's decision to hold off going on the attack until the final weeks, is in essence, what cost him this election. And the sad thing in all of this is the fact that what he would be attacking is the truth. Not to mention the fact that it is impossible to run an honorable campaign when the mainstream media is going out of their way to discredit your every move.

In my 30 years of selling products and solutions to Corporate America, my greatest success was achieved while applying these three valuable lessons, simultaneously throughout the sales cycle:

1. Sell yourself. If you can't be trusted, it's a good bet your company can not, let alone your product.
2. Focus on your "solution" and how it best fits the needs analysis and requirements of your customer. Never focus on just the product and never get too technical.
3. And most important of all, in regards to your competition, continue to plant the seeds of "Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt!"
4. See Step Three.

Should these final poll numbers hold true, barring an incredible miracle, I fear that this nation over these next four years will be filled with much uncertainty.

No Doubt About It ...