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Peter Smith: The (Mostly) Immutable Sales Truths
In a column for the 2026 State of the Majors issue, Smith lists 10 time-tested principles about sales that still ring true.
Peter Smith is a consultant to vendors and retailers and conducts sales masterclasses. He is the author of four books, including the recently released “Essentially Human, On Sales and Salespeople.” He can be reached at TheRetailSmiths@gmail.com.
Editor’s Note: This story first appeared in the print edition of the 2026 State of the Majors. Click here to see the full issue.
In 1993, Al and Laura Reis wrote “The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding,” which struck me as a totally cool name back then.
My recall of the actual laws, I confess, is less clear.
I vaguely remember one of them being about mortality, as in all brands ultimately die. Is that true?
With a nod of appreciation to the Reises, I’m stealing “immutable” for my list of truths about sales.
I hope you’ll share them within your own organizations if they resonate with you.
Perhaps you’ll even hire me to come speak about them or deliver a sales masterclass, but I digress.
1. Assume purchase intent for every client.
Assuming most customers who visit your store will not make a purchase is a statistical certainty. It is also an awful attitude and bad psychology.
Depending on your circumstances, your close rate may be 20-30 percent.
But what would happen if you assumed every person who visited your store was going to buy?
Would such a mindset not only influence your approach and body language, but also improve your close rate?
2. Customers rarely know what they want.
Psychological research suggests we are unaware of 95 percent of our thoughts. If that number is even close, asking customers what they want is a fool’s errand.
Take the time to ask relevant open-ended questions and then listen.
Questions such as, “Tell me more about that,” and “What’s most important to you about this purchase?” can reveal more than you might imagine.
3. Budgets are not real.
Budgets are interesting in a vague sort of way but rarely reflect the extent to which a customer will stretch when inspired.
If a customer shares a budget, present three options: one at the budget, one twice the budget, and a third option splitting the two.
Customers select the middle option 60 to 70 percent of the time.
4. There’s no conflict between selling and good service.
There is no conflict between providing best-in-class service and making sales. (This one is immutable.)
Pushing through resistance from customers does not diminish the experience.
It is, moreover, a baseline minimum for sales success and customer engagement.
Unless, of course, you believe the customer is better off without your products, in which case there is a whole other problem to discuss.
5. Too much information is too much.
If someone asks you what time it is, you don’t tell them how to build a clock.
Keep product information to a necessary minimum and focus on engaging customers emotionally.
Related stories will be right here …
In 1993, Al and Laura Reis wrote “The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding,” which struck me as a totally cool name back then.
My recall of the actual laws, I confess, is less clear.
I vaguely remember one of them being about mortality, as in all brands ultimately die. Is that true?
With a nod of appreciation to the Reises, I’m stealing “immutable” for my list of truths about sales.
I hope you’ll share them within your own organizations if they resonate with you.
Perhaps you’ll even hire me to come speak about them or deliver a sales masterclass, but I digress.
1. Assume purchase intent for every client.
Assuming most customers who visit your store will not make a purchase is a statistical certainty. It is also an awful attitude and bad psychology.
Depending on your circumstances, your close rate may be 20-30 percent.
But what would happen if you assumed every person who visited your store was going to buy?
Would such a mindset not only influence your approach and body language, but also improve your close rate?
2. Customers rarely know what they want.
Psychological research suggests we are unaware of 95 percent of our thoughts. If that number is even close, asking customers what they want is a fool’s errand.
Take the time to ask relevant open-ended questions and then listen.
Questions such as, “Tell me more about that,” and “What’s most important to you about this purchase?” can reveal more than you might imagine.
3. Budgets are not real.
Budgets are interesting in a vague sort of way but rarely reflect the extent to which a customer will stretch when inspired.
If a customer shares a budget, present three options: one at the budget, one twice the budget, and a third option splitting the two.
Customers select the middle option 60 to 70 percent of the time.
4. There’s no conflict between selling and good service.
There is no conflict between providing best-in-class service and making sales. (This one is immutable.)
Pushing through resistance from customers does not diminish the experience.
It is, moreover, a baseline minimum for sales success and customer engagement.
Unless, of course, you believe the customer is better off without your products, in which case there is a whole other problem to discuss.
5. Too much information is too much.
If someone asks you what time it is, you don’t tell them how to build a clock.
Keep product information to a necessary minimum and focus on engaging customers emotionally.
6. Fewer syllables are best.
When stating price, do so with the fewest number of syllables possible.
There’s a reason expensive restaurants show prices as 75 instead of $75.00.
The fewer syllables used in stating price, verbally or in writing, the more accessible the price seems.
7. Value and price have little in common.
This one is also immutable. Warren Buffett has the best quote I’ve heard on this topic: “Price is what you pay, value is what you get.”
People often confuse off-price retail with “good value.”
For me, this is a misnomer. Value is a satisfied customer, no matter what price was paid.
If the customer paid twice as much as their stated budget and loved their purchase, was that bad value?
If they paid less than they could have but had regrets, was that good value?
8. CRM is kryptonite.
Investing in customer relationship management (CRM) is imperative.
That means dedicating structured time daily to handwriting notes to customers. The notes should be personal, signed, and not a hard sell.
Shopify research shows returning customers are 70 percent more likely to close than first-time visitors and deliver a 30 percent higher average ticket.
9. Get jewelry on clients.
If you’ve ever suggested a customer try on jewelry and noticed resistance, that’s their brain saying, “If you try this on, we own it.”
Trying on something greatly increases the possibility we will buy it, not just because we like it but because our brain acts like we already own it and that makes it difficult to give it back.
10. Observe top performers.
Almost all top performers bring some personal baggage into their work.
That could be poor housekeeping, indifference to administrative tasks, or being selective about customers.
Without excusing those glass-half-empty behaviors, observing top performers can be a masterclass in sales, even if you must hold your nose while you watch.
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