10 Sales and Marketing Tips I learned from Strippers
Like you, I like strippers.
However, I generally find myself leaving the strip club with an empty wallet. Any business that can get you to spend all of your money is a good one to be in.
But while walking out of a club one evening, I realized that a big reason they have such a good business is because strippers are such great salespeople. It is not simply due to the fact that they are selling to stupid, horny men like myself, but because they use a lot of highly effective sales and marketing techniques.
You too can achieve great success by applying sales and marketing techniques of strippers. Here are the 10 sales and marketing techniques I have learned from strippers:
Sales Technique #1 - Give them something for nothing
One of the first things a stripper will do is come up to you and flirt with you. She will likely sit on your lap or do something to raise your excitement level. For this, you have to do nothing. But you do get a sample of the service and if it is a good one, your chances of buying the service increases. This also applies to the dances they do on the stage.
Sales Technique #2 - Understand your customers
Strippers get to know their customers by asking questions. This allows them to develop a rapport and tailor the sales pitch…
Sales Technique #3 - Tailor the Sales Pitch
Strippers will try different sales pitches to different people based on what she thinks they like. “I like to get dirty” or “Have you seen my great ass?” or “My tits are real”. Each pitch may be the one thing that converts the potential customer into a buyer. (Pointing out a tight ass works well for me). And she revises her pitch based on experience.
Sales Technique #4 - Make sure you are selling a great product/service
She knows she has to have a great product. If she put on 30 pounds or hadn’t showered for the past 4 days, she would likely not get as many customers. Regardless of how great of a salesperson you are, you can’t do much with a crappy product/service.
Sales Technique #5 - Provide Good Customer Service
She will make sure you are happy on your first dance or she won’t get repeat business or won’t be able to do what she ultimately set out to do…Upsell.
Sales Technique #6 - Upsell
She sells the customer on a relatively cheap service, a lapdance, but then markets her other services to them. She tries to get them to the “champagne room” and sell an upgraded service, which is where the money is at. However, without the first sale, she would never get the larger sale. Customer acquisition is tough. Once she does it, she needs to get as much business as she can.
Sales Technique #7 - Closing Techniques
She will use a variety of closing techniques to get you to buy her services. There are a variety of closing techniques, but two popular ones used by strippers are the compliment close (usually flirting with you) and companion close (getting your buddies to push you into closing the deal).
Sales Technique #8 - Target your audience
Strippers market to individuals that are interested in her service. First, she works in a strip club where guys go specifically for her service, that is obvious. But she also knows which guys to go after within a group or which groups will likely spend the most money. Spending time with cheap-asses only wanting to pay a dollar for a dance will not be a wise use of he precious time.
Sales Technique #9 - Persistence
Even though the audience is qualified, she knows she will get rejections. Even so, she will go up to every guy and ask if they need a lap dance. She also knows that the more guys she asks, the more yes’s she will get.
Sales Technique #10 - Branding
I don’t know any strippers that are named Ethel, Mildred or Agnus. Instead, you will get the pleasure to do business with Cookie, Destiny, Candy, or Raven.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:17 am
You forgot #11: Delight your customers - don’t just give them what they’ve paid for, go beyond, give them a little extra. This will translate into repeat business. It’s so much easier to get existing customers to keep on paying over and over again than to “recruit” a brand new customer. Establish a relationship…kinda!
John
http://www.gigatribe.com
June 20th, 2007 at 10:29 am
Truly an inspired post. I should probably head over to my local strip joint experience these techniques first hand.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:40 am
pretty good damn post. All great points and a very unqiue way to look at webpublishing and promotion. Never equated promotion and websites to strippers.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:57 am
I had never really thought about that…but strippers are totally good sales people. (It helps to have drunk & eager customers though.)
June 20th, 2007 at 11:13 am
this is a great metaphor for any type of business.. blastup.com peace.
June 20th, 2007 at 2:53 pm
That ass is awesome. Nice post.
June 20th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
The downside (backside?) to this analogy is that, as everyone with half a brain cell knows, the strippers don’t actually care about their customers- they are in it for the money, period. There aren’t too many other businesses where you can only pretend to care about your customers, and they know you are only pretending to care, and they will keep coming back to you anyway. Obviously, there is something fairly unique about the product they are offering that let’s them get away with something very few other businesses could…
June 20th, 2007 at 4:44 pm
I’m a chick who would never strip or go into a strippers bar. But that was a damn good post.
June 20th, 2007 at 4:48 pm
Finally someone that agrees with me when I say strippers are top sellers.
June 20th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
Not that I would expect anything less from someone who frequents strip clubs, but the very first line of this article is incredibly sexist. No, sorry, I don’t like strippers. And lest you forget, more than 50% of the population is female, and they control far more than 50% of the income in this country when it comes to actually spending it. So it might behoove you to avoid offending them.
Maybe that’s the first lesson you should take from strippers - watch what you say, because you never know how much money the person you just pissed off might have been willing to spend.
June 20th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
I just remember a youtube video talk about porn statistic using similar approach.
good picture
June 20th, 2007 at 5:44 pm
There is a reason Ferraris sell themselves. The strippers in the high class wallet clearing clubs, not the dollar a dance places tend to be some of the best looking women period. I think they are selling a very sellable commodity.
