Mr. Shmooze: The Art and Science of Selling Through Relationships

Mr. Shmooze is the story of a man who reveals the secret shared by all superstar salespeople. Selling, in its most exquisite form, is not about "taking," nor is it about "persuading." Selling, believe it or not, is about "giving."

Mr. Shmooze gives for a living. He starts by listening and he quickly comes to understand what people really need, not just in business, but in life itself.

People love Mr. Shmooze because he gives more than he takes. They trust him because he is passionate about their interests. And, at the end of the day, they reward him handsomely for bringing joy, humor and wisdom into their lives.

Who is Mr. Shmooze?

It's about emotions! All great salespeople are skilled at making powerful emotional connections first. Learn how they do it and why it works.

It's about giving! All great salespeople understand that selling is not about taking--it's about giving. Learn how to understand what buyers really need and how to give it to them. Chances are it has nothing to do with the business of the day!

It's about fun! Most salespeople take themselves way too seriously. Learn how great salespeople stand out by bringing joy, laughter and fun into their relationships with prospects and clients!

The character of "Mr. Shmooze" is larger than life. He is the creation of Richard Abraham, president of The Richard Abraham Company. Mr. Shmooze™ is a composite of the greatest salespeople in the world, and the insight offered through the platform of Mr. Shmooze products is designed to give salesmen and women a powerful advantage—turbocharging their sales results!

About the Author

Richard Abraham is a speaker, writer and consultant widely sought after by many Fortune 500 companies. When not consulting or writing his syndicated column, Mr. Abraham conducts workshops and seminars and speaks on the topics of relationship selling and maximizing the sales encounter. Mr. Abraham supplements these speaking engagements with his publications, including the highly acclaimed book, Mr. Shmooze: The Art and Science of Selling Through Relationships. In it, Mr. Abraham presents a composite character of the most successful and gregarious salespeople in America. The essence of the book, like the essence of Mr. Abraham himself, is a quality message presented in a fun and familiar style.

Mr. Abraham brings tremendous credentials and experience to his work. Before dedicating his time to speaking and publishing, he served as CEO of Prime Group Realty Services, was president and co-founder of The John Buck Management Group, as well as president of CB Commercial/Koll Management Services—where he had oversight responsibility for a 300 million-square-foot portfolio of office, retail and industrial properties throughout the United States. Mr. Abraham now delivers the combination of sensible street smarts and serious strategies he employed at these firms in the seminars and speeches he gives regularly—while always conveying his message in an enjoyable, lighthearted way.

"Selling is like breathing,” he believes. “When done well, it is easy and natural, and no one even notices it is happening."

Mr. Abraham engages his audiences in print and in person with the same blend of energy and ease. The result is a winning formula for success—entertaining, motivational and highly informative!

Praise for Mr. Shmooze

Richard Abraham has written a parable on "selling through relationships" that will be treasured by anyone in sales fortunate enough to come across this book.

An easy and compelling read, the reader gets to learn from the book's hero right alongside Robert, the young protégé, actually a college student doing a Summer internship. While a composite of several selling stars, the main character was inspired by the author's good friend, an extremely successful Atlanta businessman, Brett Hunsaker.

Throughout this book, you'll learn many principles involved in good salesmanship and service to others. I won't take up the space to list them all here. However, the chapter on "Elevation" alone is worth ten times (actually, many, many times) the price of this book and if a sales professional learned this lesson alone and no more, they would see their production rise significantly.

This is the type of book that every company should promote throughout their entire sales force, including to their leadership and management as there are some wonderful lessons there, as well. And, like most great books, every parent should give this book to their child as a gift for them to read, re-read and internalize. This is the element of business that can make your child the most successful, but which he or she will probably never learn in school.

Sales is a very worthy profession and a sales professional should be very proud of what he or she does. Follow the teaching of the master networker in this book and you'll be both proud, and extremely productive.

Bob Burg, Jupiter, Florida

Wow. Buy this book, no matter who you are or how you make your living. I actually complained to the cashier at the bookstore about the price of this book, but now I realize this book is worth it's price x $1,000 and surely more, over time. A quarter of the way through the book I felt my perspective on all of my current relationships start to change dramatically, and while I was reading the book, I had to take down notes of all the new ideas I was getting about how to relate to my friends, family and acquaintances. Less than 24 hours after finishing the book, I am relating to people in a very different way, and noticing how much more warm they are toward me in return. Talk about results. Buy this book.

Diana Cale, San Francisco, California

This book is one of those rare finds that can truly light the fire! The ideas are presented in a fun, easy and quick read. I find myself generating even more ideas because, like a "yes pattern," reading Mr. Shmooze puts my mind in a "creativity pattern" that encourages me to keep taking my thinking to the next level.

I read it every time I need a little motivation, or each time I am searching for a solution and need to think outside the box.

You don't have to be in a sales role to benefit from this book. Everyday, we all need to sell ourselves and our ideas to our Supervisors, Co-workers, clients, customers and even our families. Mr. Shmooze can help.

D. Cernich, Denver, Colorado