Michael is performing one of his “famous” sales pitches, and here he is demonstrating one of his own devices that helps him to better “know” his customers. He’s trying to guess their names by relating the first letter in their first name to either a physical or other known feature of theirs.
The interesting and satisfying part in this is that it works for Michael, though this way of relating is not always going to or very likely to guarantee his accuracy.
The positive selling point that Michael got right here is that a salesman should be relational and be able to use such kind of device to help them remember their customer’s names. This is actually a very important key part in sales. When the salesman is able to make relations and connections on another level with the customer, the customer is more likely to feel a sense of trust and appeal to the seller. This will likely lead to making a sale.
What Michael clearly does wrong here, is that although he can make a personal connection with Mark, he is also extremely insensitive and slightly offensive. This is where Michael would lose any potential sale.
BoweryJE22
This is an interesting analysis! I always found it fascinating that, in some ways, Michael is an excellent salesman. He knows how to connect with people, and I think it was mentioned in the show that he was the best before becoming manager. However, his biggest flaw is his inability to know when he is majorly offending someone. And like you stated, this is where he would lose a sale.
Love this! I agree with Kim (and with you) in that his biggest failing is in his inability to see that he is being offensive to someone. The way he interacts and connects with people is awesome!