June 20th, 2007 at 5:54 pm
I’m not looking at getting into sales, but this is a very good read. The picture helps too, it got my attention.
As someone already said, having drunk and eager customers also helps. An ex of mine is a stripper and she only gets money from guys when they are drunk.
Sales Technique #11 - Get your customer drunk!
June 20th, 2007 at 6:00 pm
Pretty funny - pretty true too
June 20th, 2007 at 6:05 pm
I guess it helps too that every customer knows that not buying anything is likely to upset the bouncers.
And you do not wish to upset the bouncers in most strip clubs.
June 20th, 2007 at 6:16 pm
Let the bait begin to be taken. Shoemoney was right. These points are right on the money!
Success is everywhere. You just have to look for it?
June 20th, 2007 at 6:19 pm
I see that you’ve implemented a common strategy: sex sells. The second I saw that picture, I couldn’t turn away! Great read.
June 20th, 2007 at 6:31 pm
Great post!
June 20th, 2007 at 6:45 pm
I have a friend who was a stripper (got her sales pitch a couple of times :). As she got into her mid 30’s her “business” began to sag. So she became a car sales person! And she’s become very successful at it!
June 20th, 2007 at 6:49 pm
Every stripper — beginner and veteran — should read this page. How many times have we all run into strippers who because they have 38DDs don’t make any effort to get your business other than “Here I am - pay me now!”…
June 20th, 2007 at 7:19 pm
I could sell anyhting to drunks. Vis versa I would buy basically anything while Im drunk (just like now).
June 20th, 2007 at 7:19 pm
I agree with everything but number 6. In most of the clubs I’ve frequented, the girls get the shaft on the champagne room. Most of that money goes to the house, and they end up hoping to make up on the tip you give them on top of the fee for the room. Of course, if they are selling other “services” in the champagne room, they can make up for the house fee. But really, they are better off selling private lap dances than going to the VIP area.
June 20th, 2007 at 7:32 pm
Interesting post, great way to relate the odd and the business (which are generally one in the same).
June 20th, 2007 at 7:43 pm
Hard to take this seriously.
June 20th, 2007 at 8:30 pm
I would need to re-write my whole post on my website if I worked in a strip club. To the window to the wall….
June 20th, 2007 at 8:48 pm
great article, but i never get this kind of treatment at the local club. maybe it’s that i’m a young looking guy and not a regular customer. the only times i’ve been there the strippers just come by and ask “do you want a dance” and then leave when i say “no thanks”. not much of a sales pitch, which is probably why i never buy their dances.
the only time one actually turned on the charm was when i went to canada. they were kind of bad looking though so a good sales pitch was needed (they didn’t get me to pay for a dance however)
June 20th, 2007 at 8:51 pm
Totally agree…there are some strippers that won’t ask for the business. Huge mistake. I have let a 10 walk by and allowed a 7 or 8 to dance for me because she “acted” like she liked me and she ASKED for the business. Great post.
June 20th, 2007 at 9:48 pm
Great suggestions. Yes I can confirm that their strategy really works from experience … I just hope that more people will take those really good marketing advices into real actions as this is not very easy thing to do and requires a lot of work. Note that even strippers spend at least 2 hours a day in the gym to work those tight asses … so we should do the same …
June 20th, 2007 at 10:10 pm
I see, strippers are MBA Grads themselves.
Cheers
June 20th, 2007 at 10:37 pm
Good article and true. All salespeople know that there is no such thing as a 100% success rate in selling a product. If you manage a 80% success rate you are a high achiever. I was talking to a TV marketing guy a few years ago. He said that about 60% of the company business was returns or referrals. I said to him, your company is a multimillion dollar corporation why bother with the advertising. The answer surprised me, product placement. They relied on the factor that if a person was familiar with the product, and if the occasion arises, there is a high probability that a person would use their product in preference to an unknown product. In Australia, during the summer months, there is a battle between Pepsi and Coke for market share. Yet the biggest competitor and the biggest market share is flavoured milk. The milk companies learned a marketing technique from the Pepsi - Coke “war”.
June 20th, 2007 at 10:45 pm
awesome post….
June 20th, 2007 at 11:18 pm
10 Sales and Marketing Tips you learned from Strippers?
I bet you could also learn a lot from HOOKERS!
June 20th, 2007 at 11:55 pm
I go to the club right away and check the methods you described. Great post.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:56 pm
“The downside (backside?) to this analogy is that, as everyone with half a brain cell knows, the strippers don’t actually care about their customers- they are in it for the money, period. There aren’t too many other businesses where you can only pretend to care about your customers, and they know you are only pretending to care, and they will keep coming back to you anyway.”
I don’t know where you’re shopping, but I never thought any business cared about me other than for my business. I want them to give me great customer service and be friendly. If you’re looking for love, you’re not looking for a stripper or a business.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:57 pm
yeah, I really don’t need a sales pitch to be at a strip club, trying to stay away is my problem. In my experience, the hot ones are always “occupied” anyway, I’m usually looking for them than vice versa.
