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3 minute read Members-only

In His Quest for The Presidency, Donald Trump Broke a Cardinal Rule of Selling. His 75MM "Customers" Didn't Care.

Donald Trump poses with an architectural model in 1985 | Library of Congress
Donald Trump poses with an architectural model in 1985 | Library of Congress

By Rafe Gomez


When selling products or services, sales professionals know that a close is made possible by proving that what you offer will deliver the promised results.

Documentation that a product/service can successfully address a potential buyer’s needs, goals, and challenges can include statistics, testimonials, and case studies. Sales pros who don’t bolster their pitches with such substantiation will find it impossible to get buyers to open their wallets.

I view the electoral process as a sales proposition: Candidates communicate the outcomes they’ll provide to voters (their prospective buyers) if they win office. The candidate who best presents their sales message while adhering to time-tested selling principles will close the deal.

In the case of Donald Trump’s candidacy, his sell had a massive flaw: None of his guarantees were backed up with evidence that he could bring them to fruition. These implausible, detail-free pledges included his assurances that, if elected, inflation would vanish completely, federal taxes would be eliminated, gas prices would be cut in half, wars would end in Ukraine and the Middle East, illegal immigration would be terminated, etc.

With such a porous sales pitch, why did 75,000,000 people — a surprising number of whom weren’t die-hard MAGAs — “buy” his candidacy? In their everyday lives, these same folks would demand verified proof of performance when shopping for professional services, consumer products, and large-ticket items (cars, household appliances, etc.). So what would inspire them to make this presidential “purchase” without the same proof?

The answer is threefold: the seller was Trump, his promises were emotional pitches addressing hot topics that much of the country cared about, and, as stated in the Washington Post by Aaron Blake, “Americans tend to balk more when you dig into the details.”

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