Trust-based relationships

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Trust-based relationships

March 5, 2008 in Brand & Reputation, Collaboration, Customer Service, Ethics & Values, Networking, Prospecting, Sales Relationships, Sales Results, Sales Skills, Sales Talent, Up-selling & Cross Selling, Value Proposition & Value Add

I typed ‘Sales’ into youtube.com the other day just to see what was on offer. I have to say that some of the initial videos displayed on the front page were very disappointing indeed, especially when it came to building trust-based relationships with clients.

One well-known speaker was spruking ways to get your prospect to call you back. His idea was to leave a provocative half message that said something along the lines of “I’ve just been speaking to your competitors and they said you are in big … “ then he suggested hanging up before you competed the message. This, he assured the audience, would guarantee them calling you back. The audience laughed but you could see people shifting nervously in their seats.

Some of you may think this is perfectly legitimate, however, having to trick people into calling me back doesn’t feel that good. And I know the prospective client isn’t going to feel too good about it either.

Why do we persist in offering this sort of rubbish up as legitimate sales fare?

As the salesperson you should strive to attain lasting relationships with your customers.

To initiate, develop and enhance your relationships with your customers, you must demonstrate your trustworthiness. Leaving provocative messages isn’t a good place to start.

The basis of trust begins from the moment of your first contact with your prospect. Even if it is a phone message.

Trust is defined as being where….

“The buyer believes they can rely on what the salesperson says or promises to do in a situation where the buyer is dependent upon the salesperson’s honesty and reliability.”

(Swan, E. Nolan, J. Gaining Customer Trust: A conceptual guide for the salesperson,” journal of Personal Selling & Sales mgt, 1985. 2(39).

Let’s take a look a ways to develop Trust-based relationships.

Trust Builders

The following factors are critical in helping salespeople to earn the buyer’s trust.

Expertise – the ability, knowledge and resources to meet customers’ expectations.
Dependability – doing what you say you will. Being reliable.
Candor – Honesty
Customer Orientation – placing as much emphasis on customer’s interests as your own
Compatibility – Creating a common connection, i.e. having something in common. Being likable.

There is an obvious link between ethics and trust and furthermore there is an obvious link between trust and organisational success. Penglase, D. “What is ethical selling?”

It is expected these days that organisations’ staff behave ethically and professionally at all times.

You may like to explore the concept of ethics and professionalism and what this means in relation to prospecting with your team.

You may like to use the questions I raised in an article I wrote last year about the ethics of self-promotion and prospecting t0 help you:

Do other people stand to gain from my self-promotion or prospecting actions?
Do my self-promotion or prospecting actions have a positive influence on my own well-being and self-esteem?
Do my self-promotion or prospecting actions move me closer to my short- and long-term goals?
Would most people approve of how I prospect for new business or self promote?

If you can honestly answer “yes” to these questions… fine. But then test them out by asking those who know you well to give you feedback on your self promotion activities by answering the questions above. And see what they have to say.
I wish you happy and successful selling.

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Networking

February 14, 2008 in Networking, Sales Relationships, Self Development, Value Proposition & Value Add

Although technology has become increasingly important in recent years, the importance of relationships in business has not changed. Upon reflection, it appears that we have taken the following path.

Technological Era ——> Industrial Era

In fact, it has been predicted that over the next ten to fifteen years, we will see a new era emerge; that being the era of the relationship in doing business. It is estimated that the relationships we have in business with our customers and within organisations will be the key differentiator for businesses worldwide.

Technological Era ——> Industrial Era ——> Relationship Era

What this demonstrates is that the role of networking is going to be increasingly important in order for businesses to achieve their goals. In addition, given that networking and relationship will be a key differentiator in times to come, individuals will need to take a much more structured and professional approach to network as opposed to leaving it to chance.

What is Networking?
Networking is the process of establishing and developing business relationships with other business people or customers that are mutually beneficial to both parties.

Networking is different from selling. Think of what it feels like for you when a stranger comes up and sells at you and pushes their business card in your face. More often that not, you will feel repelled. This does nothing to foster or build a relationship.