June 20th, 2007 at 11:59 pm
if they only knew…….ha
June 21st, 2007 at 12:17 am
in our own way we are all whores
June 21st, 2007 at 12:26 am
For hiddencamstore - the sad but true fact is that older guys are more likely to have money, power and influence than younger guys, so even the younger and better looking, can get ignored. It’s the goal of the deal that’s important.
Sociobiology says that behaviors have origins in choices made that had evolutionary advantage. Anything that improves the likelihood that your children and grandchildren will survive to reproduce will be favored. Because of pregnancy and long childhoods, women who eons ago selected mates who were able to support them and their children well had their genes survive while those who chose hot but clueless statistically did not.
Any obvious visual (or other) qualities that indicate those “good” choices most of the time are hardwired genetically. Older men, statistically, have more money, are less likely to take risks, have useful experience and are (up to a certain age) more likely to want to have children. All of these make for better offspring survival.
When I was in my 20s I never understood this. Beautiful and no so beautiful women I liked or wanted would flock to older men. In my 40s I have more women hit on me than I ever imagined possible. Without trying! It’s one of the good sides of getting older. I’m not *that* good looking by a long shot. Arguably I’m more self-confident and that vibe carries but that’s just more of the same “qualifying signs of a good prospect”.
For Sharon - sorry you feel that men should be exactly like women but the fact is that we’re different. On this subject, scientists recently demonstrated that men’s eyes are hardwired to their pleasure centers while women are not. This is apparently why we are so sexually visual while women are not so much. We instantly get the equivalent of amphetamines and heroin doses when we see attractive women and their bodies. And it’s hardwired biology that no amount of social control or feminist ideology will ever change. Sociobiology applies again - men’s physical biology favors not hanging around long. Unless you can get them addicted, literally. Men’s “shallow” proclivities are primarily to the advantage to women, regardless of their individual “hotness”! Men are certainly hurt by being control by a mere addiction. Aren’t you glad we have such “base” tendencies. We’ll all have to deal with it.
More generally. When I went through my sales training classes at a Fortune 25 company years ago, the negotiative selling portion was quickly renamed by the students as “Bar Skills class” - everyone practiced the day’s subject matter in a local bar picking up members of the opposite sex. It works quite well for either salesmen or saleswomen. Interactions between men and women, and direct sales interactions involve pretty much all the same dynamics, techniques and goals - each side trading surplus for scarcity to achieve unique goals of value and happiness.
June 21st, 2007 at 12:33 am
Good points, entertaining delivery. But hey… was this really just a way for you to make a visit to a strip club tax deductible? Very clever!
P.S. Sharon does have a point, though. While, in fact, there are plenty of women who DO like strippers… and honestly, the marketing points you’re making still have validity even if you don’t like stripping… there’s a bit of a risk in the opening like you didn’t need to take.
June 21st, 2007 at 12:50 am
So smart and so true. I fall for it every time!
June 21st, 2007 at 1:12 am
Am I the only girl that is “for” strippers? I think pole dancing is the hottest thing ever and it is great for body toning.
June 21st, 2007 at 1:18 am
Shake dat ASS Baby
June 21st, 2007 at 1:41 am
I met this stripper, and think she really likes me!
June 21st, 2007 at 1:44 am
You forgot the most important one: If you are hot, take your clothes of.
June 21st, 2007 at 1:56 am
Haha! Best. Marketing Advice. Ever. Very unique and attention-grabbing, as well.
To Sharon above:
I think he was just using that as a hook for the reader and for humorous reasons.
June 21st, 2007 at 3:24 am
good article
June 21st, 2007 at 3:25 am
nice one
June 21st, 2007 at 3:51 am
Great post. Ive never really thought about stripping as a business before, but you’re right they do apply the same principles as other successful businesses.
June 21st, 2007 at 5:19 am
Learn the difference between “your” and “you’re” before writing #2.
June 21st, 2007 at 6:09 am
There’s a great South Park episode calls “Raisins”, where a customer (Butters) falls in love with a waitress who’s feigning interest in him…..
June 21st, 2007 at 6:20 am
A nice technique they use is to ask “Do you want me to stop?” after the first song, instead of asking “Would you like another dance?”.
June 21st, 2007 at 6:26 am
One of the best posts i’ve read lately. And you should also add the #11 from the first comments, because John’s right.
But there’s a problem in your post, i can’t get over #6 because my eyes remain on that girl and if i scroll, she’ll disappear
Thanks,
sandossu
http://sandossu.com
June 21st, 2007 at 7:52 am
These guys are geniuses. It’s always good to have things laid out in front of you to understand them better. If we can implement these concepts in our business we surely can get some jump in our sales. Nicely done guys, post some more ideas of yours and enlighten all of us.
June 21st, 2007 at 8:25 am
Sharon:
Wow, it’s amazing how quickly your own sexism materialized while complaining about someone else’s. After stating that the line was “inncredibly sexist,” you went on to say that “lest you forget, more than 50% of the population is female….” Now, that sounds like a simple fact on the face, but you are replying to the author’s line, “Like you, I like strippers.” So, what you are implying is that all men like strippers while no women do. I don’t like strippers, and I am a man. I’ve been to one strip club in my life and I was bored to oblivion. So why assume? It seems a bit short-sighted to me.
