The Sales History Podcast
Bringing the incredible (and sometimes strange) brains from the profession of sales' past to the 2020's - from Todd Caponi, author of Four Levers Negotiating (Out January 27th, 2026), The Transparency Sale & The Transparent Sales Leader.
Episodes
Picture this. A sales conference featuring the then-sitting president of the United States as the keynote speaker. It happened in July of 1916.
It wasn’t because the president had nothing going on that day, happened to be in town, and decided to swing by. A world war was raging in Europe. What we now know as World War 1.
It was because Woodrow Wilson had an important message for the sales world tha...
This may sound crazy, but I truly believe that government legislation has had a larger impact on changing the sales profession than has technology or the proliferation of information available to buyers.
Legislation changed things more significantly. Legislation changed things faster.
The sales profession has consistently pushed the boundaries since the 19th century, driven by greed, and it is the government that has ...
"The selling methods of any period grow out of the economic situation of the time." - H.K. Nixon, Principles of Selling, 1931
Looking back over the past 225 years, the prominent persona in the sales profession has moved from the Peddler to the Drummer to the Confidence Man, then swung back and forth between "high pressure" sales versus the true "service" salesperson. In this episode, we ex...
In March of 2022, I released an episode of this podcast called "Using History To Predict - The Future of Sales", as we had been repeating the 1920s. Here we are over 3 1/2 years later, and so far, it's been right on!
In an article I found from 1921, the writer describes in striking detail what was happening at the time, coupled with profound advice and guidance on how to prepare for what's to come.
...
You’ve heard about Abraham Lincoln. You’ve heard about Ulysses S. Grant. They’re credited with putting down the rebellion during the Civil War. But there was a forgotten sales master who may have been just as important.
“If ever there should be a Salesmen’s Hall of Fame, one of the first pedestals must be reserved for Jay Cooke.” - Ads and Sales, Herbert Newton Casson, 1911
In this episode, we explore the sto...
We believe we know today the traits it takes to be a successful salesperson, but do we? In the early 1900s, while many of the thoughts were the same as today, there was some "off-limits" thinking as well. In this listener-inspired episode, I break down many of the ideas from a hundred years ago about sales hiring, including an exploration of the age-old introvert versus extrovert debate, and some of the wild...
In this, the 50th episode of The Sales History Podcast, I step into the role of prosecuting attorney to put one bold claim on trial: that the sales profession has changed dramatically in the past decade. My case? The evidence shows otherwise. Drawing on over 140 years of books, magazines, and other artifacts, I attempt to prove that the foundational principles of selling are the same today as they were over 100 years ...
I got "lit up" by a social media troll...and it turns out, the troll was right! I was complaining about my seat on a plane; a metal tube traveling 500 mph 35,000 feet above the earth. Me, sitting comfortably in a cushiony chair sipping a Diet Coke and enjoying a Stroopwafel.
Uncle Charlie Terry shared his travel stories from the 1800s...and (a) it made me realize what a wimp I was by complaining, but (b) ope...
Imagine: it's spring 1893. You're a salesperson for the National Cash Register Corporation (NCR). Your ultimate boss? Oh, it's just the founder of the modern sales profession...John H. Patterson.
The person responsible for almost everything about sales today, back in the 1890s, wrote a newsletter to his salespeople across the country on a regular basis. In this episode, we explore some of the thoughts, ...
Is AI coming for the sales profession? Will "everything change"? Turns out, history can help us predict the future of the sales profession in the face of the rise of AI.
Because, as I read all of the commentary, they mostly all say the same thing…
…the same thing as was said throughout history every time there was either (a) a significant shift in the world of business, or (b) a significant down...
What would it be like to be a salesperson during a World War? Well, it's happened twice, and in this episode, we explore the lens by which salespeople were asked to do their jobs during World War I.
It's an incredible example of selling with a higher purpose beyond just hitting a quota and receiving a commission check...
@saleshistorian on Instagram - daily quotes, pics & comics from the past
The Tran...
In the January 1918 edition of Business Philosopher Magazine, a story by William W. Woodbridge was printed. It's the story of a down-and-out salesperson, John Bradford, who essentially fired himself!
It’s a story of getting right with yourself. I fell in love with it, and wanted to share it with you.
"Bradford, you're fired!"
@saleshistorian on Instagram - daily quotes, ...
The beginnings of the modern sales profession (1890-1920) were associated with trust, respect, and even admiration. 100 years later, the sales profession sits at the bottom of Gallup's annual listings of ethical professions...along with politicians.
What happened? Where did it all go wrong?
I put my finger on it. In this episode, I diagnose the specific period where it all went bad, explore the...
Some individuals from sales history moved mountains - and nobody knows about them today! This time, I wanted to highlight one from the 1970s & 1980s - Barbara Pletcher. She noticed a void in the development of women for the boardroom, and it started with sales skills.
I found her story really compelling. The way she thought about raising the bar for all is brilliant. Here's her story...
@sa...
The way we live today wasn't defined just via the invention itself. Things like the steam engine, telegraph, reaper, highways, the telephone, the automobile...and just about every other revolutionary advancement was met with extreme skepticism. They all HAD TO BE SOLD. The incredible inventors had to be ingenious salespeople, too.
Here are their stories.
In this episode, which I really enjoye...
The early 1900s were made up of the foundation layers for our great profession. Incredible ideas. Great Writing. Things we all use still today.
However, there were a few odd ideas out there, too.
Here’s a collection of ten of those odd quotes on everything from bowel movements, your thyroid, and your ability to fight that made up these fine individuals’ thoughts around what led to success in sales....
This episode dissects prospecting from 50 to 120 years ago...discussing five key elements:
1) The origins of the word "prospecting" as it relates to sales
2) The mindset - quality prospecting over simply focusing on metrics and scale
3) Metrics and prospecting quotes - the counterpoint of above in terms of working backwards to determine how many prospects you have to reach out to to hit your numb...
We've heard it all before - the "death of" this, and the "demise of" that as it relates to the sales profession. Everything is dead, right? Well, like so many other sales-related things, this concept isn't new, either. Experts have been casting the profession and its elements to the grave since the early 1900s.
In today's episode, I share multiple times when the sales profe...
Let’s explore sales discounting…it’s history, commentary, and why we haven’t been able to break this terrible habit. It's a problem that's as prominent and as recognized today as it was in the early 1900s.
@saleshistorian on Instagram - daily quotes, pics & comics from the past
@saleshistorian on Twitter - daily quotes, pics & comics from the past
The Transparent Sales Leader - my n...
In 1937, Paul W. Ivey released a second edition of his book, Salesmanship Applied. Chapter 6 is one of my favorites from my collection of books from 75+ years ago. Want to be the best version of you? Instead of recreating the wheel on these ideas, let’s turn the clock back 87 years.
We spend so much time on sales methodologies and techniques to be better - but how about building up the value in ourselves? I...
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