{"id":65599,"date":"2022-05-03T17:19:36","date_gmt":"2022-05-03T21:19:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=65599"},"modified":"2022-05-15T10:49:38","modified_gmt":"2022-05-15T14:49:38","slug":"startup-sales-strategies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/startup-sales-strategies\/","title":{"rendered":"Startup Sales Strategies From Peter Thiel"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If your product sells itself, do you really need to market it? How do you know which sales method is right for your business?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peter Thiel argues that, as you develop a product, you must also develop a plan to get that product to customers. You could have the best product in the world, but your company will fail if you don’t have the right sales and distribution strategy. He discusses four sales methods<\/a> and helps you know which one is the best fit for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep reading for Thiel’s advice on startup sales strategies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Startup Sales Strategies<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of the lessons learned from the dot-com crash<\/a> was to focus on building a product that\u2019s so good it sells itself, rather than trying to drive sales of a mediocre product with marketing hype. Thiel is concerned that this conventional wisdom dangerously downplays the importance of marketing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He contends that developing a plan for how you will distribute your product is an integral part of developing your product<\/strong>. In fact, sometimes a revolutionary startup sales strategy is enough to elevate an existing product line to monopoly status. On the other hand, a poor startup sales strategy can be the death of a company with a sound product. In fact, Thiel says more companies fail due to faulty sales strategies than faulty products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Furthermore, Thiel expresses concern that most entrepreneurs (and people in general) misunderstand the nature of marketing: They think advertising and sales pitches don\u2019t work, because when they hear sales pitches or see advertisements, they don\u2019t rush out and buy the products, nor do they see other people doing so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thiel explains that the purpose of advertising<\/a> is to carve out a place for your product in the viewer\u2019s mind, not to make them go on a buying spree. If you can teach people to think of your product the way you want them to, then their own perception of your product will drive sales, which is your goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He goes on to say that teaching people to think a certain way about your product is a subtle art. If people feel like you\u2019re trying to coerce them into buying something, they\u2019ll be resistant to your message. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Methods of Selling Products<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Thiel explains that there are a number of ways to go about selling your product. Which one is right for you depends largely on two metrics:<\/p>\n\n\n\n