The MAN is the person or group of people with the Money, Authority and Need - the decision maker with the ability to say "yes" to your proposition.

Many salespeople spend endless hours with people who can't say "yes". The can't because they have neither their hands on the purse strings, the authority or the position to understand what their company or organisation really needs.

There are few situations in sales that are more complex and easier to botch than the unreachable committee. In no other area will your sensitivity to small clues and the subtle nuances of power be better rewarded.

Organisations have purchasing procedures that involve several people, much time, more paperwork, and they all move through clearly defined and tidy channels. That's the face the organisation shows to the world, and it has the paperwork in its files to prove that everything has been done according to their books.

In reality, though, very little is done according to their book, and the real decisions are made outside the tidy channels. The paperwork to justify those decisions is then created after the event.

Flexibility is vital in these situations. Sticking to the rules may jeopardise your success!

The gnomes in the back room are insecure, and jealous of the power they wield at the whim of the committee. Make the gnome feel important. Never let a gnome suspect that you're anything but delighted that you can work with him instead of whoever has the title and the official authority.

You have faith in the value and importance of your offering to that organisation. You need that faith, but don't let it blind you to the fact that most of the unreachable committee will be too involved with their own pet projects to care very much about yours.

Unless you can somehow reach the unreachable committee and sell it on your proposition (and by definition that's impossible, or at least impractical), you probably need the co-operation of the gnome to close that organisation. Keep in mind from the first moment you think about selling to them.

Not all organisations are big enough to have gnomes but you will probably see many of the gnome character traits in people in smaller organisations. They are often secretaries or junior staff who may be explicitly tasked with the job of keeping salespeople at bay. And that requires a whole separate set of skills....