Selling to the Affluent

He provides insights into different affluent groups including:

• Business owners
• Sales professionals
• Women
• Asian Americans
• Retired millionaires

Stanley also discusses how to sell both tangible products, such as luxury cars and real estate, as well as intangibles, such as financial services. Selling to the Affluent is the most authoritative and comprehensive guide available for selling products and services to the affluent market.

Must reading for all serious sales people


Very good book but read others Dr. Stanley has written   February 10, 2003
Don McNay (Richmond, Ky USA)
8 out of 9 found this review helpful

This is a good book and part of a series that Dr. Stanley has written.

Dr. Stanley has become a big name since the tremendous success of "The Millionaire Next Door" but all of his books on marketing and selling to the affluent are great.

I prefer the book "Marketing to the Affluent" if I only had one to read but if you are someone who deals with high income people, all books in the series are a must. He is ground breaking in his research and writes in an easy to read style.

I am a financial consultant and structured settlement consultant for injury victims who receive large settlements. I quote Dr. Stanley's research often and try to read everything he publishes.

I would recommend this highly as well...


Equivalent to MBA + Good common sense.   August 15, 1999
12 out of 15 found this review helpful

I have read this book approx. 1 year ago and, as a sales trainer suggest many of the principles recommended in Selling to the Affluent. It is a must for every sales professional who wants to develop a referral clientelle and build a life long career. A highly recommend.


A reality check for all salespeople targeting the affluent market   October 4, 2008
Mike (San Jose, CA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

Dr. Stanley lays down a few key assumptions in this book and repeats them aggressively for one reason: He wants you to understand the fact that the strategies employed by successful salespeople in this market are largely ignored by the majority of their competitors.

One example (and there are many in the book): "Fifty top-ranked sales professionals spent an entire day together at a seminar. The seminar was held in a room within 100 feet of a doll auction. The auction was attended by hundreds of affluent prospects. Many dollars changed hands that day. Several attendees paid up to $40,000 for one doll. The auctioneers received between 10 and 35 percent of the sale price. Not one top-ranked sales professional who targets the affluent attended the auction."

Stanley is highly skilled in balancing stories of opportunities taken with stories of missed opportunities. Over the course of the book's 477 pages you begin shaking your head in disbelief, along with Dr. Stanley, as you realize that these opportunities are the "diamonds" described in Russell H. Conwell's 1921 masterpiece Acres of Diamonds (Dover Empower Your Life Series). The primary skill required to take advantage of these opportunities is opening your eyes. They are not hidden. They are in plain view, and time and time again "skilled" salespeople walk right past them as if they didn't exist.

Stanley shares some common ground with Dan Kennedy's book No B.S. Marketing to the Affluent: The No Holds Barred, Kick Butt, Take No Prisoners Guide to Getting Really Rich when stressing the importance of recognizing the affluent for their achievements. This is another critically overlooked area. The affluent want to know "inwardly," through recognition, that their achievements have made a difference. Many also have a deep need to project this "outwardly" with material symbols of achievement (homes, vehicles, clothing, expensive watches, etc).

At this point a reader might be tempted to say "Why should I care about how the affluent feel about themselves?" A valid question. The difference between caring and not caring is the difference between those who are positioned to sell to the affluent and those who are not. You have two choices: start caring, or pick a different demographic.

There is also an excellent chapter on courage, another key ingredient. While it may seem simple and academic, I'm sure that many will agree that one key reason why salespeople lack the ability to sell to the affluent (or the ability to generate profitable sales in any market) is that they lack the courage to walk up to the prospect and ask for the sale.

All of which brings us to one of the best parts of the book: the mind-numbing number of stories from Dr. Stanley in which affluent prospects share stories of NOT being approached, of NOT understanding why, of expressing their willingness to buy "if only" a salesperson had approached them.

Of course, that doesn't mean that a salesperson can pick up the phone and indiscriminately start dialing rich people. Timing is a key concern, and it's exhaustively covered in the book. There is a window of opportunity, a "season," and once you understand it, go to work. Many salespeople make the mistake of choosing a completely inappropriate time to approach affluent prospects. Buy the book and you'll gain this insight.

Selling to the affluent is a niche market, but as in all effective selling efforts, there are skills which you must master. First, you need to do your homework. You need to get inside of the heart & mind of your buyer. Second, you need to develop an understanding of WHY they buy, HOW they buy, and WHEN they buy. Third, you must have courage and confidence and an unshakable belief in yourself and what you are selling. Fourth, you must be a provider of solutions. Fourth, you must ASK. Get a copy of Jack Canfield's book The Aladdin Factor. It's one of his best books, in which he spends 277 pages convincing you that the single greatest reason why more people don't get what they want is that they simply will not ask for it.

"Selling to the Affluent," as well as Dr. Kennedy's Marketing to the Affluent, will only be a worthwhile investment for you if you have decided to take this market seriously, if you are committed to doing the work, and...as stated above...are willing to do the things that most salespeople are not willing to do in this market because they lack confidence, they lack motivation, they lack awareness.

You can buy the book and you can get the message, but until you make contact, it will just be another book on your shelf. Buy it and USE it.