Remember, in networking, if one party is chasing, the other is retreating.
The key to true networking is the word mutually. Although the intention is to increase revenue, effective networking must centre around how you can help the person you are networking with rather than focusing on how they can be of assistance to you. As such, developing and fostering a relationship over time becomes extremely important in the networking process.
By far, the most important factors in networking are listening, having excellent communication skills and being focused on how you can assist the other party.

Feelings about networking
Many people feel uncomfortable when it comes to networking. However, a lot of the time, this discomfort is unnecessary when you consider the following:

Most people have an altruistic streak where their natural tendency is to want to assist others
Most people will be able to identify with your situation, particularly if the network alliance has the potentially to be mutually beneficial

Some people enjoy being seen as networkers and being considered an excellent referral source for others in business circles

I must confess I find networking at events a challenge. I don’t like small talk. My style can be too serious at times when I meet new people. I find it much easier to start a sales conversation than a networking conversation. It takes me a while to warm up.

Others, on the other hand, love talking to anyone and never seem to tire if it. They are warm, friendly and engaging. Don’t get me wrong I can do it but it takes more work from my side.

So how do I get around this and make the best use of my time networking? I interview people. I find that I feel comfortable asking people the following: Why do you like coming to networking events? What brought you to this event? What do you hope to gain from being at this event? And then I take it from there – wherever the conversation goes. I am careful not to interrogate them though. The benefit is that I learn lots about them and find it easier for me to be present at these events. For the other person they feel important as I paid attention to them.

When at a networking event, it is easier to gain the attention and time of individuals as there is an agreed reason for being there that centres around networking. However, when you are networking and promoting yourself directly to individuals (either within your organisation or as follow up from networking events), it is more important to manage the dynamics of the discussion as here, you are drawing on the relationship and what it has to offer you.

Online networks
With the advent of Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn and the like, the networking opportunities abound. However there is inherent danger in falling into the trap of just collecting names for the sake of wanting to ‘appear’ to have a large network. Ask yourself the following questions:

How long since you actually spoke to any of those people on your online network? Are some people on your connection list people you have never spoken with? Have you understood why they want to be connected to you? Do you know why you want to be connected with them? If you don’t why then you may want not think about why their name is on your list in the first place.

Taking the farming approach to Networking
Many people are under the misconception that with regard to networking, you must focus on spreading the net far and wide. Whilst this is important, for your networking efforts to be truly effective, you must also approach some networking relationships as a farmer would approach yielding his crops.

Consider the way a farmer works. He takes the time to prepare his soil so that it is ready for his seeds to be planted and he does this long before he plants his seeds. Once the seeds are planted, he nurtures them with water, fertilising and tending to them regularly.

He does not pull the seeds out of the ground before they are ready but rather, waits until his plants are strong and the roots have grown deep before he expects to yield anything from his plants. The farmer understands that there is a process to follow and that gains will not come from expecting a quick return, but rather, by putting in what is required of the process and waiting for the appropriate time to yield results.

Approaching networking with a farming mentality will ensure that you will yield quality results from your networking process. While the tendency may be to approach as many contacts as possible as quickly as possible and expect fast results, in reality, taking a more diligent approach will mean that you form relationships that can prove beneficial and bear fruit for you for years to come.

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Getting past the Gate Keeper

January 17, 2008 in Call Reluctance, Prospecting, Sales Relationships, Sales Skills

This time of the year many people are trying to get back into the swing of things after their Christmas break. It’s about this time that many sales people begin their prospecting efforts in earnest and many people are back from leave. It is as good a time as any to prospect.

So as it’s the New Year, I thought we could take a fresh look at some old issues.

One of the most common complaints I hear from sales people time and time again is ‘How do I get around the gate keeper?’

A Gate Keeper is the person who can prevent you from getting to the Key Decision Maker, the person who is really in a position to make the sale happen for you. A Gate Keeper could be the receptionist or a personal assistant. Alternatively, it could be your primary contact who you are dealing with during the process and who is preventing you from having access to the people who are in the real circle of influence (i.e. the key decision maker).

The biggest mistake sales people make is taking on the mindset of trying to get past the gate keeper rather than trying to work with them.

As a sales person, your task is to determine as quickly as possible how you can work with and around the Gate Keepers so that you can ensure your message is reaching those individuals who are in a position to move the sales process forward. Influencing this person can even be as simple as developing a rapport with the receptionist and fostering your relationship with them each time you come in contact with them.

