--- title: A List of Intangibles | The Sales Blog description: Sales Intangibles are elements that are a given Likability, attitude & increase the probability that the candidate or representative will be successful. image: https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/fox.jpg --- ### [Now booking SKO meetings for 2026/27! 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Certainly, the tangible things are important, but the intangibles are even so. - **Likability and Rapport**: If you have a choice of doing business with someone who is [likable](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/how-to-be-likable) and with whom you have rapport, all other things being equal, you choose the person you want to work with, especially if it is over a longer term. Rapport matters because relationships matter. - **Attitude**: A good, positive, optimistic, empowered [attitude](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/attitude-checklist) is an intangible that provides a competitive advantage. Who you are matters more than what you do, and your attitude is a big part of that equation. - **Business Acumen**: This intangible will make or break you if you sell B2B. You either know things that can help your prospective client produce better results, or you do not. You either have the advice that makes you a [trusted advisor](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/how-to-be-a-trusted-advisor), or you lack it. The weight given this intangible is great now, and you can expect it to grow in importance. - **Caring**: This is the “trust” part of “trusted advisor.” Are you other-oriented? Do you care about me, my outcomes, my company, my customers? If you are [self-oriented](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/7-ways-you-prove-that-you-are-self-oriented), your motives prove that my results are secondary to yours. This intangible is one that most of us don’t think enough about, nor do we make sure that our clients can feel it. - **Presence**: In an age where everyone lives behind a screen, a physical presence is going to create an advantage. I know, you are thinking that showing up is tangible, and you’re mostly right. But it doesn’t show up on any purchasing agent’s spreadsheet, and the result it produces isn’t easily measured, even when the impact is felt. - **Your Process**: Knowing [how to help your client move from their current state to the better future state](http://www.thelostartofclosing.com) they are capable of is an intangible. The sales process is perceived as being linear, but that isn’t a very accurate depiction of how we help people change. Your process can differentiate you in ways that are hard to measure, but that massively tilt things in your favor. - **Ability to Lead**: The ability to help other people take action, people on your team, and people on your client’s team, is an intangible. It creates a [preference](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/the-war-for-mind-share-and-preference) for you and your company. - **Resourcefulness**: If there is one thing that we do in sales, it is help solve problems. A lot of the time, we are solving problems that others have been unable to address. This makes your creativity and imagination an intangible that provides an immeasurable difference in a decision as to who to buy from. - **Initiative**: The idea that you should take action without needing to be nudged to do so is something that will make you look very different to your clients and prospective clients. It shows that you are thinking about acting on their needs as if you are part of their team—and you are. - **Thoughtfulness**: Little things are the big things. Cards. Notes. Following up. Asking to help outside of where it might be expected. Want to create an impenetrable preference? [Start here](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/10-qualities-that-i-admire-in-others). - **Intelligence**: Being smart is an intangible. Knowing things is beneficial, even when those things seem to be outside of business acumen. - **A sense of humor**: Having a good sense of humor, especially humor of the self-deprecating kind, can help you create greater engagement, and it can help you handle difficult situations with a sense of levity. This can sometimes make you the most valuable person in the room. I know sales is supposed to be science, but it isn’t. Much of what matters is [invisible](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/the-power-of-invisible-forces), is felt and not easily seen or easily subjected to measurement. ###### Tags: [Sales](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/sales) [2017](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/2017) Post by [Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/author/anthony-iannarino) on August 27, 2017 Written and edited by human brains and human hands. ![Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/ai-blog-profile-crop.jpg) Anthony Iannarino is an American writer. He has published daily at [thesalesblog.com](https://www.thesalesblog.com) for more than 14 years, amassing over 5,300 articles and making this platform a destination for salespeople and sales leaders. Anthony is also the author of four best-selling books documenting modern sales methodologies and a fifth book for sales leaders seeking revenue growth. His latest book for an even wider audience is titled, The Negativity Fast: Proven Techniques to Increase Positivity, Reduce Fear, and Boost Success. Anthony speaks to sales organizations worldwide, delivering cutting-edge sales strategies and tactics that work in this ever-evolving B2B landscape. He also provides workshops and seminars. Connect with Anthony on LinkedIn, X or Youtube. You can email Anthony at [iannarino@gmail.com](mailto:iannarino@gmail.com) [Follow me on my website](https://www.thesalesblog.com/anthony-iannarino) [Follow me on Facebook ](https://www.facebook.com/thesalesblog) [Follow me on LinkedIn ](https://www.linkedin.com/in/iannarino/) [Follow me on Twitter ](http://www.twitter.com/iannarino) [![AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27.jpg?width=400&height=400&name=AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27.jpg)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/authority) [![ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1.jpg?width=318&height=179&name=ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1.jpg)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/free-cold-calling-video) ![salescall-planner-ebook-v3-1-cover (1)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/salescall-planner-ebook-v3-1-cover%20(1).jpg?width=768&height=994&name=salescall-planner-ebook-v3-1-cover%20(1).jpg) ### Free Sales eBook: Sales Call Planner Planning your sales call improves the likelihood of making a successful call, and it demonstrates to your dream client your professionalism. 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What we’re doing right now **is working**, even in this challenging economy. **Would you like some help?** [![Solve for Sales](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035) ### Join my Weekly Newsletter for Sales Tips Join 100,000+ sales professionals in my weekly newsletter and get my *Guide to Becoming a Sales Hustler* eBook for FREE! --- ```json { "@context" : "http://schema.org/", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Anthony Iannarino" }, "dateModified" : "2023-02-15T4:20:28 PM", "datePublished" : "2017-08-27 21:36:05", "description" : "Sales Intangibles are elements that are a given Likability, attitude & increase the probability that the candidate or representative will be successful.", "headline" : "A List of Intangibles", "image" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 16, "url" : "https://f.hubspotusercontent20.net/hubfs/2922376/Image/favicon.ico", "width" : 16 }, "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/a-list-of-intangibles", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "name" : "A List of Intangibles", "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 24, "url" : "https://f.hubspotusercontent20.net/hubfs/2922376/TSB/images/TSB%20Logo%20Dark.svg", "width" : 228 }, "name" : "The Sales Blog" } } ```