When I read the first line, I understood it to be a simple insider/outsider tension builder. It’s a simple technique to make insiders want to read it because they feel included while at the same time making outsiders curious to read something that they are not specifically targetted for. It’s an advertising tactic that usually makes for tense, interesting introductions. This is written by a marketer, remember. He has an understanding of these concepts and you were duly offended enough to show off your own bigotries.
June 21st, 2007 at 8:43 am
Great article. Big Clubs in Vegas girls are like that. Their sales pitch and service were great. Club makes tons of money, taxi drivers gets lot of affiliation commission everytime they bring customers. Club even running a contest for the taxi drivers just like our web business.
June 21st, 2007 at 9:16 am
“The downside (backside?) to this analogy is that, as everyone with half a brain cell knows, the strippers don’t actually care about their customers- they are in it for the money, period….”
I think that a large element of sales is fantasy. The seller creates a dream world that the buyer willingly enters into. The buyer wants to believe the fantasy, to the point where they will deliberately disregard reality in order to believe it. In the case of the stripper, the buyer secretly believes that the stripper finds them attractive and that is why they are engaging them in the sale, not just because they want to make money out of them.
June 21st, 2007 at 9:20 am
I like what asdf says, and also learn you can’t make anything plural by adding ’s. #9, just make it yeses - don’t care if it looks weird, it’s correct.
Do it!
Argh…
And good article.
June 21st, 2007 at 9:52 am
What about happy endings?
June 21st, 2007 at 11:36 am
I’m a girl, and I think there’s nothing wrong with strippers. Albeit, I’d never become one, but they make lots of money, they have to stay in shape, and, if they do even the minimum for their job, they’ll make more in a night than I will in a week.
June 21st, 2007 at 11:54 am
I see a couple people took issue with my point that not caring about your customers isn’t normally a good business practice. I wasn’t suggesting they care about me in a loving way, but if you value my long term business, you don’t try and sell me stuff I don’t need and overcharge me and otherwise try to maximize my spend on one visit- you sell me what I need this time so I keep coming back over and over and build trust.
Strippers, on the other hand, don’t have to care much about how hard they push the sale this time, since what they are selling will tend to bring the customers back regardless, and by the nature of what they are selling most people know it is an act anyway (some guys don’t and fall in love, but that’s a different problem).
June 21st, 2007 at 12:12 pm
So what you’re saying is I need to hire some “attractive salespeople” for my business?
I’ve found that I care more about strippers than I do insurance salespeople or used car dealers… but not that much more. Still, they do make some hard cash, and we could learn a lot from them.
Time to study!
June 21st, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Never would’ve seen the connection. Funny, yet educational and accurate.
June 21st, 2007 at 2:15 pm
So, first off Sharon, do you actually know any strippers, or are you lumping us all together in one general class? 2nd absolutely agree with the sales techniques.
Cap Forge, I am gravely disappointed in your comment, but as with Sharon I am disappointed that a whole group can be judged on a few individual’s actions. It is a sad reality that a titty bar is just another form of entertainment and not therapy.
I used some of the sales techniques that were taught to me as a car sales woman to get my lap dances and champagne rooms. In fact in my autobiography that I’m working on, I include sales tips for newbies if you will. One thing over looked in this is follow up: Get the name, number, or e mail. If you have one guy come in and drop $1000, you want to say thank you the next day and maybe (and in my experience they did) they’ll come back or they send in referrals. In other words, I found this very amusing.
BTW: I’m now retired, stay in touch with most of my regulars and work in the mental health field.
June 21st, 2007 at 2:34 pm
Fantastic article and actually very true. Although I would say outside of the high class clubs, many of the girls have some serious life issues such as being on drugs.
In terms of the classier clubs however where the girls are making 100K+ a year, this is spot on.
June 21st, 2007 at 2:42 pm
Mantra, anyone who believes that “science” is a complete idiot. During the era of primate evolution, older men did NOT “have more money.” They were just as likely to have been rejected in favor of young, more attractive mates. Remember, before “survival of the fittest” kicks in, one must also be sexually attractive, not just rationally attractive.
Nor is there any evidence that early women actually sought long-term partners, because the entire group would have been one’s support system. There’s just as valid an argument that women slept around to build networks.
Actually, there is absolutely no evidence about early social structures–only speculation. And the “hardwiring” between the eyes and the pleasure centers is BS.
And Sharon is correct–it’s poor marketing to insult a significant portion of your audience right off the bat.
June 21st, 2007 at 3:01 pm
In Philly’s more upscale clubs,the big push is for a “private dance” . At $20+ a pop, this can be costly. My favourite excuse is,”my girlfriend works her,she’d kill us if she found out.”. This saves me $$$ and drives them nuts! “Who is it?! Which girl gets to go home with you?” Of course, I can’t say, and blow her cover.heh-heh… Guys , dont use this at Risque in Philly.You’ll spoil it for me. Of course, at the crappy joints down the road, who gives a ….so, be prudent and thrifty and you’ll have more $$$ for overpriced beers.
June 21st, 2007 at 4:00 pm
Haha yeah it is funny when they are like yeah i’ll tank you in this room and you can have this massage or the special room which is really the same thing just more money haha.
June 21st, 2007 at 5:40 pm
# Senfem Says:
” And the “hardwiring” between the eyes and the pleasure centers is BS.”