Each time I encounter one of these people (especially if they are the PA to the Key Decision Maker) I explain clearly and directly why I am wanting to speak to the Key Decision Maker and then ask the PA for their guidance and opinion as to whether what I am calling about would be something the Key Decision Maker has on their list of priorities. In my experience they are more than happy to help and often end up making an appointment for me to meet the Key Decision Maker.

If you are having trouble getting to see the right people here is are some guidelines that might help you work with and not against the gate keepers.

Key Characteristics can include:

Uncooperative
Protective of Key Decision Makers
Can be on a power trip
Possess a lot of information about the company
Can help you navigate through the organisation
Can very quickly turn into coach if treated well

How To Deal With Them:

Engage them as much as possible as early on as possible
Ask them for their opinion
Make them feel important
Don’t put pressure on them
Build meaningful relationships with them
Don’t ignore them once you get to the Key Decision Makers

Remember Gate Keepers are people too and are often very good at their job. Many of them are just doing what was asked of them. They deserve our respect too.

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A Car Sales Story with a difference

January 12, 2008 in Attitudes & Behaviours, Sales Relationships, Value Proposition & Value Add

Is there such as thing as a ‘good’ car sales story?

My husband and I recently bought two new cars over the Christmas break. We initially went in to buy one car. It wasn’t a Christmas splurge if that’s what you’re thinking – nor was anything it like the recent press on luxury cars and their owners. We wanted to go smaller and greener for all sorts of reasons I am sure you can image and one of our cars was at the end of its lease. Having done our research, the ‘make’ of our last four cars wasn’t doing enough, in our opinion, to be ‘greener’ so we decided to look elsewhere and try something different instead.

Big decision: New brand, new car, new experience.

Now I must say having bought a few cars in my time, as has my husband, and never being impressed with my car buying experiences, I did enter this car buying process with somewhat of a cynical and wary attitude at first. My husband is also and engineer, so big buying decisions do not move quickly – they must be properly analysed. I knew I was in it for the long haul.

However this time I was very pleasantly surprised – it was positive. It was very easy. It was no fuss. And it went pretty quickly. Why?

New make, new dealer, new experience. Was it the company? Was it the sales person? Was it their strategy? Was it conscious or not? I don’t know. Maybe it was one or all of those things. Whatever it was, it worked.

It was different because we were listened to, heard and understood. I was not patronised or treated like an idiot. The sales person and the business didn’t seem desperate, overbearing or too ‘features’ oriented. We weren’t rushed or pressured in any way.

And Joseph, our sales guy, just loved cars and loved selling cars. It was a joy to meet someone who clearly loved what he was doing. He shared with us that he used to be a chef and also worked in IT but his first love was cars. So he figured why not work with what he loves. So he now sells cars for a living. He had been there two years and we found out later that was one of their best sales people (no surprise to me). He was very open, friendly, real, passionate (about cars) and trustworthy. He knew that both of us where clearly involved as joint decision makers and so he set the scene accordingly. He didn’t pressure us. He gave us time to make a decision. He could see we liked to think things through and weigh everything up. He understood, consciously or not, how we liked to buy.

And he treated our children with respect, even though they were getting bored from time to time waiting for us to finish. He was funny, down to earth and real. We felt very comfortable working with him. He helped us in every way to make an informed decision. The atmosphere was relaxed. The other sales people seemed happy and engaged in their work too.

And after we bought the first car I was so grateful we didn’t have thrust upon us the ‘after sale girl’ as is so often the case with other car places. Men may find them enticing but as a woman I find the process a complete turnoff – especially if I have just made a buying decision with someone else. I am not blaming the women themselves, it’s the strategy that’s irks me. In my experience and opinion this model is not how to up- sell and cross-sell effectively (as you would have seen by my recent article on this topic in Dec 07). In most cases up selling and cross selling should be part of the actual sales process conducted by the sales person, not an after the sale is made. This was our experience with Joseph. I noticed that this car dealership didn’t have this type of ‘after sales’ approach.

