I had Jason Marc Campbell on the Conquer Local Podcast for a conversation that reminded me why I fell in love with sales in the first place. Jason is the author of Selling with Love: Earn with Integrity and Expand Your Impact, a public speaker, and the host of the Selling with Love Podcast where he has interviewed over 300 people and reached millions of listeners. He previously spent seven years at Mindvalley, the personal growth ed-tech company, where he was responsible for million-dollar product launches and the PR behind a New York Times bestselling book.
This was Episode 548, and it also happened to be the 250th episode of the Conquer Local Podcast, which we celebrated by transitioning to video for the first time. Jason joined us all the way from Bali, and the conversation went deep on why so many salespeople struggle with the very act of selling, and what we can do about it.
The Root of Sales Reluctance
One of the first things Jason and I talked about was where sales reluctance actually comes from. Jason pointed out that the concept of selling with love is nothing new. He said, “I’m actually just trying to remind people about the foundations that have been working and successful all this time. You go back to some of the original books like The World’s Greatest Salesman, published out in the 60s and 70s, and they talk about some of the biggest secrets around sales, and love finds itself in one of those scripts as one of the foundations.”
That hit home for me. I have been in sales for decades, and the energy you bring to a conversation matters. Jason made the point that when someone is truly in love with what they do, there is a natural level of enthusiasm that transfers to the other person. Buyers feel it.
But Jason also acknowledged that many people carry a negative association with sales. He explained that sales reluctance often comes from fear of rejection, or from personal experiences where they got burned by a bad salesperson and thought, “Am I one of those? I don’t want to be like that.” There is almost a shame associated with stepping into the role of a salesperson, and Jason helps people identify where that comes from and how to overcome it.
Getting Back in the Saddle
I shared a personal story during this conversation. I recently went through an onboarding process at a new organization, and even with my decades of experience, those first five calls brought back the anxiety. It was like getting a brand new job again. But eventually you get back into the flow. The more experience you have, the faster you move through those stages and get back to a good state of mind.
I also talked about some in-market training I had been doing with sales professionals in the radio business who were learning digital sales tactics and adding them to their stack. I saw brand-new reps, sophomores, and seasoned veterans all going through the same thing. They had a new product to sell, and it brought up that sales anxiety all over again. Jason agreed. He said that every time you sell something new, you go through those stages again, and the key is recognizing that pattern and working through it faster each time.
The Friday Night Dinner Analogy
One of my favorite moments in the conversation was when Jason shared an analogy about a couple trying to decide where to eat on a Friday night. He said, “If anyone’s ever had that scenario where it’s Friday night and you turn to your spouse and you say, ‘Are you hungry?’ and they’re like, ‘Yeah,’ and then you’re like, ‘Do you want some Mexican food?’ ‘Nah.’ ‘Do you want some Italian food?’ ‘No.’ There’s no decision that gets made.”
His point was that the person doesn’t want to be given a list of options. They want to be led with confidence by someone they trust. On a Friday night, it is not about listing every restaurant. It is about saying, “I know a great place, I’ve made a reservation, let’s go.” That is what great selling looks like. You do the research, you understand the client’s needs, and you recommend the right solution with confidence.
Jason tied this directly to how salespeople present their services. When you just list features and options and leave the decision to the prospect, you are putting the burden on them. Instead, you should be saying, “Based on what you’ve told me, here is what I recommend.” That is leading with love and confidence.
Why Being “Too Nice” Can Hurt Your Clients
Jason made a bold point that stuck with me: being too soft in sales can actually be a disservice to your clients. He compared it to dragging a friend to the gym at 7 a.m. He said, “I have some friends that I’ve actually really hard sold into getting into the gym with me one morning at 7 a.m., and they were damn happy that I did so at 8 a.m. once we were done with the session.”
He warned that salespeople who avoid being assertive often use what he called “virtue signaling” to justify their soft approach: “Well, I’m just more caring for the buyer. I don’t want to do any of the hard selling.” But the reality is that by not pushing, you may be letting the client down. If you genuinely believe your product or service will help them, you have a responsibility to guide them toward that decision.
The Four Pillars of Selling with Love
Jason outlined a framework in his book built around four pillars:
- Love for what you sell: You need to genuinely believe in your product or service. If you don’t, you will struggle to sell it with conviction.
- Love for your customer: Understand their problems deeply. Know why they buy and how your solution changes their life.
- Love for the process of selling: Sales is a craft. Treat it like one. The professionals who manage the ups and downs and stay consistent are the ones who win long term.
- Love for yourself: There is nothing wrong with being abundant as a salesperson who makes a difference. You can do a job you love, make an impact, and be profitable at the same time.
I told Jason that I think about those highs and lows all the time. The real true professionals in sales are the ones who can manage both. When things are going well, be grateful, because there will be a downturn. And when things are down, that is when your character and discipline matter most.
Understanding the Impact of Every Sale
Jason brought up a powerful exercise from his book about mapping out the ripple effect of every sale you make. He gave the example of selling advertising space on the radio. When you sell that ad, you help a small business get exposure to the right clients, which means they get to serve more customers, hire more people, and stimulate the local economy. That single ad creates a whirlwind of economic activity that benefits everyone.
He encouraged salespeople to sit down and list out every way their product or service impacts the buyer: “How many problems do I get to solve in their life every time I make a sale?” When you can see that clearly, selling stops feeling like a burden and starts feeling like a mission.
Jason also added that understanding the impact on your own life matters too. He said, “There’s nothing wrong with being abundant as a salesperson that’s making a difference. We need so much more amazing salespeople that are abundant, profitable, and doing good in the world so we can start shaping it into what we want to see.”
The Bottom Line
This conversation with Jason Marc Campbell reinforced something I have believed for a long time: sales, done right, is one of the most impactful and rewarding careers you can have. The world is created at the other end of every sales transaction. Every sale that is successful is a reality that is closer to what we want to see in the world.
If you have ever felt that twinge of reluctance before picking up the phone or walking into a meeting, you are not alone. But the solution is not to avoid selling. The solution is to fall in love with it. Love what you sell, love who you sell to, love the process, and love yourself enough to know you deserve the success that comes from helping others.
Jason’s book, Selling with Love, is a great place to start if you want to go deeper on this topic. And if you want to hear the full conversation, hit play on the episode above.