I disagree. It is apparent, by observation, that males are visually stimulated, while females are aurally stimulated. Which may explain why men often chase beauty instead of good character, while women often fall for good talkers, singers, and other auditory stimulants instead of good character.
(play a “Barry White” number in the background…)
And likewise, men tend to shun unattractive females, and women shy away from males whose vocal equipment is shrill, annoying and/or grating, despite their otherwise attractive attributes.
June 21st, 2007 at 7:32 pm
The stage ain’t free, honey, you’re supposed to tip us.
And, as a stripper with gazillions of hours of hands on (er, laps on) sales experience, I can tell you that the best close is one that’s a statement. I’m ready to play now. You need me in your lap now. That kinda thing.
Great post, tho.
June 21st, 2007 at 11:50 pm
Awesome awesome article. Who HASN’T seen the sales guy at their company act pretty much like whores to make the sale?
June 22nd, 2007 at 2:25 am
and what if the customer is female….??? Can anybody help me with a similar story?
Women usually don’t buy from strippers….
June 22nd, 2007 at 3:33 am
Good article! Even if I admit that at one point I forgot what I was reading, what was the real meaning of the article (the marketing techniques, I mean) and I was thinking only at the strip club
June 22nd, 2007 at 4:11 am
Sharon, darling, you are a daft cunt.
June 22nd, 2007 at 8:30 am
it’s agnes with an e.
June 22nd, 2007 at 8:54 am
Sharon - knock it off. Its humor. Don’t get it? Keep your yap shut. Christ…
June 22nd, 2007 at 9:00 am
Make your client feel special. Give ‘em the ol’ “I don’t do this for everyone” feel. Make ‘em think. “Wow, she really likes me….I knew it, I’ll give ‘er an extra finsky!”
June 22nd, 2007 at 9:42 am
Contra #15, I have been in dozens of strip clubs across the country over the last two decades, and I have never seen a bouncer that cared whether a customer bought a lap dance or not. They care about (1) whether you paid the cover, (2) whether you refrain from touching the dancers beyond the limits the club or the individual dancer tolerates, (3) whether you are overly intoxicated, and (4) whether you are disturbing the dancers or other patrons.
In other words, pay the cover, don’t upset the dancers or the other customers, stay reasonably sober, and the bouncers won’t bother you. And a dancer who is upset because you are not buying lap dances doesn’t qualify. Virtually no dancer would ever complain to the bouncer about that, and no bouncer would respond by menacing the customer.
If you ever find yourself in some alternative universe strip club where these statements are not accurate, leave immediately and never go back. There are plenty of clubs (virtually all of them) where you don’t have to put up with that stuff.
June 22nd, 2007 at 11:37 am
Brilliant and applicable to any sales industry. It should be mandatory to visit your local “Gentlemen’s Club” to do some training and research
June 22nd, 2007 at 1:44 pm
I don’t get it, you mean they aren’t really interested in me? It’s the money? Damn, I never made the connection. I thought I had something special going. You ruined my day…
June 22nd, 2007 at 2:45 pm
Rule #12
Strippers always negotiate from a position of power especially in the private champagne/VIP room. ’nuff said!
June 22nd, 2007 at 3:36 pm
Maybe my wife will let me go to strip clubs now, since I’ll be doing marketing research and all…
June 22nd, 2007 at 4:32 pm
We belly dancers sometimes get mistaken for strippers, which is ignorant, but also hilarious because I’m usually safety-pinned up the wazoo in my costume, and there’s no way I can get that thing off by myself!
And Sharon, dear, with the advancements in plastic surgery these days, you don’t know that that photo’s not really of a man.
*Runs away and giggles as the guys here retch*
June 22nd, 2007 at 6:44 pm
You forgot eye contact, and forming an instant phisical/tangible repoire with a hand shake, hair tussle, or touch on the arm/shoulder/neck for example.
Also, rule # 1 is to make the customer feel important.
I guess tussling a clients hair doesn’t work in every situation.
June 23rd, 2007 at 9:08 pm
Being one who’s frequented a lot of clubs for quite awhile and sampled the wares of many dancers and seen many pitches, I have to tell you that some strippers sell themselves better than others. Indeed, one woman I hold in awe of her sales ability. It’s like what you’d expect watching Donald Trump doing business.
As for the post being sexist, the sad fact is that most men are enamoured with the female form (if not the female mind, though men loving that exist too).
Just the facts ma’am, just the facts.
June 24th, 2007 at 7:51 pm
Guess what? Not everybody likes strippers, douche. And guess what else? They aren’t all prostitutes. Furthermore, they ARE making money because you are a stupid horny man who wants to treat women like meat.
Idiot.
June 24th, 2007 at 8:36 pm
You know as a few other I never thought about the whole sales side of strip clubs. Dead on though. Only if having strippers for an actual sales staff would work and not cause an uproar in my town!
June 24th, 2007 at 9:10 pm
Sorry to be the contrarian, but from experience Strippers are not sales people but con artists. There’s nothing any self respecting sales person could learn from them. They’re nothing but hustlers. I’m as horny as the next guy, but find strip clubs about the least sexy places on earth, mainly because it’s all just a big con.
