The Sales Ritual

I work in film, and one of the things I do on a daily basis is pitch ideas.  I pitch ideas for stories. I pitch ideas for actors.  I even have to pitch ideas for crew members.  At the root of it, pitching is purely sales. I walk into a room, and it is my job to sell my idea to everyone else in order for me to get what I want.  Even if I wasn't working in film, sales still exists.  On a Friday night, you and a group of buddies decide to go see a movie.  The instant someone opens up Fandango and starts listing movies, they are selling.  What order do they list them in?  Do they say, "Oooh, this one has so-and-so in it!" Or do they bring up a review they recently read.  In that moment, we are all salesman.

Game Night is no different.  At my house, someone is usually asked to go to the game cupboard an pull out a few games.  This is a big responsibility.  In this moment, that person has their very first chance to sell what game they want to play.  Much like in the American cinema classic Tommy Boy, it takes a little while for everyone to discover their own technique.

THE QUESTIONER GUY

This is the person who will never offer up their own opinion.  When they're asked to grab a board game out of the closet, it is immediately met with, "Well, what do you guys want to play?"

Worse yet, the questioner will remain disappointed by an eventual decision.  When there is a group consensus on the other end, they will finally offer up their own disdain.  It's a double edged sword.  They are often agreeable, but can be a nightmare to negotiate with.

GRABS EVERYTHING GUY

This is the guy who goes to the game closet and comes back with 20 options.  Your first thought is always, "How on earth did he carry all those games?"

Kind of like the questioner, grabs everything guy is incredibly indecisive.  Rather than ask you questions though, he will go through and pitch every. single. game. to the point where you don't even know if you want to play a game anymore.  Though you now have knowledge of 10 game son your shelf you did not know existed.

THERE WILL BE NO OTHER CHOICE GUY

This is the guy who grabs RISK.  He comes back from the game closet, and before you even know it, the pieces are laid out and everything is ready for you to play.  You never had a chance to debate.

The next thing you know, it is seven hours later, and you are still holding fast in Western Australia, praying for the sun to rise and negotiating territories for bathroom breaks.

THE OTHERS

Within each sales technique, there are sub categories.  You'll have the "Always wants to try a new game" guy, or conversely the "Plays exclusively the classics" guy.  You'll have the "Is there a way we can play this for money" guy, and then you'll have the "This is a great learning opportunity" guy.

I'll go into more details on the types of gamers, but this post is all about the sales ritual.  At some point in your life, you will be responsible to sell a game on game night.  What strategy will you use?