Facts Are Stubborn Things

Working away with rolling news on in the background the other day, this talking head quote caught my ear.

Facts are stubborn things

I was immediately reminded of the use of “facts” when pitching.

For starters, there are all sorts of sage quotations about all facts being merely opinions. As Mark Twain is quoted,

I am not one of those who in expressing opinions confines himself to facts

And here’s another, plucked at random from the clutches of google,

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not their own facts.

I recalled I’d blogged on the impression of ‘facts’ a few times before. When they change, when they’re stated and when you must add emotion.

I also wondered whether the higher up the buying chain you climb, is it true that focus swings from facts to opinions?

Also, with solution selling being about people’s perceptions to upcoming change, then there’s an interesting discussion to open up within your prospect about facts surrounding said change, and opinions related to them.

In any case, I know it pays well to heed the difference in the two and be conscious of them when assessing your forecast.