June 25th, 2007 at 6:19 am
luvstrippers, just because it’s a “fact” that some men like strippers, doesn’t mean it’s not sexist. It’s a “fact” that some people hate african-americans, but it’s still racist. Duh.
June 25th, 2007 at 11:45 am
Right on the money, bro! In fact, I am going to pass this on to my sales guys.
June 25th, 2007 at 2:37 pm
you seem to have opened a pandoras box with this post. i will be honest i spent the time reading the comments lmao. you have proven that sex sells even in a post. Im about to start putting photoshop pictures of females with audio devices. Men seem to be easy targets as long as there is a woman involved.
“and what if the customer is female….??? Can anybody help me with a similar story?
Women usually don’t buy from strippers….”
its men that are a hard sale women like to buy everything.
June 26th, 2007 at 10:55 am
I hope you do pass this along to your sales guys, RK, and that your sales guys are smart enough to do the right thing and report your ass for sexual harassment/discrimination.
June 26th, 2007 at 1:15 pm
“women like to buy everything”? uway, do you even KNOW any women? Women make most of the buying decisions for their households (mostly because men are too fucking lazy to buy their own socks), and it’s in a marketer’s best interests not to offend us. Treat us like idiots, or stereotypes, and we’ll take our money elsewhere.
June 27th, 2007 at 1:18 pm
I find it really interesting that when people say “sex sells” what they mean is “sexualized images of women’s bodies as sexual objects sell”. And I find it even more interesting that the opening line of this post is “Like you, I like strippers,” which, in fact, is fucking bullshit, because you don’t like them, you like objectifying them. If you liked them you wouldn’t look at them as pieces of meat but as human beings. What you like are the feelings of power and dominance that you get from looking at a group of women dancing for your amusement like servants to a tyrannical master.
Also, by the way? A woman’s body is not a product. It’s her fucking body. And the fact that you think she’s automatically unattractive if she gains some weight is both misogynist and fattist.
June 28th, 2007 at 3:12 pm
Good article. Interesting to note that strippers are operating from a position of strength as it relates to men - they have captured the customer’s Attention (You have to get the attention of your prospect); Interest (Build their interest by using an emotional appeal); Desire (Build their desire for your product by showing them its features and letting them sample or test-drive it); Conviction (Increase their desire for your product by statistically proving the worth of your product and Action(Encourage the prospect to act. This is your closing. Ask for the order. If they object, address their objections).
You are insightful - thanks for the lesson.
June 29th, 2007 at 8:26 am
Strippers have power while they’re on the pole like a squirrel has the power in a room full of dobermans.
June 29th, 2007 at 8:54 am
All Sales people, from Car sales to Real Estate Sales all wish the had the same power over the customer as the stripper does over their customers.
June 29th, 2007 at 12:58 pm
Brilliant article.
One of my favorite lines that they use is the “feel sorry for me” sell. This is usually a line of “This is my first night” accompanied by the “I’m wary of some of the guys in here and I feel safe with you.”
That feeling of security lasts as long as the $20’s keep coming her way. Once they are gone, she goes off to find security with someone else on the other side of the club.
June 30th, 2007 at 10:50 am
Semcents: Really? ALL sales people like being groped, treated like meat, and called a whore and a slut, just like empowerful strippers do?
I call bullshit.
July 1st, 2007 at 6:38 am
Jezebella, you asked uway if he knows any women, but I’d like to ask you, do you even KNOW any strippers? Somehow I doubt it. You need to get back in the kitchen.
July 2nd, 2007 at 12:12 pm
hey, malestripper: fuck off. Cook your own goddamn dinner. Somehow I doubt you’ve ever listened to the words a woman speaks.
July 4th, 2007 at 1:02 am
Reminds me of the line from Pretty Woman: We both screw people for money.
July 4th, 2007 at 11:23 pm
Some interesting comments - anyone in the business of ’selling’ would appreciate that the tips certainly have substance and they are not uncommon - nor are they restricted to the art of those who engage in stripping.
Sad to see that many have lost the plot and taken the tips than other for their comical value and have so decided to utilise them for arguing the ‘gender’ war whereby strippers are seen as being used in a derogatory and demeaning manner for the amusement of men - I myself view it for what it is - women who are earning a wage (better than most) and undertaking an activity that meets the needs of certain parts of our society - as do prostitues, policemen and women, politicians etc
Lets face it - whether we be men or women - we all use certain ’sell’ techniques to achieve what we perceive as our needs, desires etc - its just that some ’sell’ better than others - be it that their product is superior or that they are just plain better salespeople
And don’t we all end up with what we can afford??
July 6th, 2007 at 9:11 am
Guess what? There’s nothing funny about the sex industry. I suppose you think rape jokes are funny, too.
If you want to “sell” your website, you may wish to try not to alienate your female readers by saying stuff like “Like you, I like strippers.” Guess what? I’m NOT like you. I DON’T like going to titty bars. Salesmen, take note: Women are 51% of the population. Do you want our money? Treat us like humans.
July 8th, 2007 at 6:43 am
As a former stripper who worked in the most exclusive clubs around the country; I agree with most points but you forgot the most important thing. Personality. You can do all those things and more but what it comes down to is making the other person feel good. Try to take an active interest in the other person and even if you have to fake it. Make that person feel like that person is the most important person in the room. Strippers are the best in this and that is also why they are one of the top earners in the country. How is that degrading? I know many women who have gone on to law school, med school, grad school, and started their own business. Beats working at McDonalds. To the women that are leaving judgmental comments; Never judge a person until you walked a mile in his or her shoes.
July 9th, 2007 at 12:34 am
If you arent like him, and you complain, piss, moan, and try to get attention like you are trying here, then congratulations, Jezebella… you arent worth the time to try and woo.
July 9th, 2007 at 10:50 am
Jezebella, youre Sharon. and sharon, no. youre not a man. dont lie. you wanna make a point? make your own site. sometimes, i pity men. really.
July 10th, 2007 at 6:53 am
This article is really cool! But it is also very true. I never really thought of strippers as “business-minded” like that, but when you think about it, they have to be.
July 18th, 2007 at 10:01 pm
Sharon said: “…watch what you say, because you never know how much money the person you just pissed off might have been willing to spend.”
The classic trap of trying to market to EVERYONE.
“…And lest you forget, more than 50% of the population is female, and they control far more than 50% of the income in this country when it comes to actually spending it. So it might behoove you to avoid offending them. …”
IMHO, we spend WAY too much time in the USA worrying about what MIGHT offend someone. This is a great article about Marketing lessons learned from a legal business.
I am curious Sharon .. would you be as offended by an article titled: “Marketing Tips I Learned From The Mafia” or “Marketing Tips I Learned From Communist Regimes”? Both of these have hurt a lot more families than strippers have.
July 18th, 2007 at 10:18 pm
Jezebella said:
“Guess what? There’s nothing funny about the sex industry. I suppose you think rape jokes are funny, too.
If you want to “sell” your website, you may wish to try not to alienate your female readers by saying stuff like “Like you, I like strippers.” Guess what? I’m NOT like you. I DON’T like going to titty bars. Salesmen, take note: Women are 51% of the population. Do you want our money? Treat us like humans.”
So…publishing the FACT that LEGAL strip clubs exist, make a boatload of money and that there may be marketing lessons to learn from them equates to condoning “rape”??????????
Jezebella…I hope we all agree that we are all for protecting innocents from the “Sex Industry”. But it is, always has been and always will be a human industry.
I think most of those in it would agree that a good word to describe the sex industry would be ‘funny’.
The author IS treating you like a human by communicating his thoughts. You are the one who chooses to be offended by free speech.
July 21st, 2007 at 9:56 pm
Looks like Jezebella needs a chill pill. Either that or she needs to exercise her rights to go elsewhere when she doesn’t like what she reads.
July 25th, 2007 at 3:21 am
i am actually a stripper (a damn good one too) and these tips are common knowledge to chicks like me.
August 7th, 2007 at 12:46 pm
Very interesting post. What I find even more interesting are the replies.As a former dancer and now the executive director of a nonprofit, I can tell you that the astute breakdown of the sales process is right on target, but as another poster (former dancer) mentioned - and that is absolutely mandatory for a successful business - is personality. What is it that makes you memorable? Tits and ass are pretty much the same at anywhere. But a pretty smile and a caring attitude on a “product” that you are interested will win out over the cocky and self-centered “salesman” with an equally attractive product.
I danced for five years in many clubs, from common to extremely exclusive and made a lot of money. I can tell you that the secret - the absolute secret is to acknowledge the reality that dancers are just people who have something that their customers, who are just people, lack: attention and affection and apprecitiation from a pretty girl. That is the truth ladies and gentlemen. That is why the top dancers have loyal followings and receive generous tips, flowers, gifts, etc: they truly care about their customers, many of whom become their friends. To be cared for, remembered and treated well is the glue that holds the customer to the business.
August 12th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
Jezebella,
What’s his name. We’re all sorry you were “screwed” (figuratively?) by a man or men.
But, a comparison can be drawn from both of these fields.
Heck, there is a book written by a waitress who compares the job of waiting on tables to being a prostitute.
You got to admit she does have a nice “passt”.
August 18th, 2007 at 6:51 pm
It seems alot can be learned from strippers. The problem is being distracted, I don’t remember anything.
September 1st, 2007 at 9:50 am
Jezebella, you’re an idiot. I’ve been a stripper for three years; I hold a Master’s degree and I love my life and my job. I was a waitress for nearly ten years and I can definitely say I was degraded by that, but there has been nothing degrading whatsoever about my work as a stripper. This article is spot-on.
September 1st, 2007 at 1:43 pm
CapForge is dead wrong when he says strippers are the only businesspeople in it for the money and don’t care about their customers. EVERY businessperson is in it first and foremost for the money, and they ALL just pretend to care about the customers. CapForge is very naive if he thinks all “regular” businesspeople care about their customers. LOL
September 1st, 2007 at 7:43 pm
Those who believe that making money as a stripper is easier than other selling jobs because you are dancing naked for horny men are soooooo mistaken.
First, competition. You are not the only pretty naked trying to sell dances!! (and guys know this very well)
Another thing… once these men pay their cover to get in the club (or get in for free)they can just watch(and watch and watch) and talk to girls without spending a dime on them, so strippers definitely need to use sell techniques and marketing (ex. differentiation, market segmentation, customize).
Of course, there are the ones who get it and the ones who don’t. A good selling stripper is not your average stripper, but if you find one, you can learn a hell lot on selling from her.
And I can assure that the strippers who rip off customers are not the succesful ones in this industry.
One more thing… most drunk customers are a pain in the ass, not money spenders!!
Former Stripper
September 2nd, 2007 at 9:10 pm
“KLC Says:
I’m a girl, and I think there’s nothing wrong with strippers. Albeit, I’d never become one, but they make lots of money, they have to stay in shape, and, if they do even the minimum for their job, they’ll make more in a night than I will in a week.”
That’s false. Some nights are bad, some are good, just like any other commission type job. Some nights you can leave OWING the club money. It isn’t as easy as everyone thinkd is it.
September 4th, 2007 at 11:39 am
I was actually looking at tips for cold calling and prospecting when I came across the article. It made me laugh and I have to acknowledge that there are alot of good points. Good strippers can make alot of money…..because they do a good job in selling themselves as well as their services. They do have a tad of an advantage as they they already have the customers in the door… and they wouldn’t be there if they weren’t looking to “buy” something. But that being said, they still need to set themselves a part from the competition and their goal is to make the guys (or girls for that matter) not only choose them but spend more money.
Since I need the help and inspiration in my own personal sales…. I’m saving the article… and forwarding it to my co-horts!
September 11th, 2007 at 5:45 pm
What I mean is: the girlz have a monopoly. They see a lonely, geeky young guy starving for attention, and then proceed to pwn me.
September 16th, 2007 at 10:49 pm
As a stripper myself I can say that this analogy is absolutely true and it has been talked about many times on sites such as Stripperweb. There are actually training programs for strippers out there on how to marketing yourself and we also find that reading books on marketing and business help us earn better just as any independent contractor would. Thos eo fus who are high earners ($500-1000+ a night) understand how to produce results like a pro without the need to get too raunchy or go too far. Those who don’t learn are the ones who end up giving ‘extras’ to earn the same amount.
September 17th, 2007 at 8:06 pm
Strippers are only good for taking your money. There is something to be learned from them though and I am glad that you wrote this post. I don’t know what drink you had in your hand or how much money you lost the night before at Scores but great post.
January 13th, 2008 at 4:54 pm
This is soo true!!! Gotta hire some strippers for my business j/k
January 15th, 2008 at 12:17 am
I like your analogy and wish I could be a stripper. As a man I feel a little cheated. I wish all I had to do was shake my money maker a little and earn a lot. I will re-read this post again in a couple days because I think you are definately on to something here. I also want to come back just so I can see that picture again.
January 20th, 2008 at 10:22 am
Interesting post. Interesting comments. I’ve only been to two strip clubs in my life, both on the same night. The first club had the reputation as the “classier” joint. It cost more at the door. The beers cost more. Private dances were $20. There were fewer dancers. They seemed disinterested in what they were doing or the customers who were there. Lap dances (to myself and the guys at other tables) were completely lackluster. TERRIBLE service. We left after one dance and one drink and will never go back.
The second place had the reputation of being a lower quality club. The cover charge was more affordable. The beers were a little cheaper. There were tons of girls. Private dances were $10. The dancers were much more engaging with their personality. There were 4 times as many customers in a smaller club. Everyone there (including the dancers) seemed to be having fun. We ended up staying their longer, spending more than twice as much money, and already have plans to go back with other friends. The points made by the original article author and the actual strippers who replied (with more authority, professionalism, and dignity than many other replies by the way) were absolutely true. The “lesser” club and the dancers who worked there were making money by the bucketful compared to the “better” club simply because they all had a better more well-rounded business sense.
February 15th, 2008 at 7:11 am
Very well put. Great analogy. It’s always refreshing to come across an inspired piece of writing, and actually learning something at the same time.
I think that point number 10 really does hit the nail on the head.
February 15th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
Correct. We are just there to make money. Though you may come to see a particular girl on a regular basis or even just the once she is not your friend, your MONEY is her friend. What she is giving you is great customer service in that she is fulfilling what you came there for, YOUR fantasy of having an awesomely hot girl PRETENDING that she thinks your hot enough for her, thus boosting your ego and hopefully making you spend money on her and become her repeat customer (known as a ‘regular’). It’s the same thing as going to buy a suit in the menswear store and having the sales associate tell you how wonderful you look in it to get you to spend on it so she gets her comission. Being semi nude just makes it easier for us to get you to part with your cash easier because is it a well known fact that when a hot looking girl comes around, mens brains instantly dislocate from their wallets and drop into the front of thier pants(sorry guys but that’s just the way it is).
Once your money runs out she will no longer be interested in you because you hold no further $$ value to her. If she IS interested in you to take it further outside of the club be rest assured that it is either because a) Your wealthy b) Your famous c)Your old AND wealthy, in which case the likelihood of you falling for her then dropping dead very soon (not naming a certain famous recently dead blonde), leaving her all of your money in a will is a distinct possibility or D) she is a very low end stripper with a habit and you have the means to fulfil her ultimate vision of a ‘high utopia’.
Due to their trippers make excellent sales people outside of the clubs