After taking our new car home and reflecting on the car itself and our car buying experience, we did our numbers and worked out that we would be better off financially and environmentally if we traded in our other car as well. As it was not long off being turned over too we decided to buy a second car from Joseph and the company he represented.

Now that’s what I call good selling. So instead of catching people doing something wrong let’s catch them doing something RIGHT.

So with that I would like to thank Joseph Haddad and Brighton Mazda very much for their help. No, I am not on their pay role I just thought it was a good sales story, especially a good car sales story, worth telling.

And if you see Joseph tell him I say ‘hi’ and thanks again.

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You’re on show

November 30, 2007 in Attitudes & Behaviours, Brand & Reputation, Emotional Intelligence, Ethics & Values, Sales Culture, Sales Relationships, Self Promotion, Value Proposition & Value Add

Today people are looking for honesty and authenticity and do not have time to be misled. They want to work with people who are what they say they are. They are assessing your every word and action. They are looking beneath the surface and are wanting to see the real you.

Many people are now more wary about companies and sales people making big claims and promises with lots of ‘sizzle’. They are wary of the ‘charmers’ and the sales people after the ‘big kill’. What they are now looking for is the steak and all that comes with it: i.e. what kind of steak is it? How it was it grown, prepared and cooked? Where did it come from? Is it grown in an environmentally friendly, humane manner? etc. They no longer want to confuse packaging with substance. They look for evidence at every turn and how you align with the promises you make.

Sales is now getting personal. The spotlight is now squarely on the sales person and the business they represent. Their actions and words are scrutinised every day.

Going (not quite gone) are the days of the ‘charmers’ who try to seduce you into buying something – the term often used in this situation is ‘getting into bed’. In recent times I have seen some sales people, salesmen to be precise, usually with 20+ years sales careers whose whole sales strategy was to seduce people with their charm, designer suits, Tiffany cufflinks and personal flair. Their preference was always for face-to-face meetings – none of this telephone stuff (meaning it is much harder to dazzle you over the phone).

I have even seen them try their ‘charm’ offensive on colleagues and myself in training sessions. But we were having none of it. In fact it was very inappropriate and quite embarrassing, mostly for them. What we found was that they shied away from acknowledging the relevance of effective selling skills like questioning, active listening, problem solving, etc. and didn’t like being put under the spot light when it to came to participating in competency oriented role plays and validating themselves. Instead they complained and tried to distract us with their charm again. Some of these men had also found they were in and out of sales jobs more quickly in recent times, with one man having 4 sales jobs in different companies in the last four years. He was clearly frustrated and was struggling to come to terms that his ‘charm’ strategy wasn’t working anymore. He and others like him hadn’t adapted nor recognised that people want more than the packaging on show they are wanting substance.

Then there is the overly competitive, self centred, soloist sales people who want everything for themselves – everyone else, even their peers, are either there to serve them or are competition. And they want to win and win big. Being on top of everyone else is what they want – but I ask you at whose expense? They see sales as a sport, more precisely Big Game Fishing or Hunting. Customer are ‘Targets’. Getting a Sale is referred to as ‘the Kill’. Customers are regarded as objects to be possessed or trophies to be placed in their cabinet, to be shown off and admired (perversely so) like stuffed animal heads on the wall.

Quite frankly, as a customer I do not want to be possessed, or displayed like a trophy nor do I want to be seduced or charmed into ‘getting into bed’ with someone. I want to be in a productive effective relationship. Like I said before I do not have the time to be misled nor do I want to be misled, coerced, bullied or intimidated into buying.

Thank goodness these types are dying (al beit slowly) and making way for a more enlightened, consultative, big picture focused, business oriented, cooperative sales person who is well organised, disciplined, can prospect proactively, is fully aware of their product and business’ value to their customer market, their competitive edge and how to make business work for them and their customers.

They are fit, well-presented, up to date, self aware and relevant – and they are not just female. There are more men out there working this way too. I am also noticing a growing trend among younger men who recognise the need to be more integrated as sales people and people as a whole. In fact I have three men this week alone mention this without prompting. What they and others like them recognise is that if we only focus on competition for competition’s sake or try to seduce people with our charm we are apt to miss the main point; which is:

Without the cooperation and kindness of others we cannot exist.

That is why I am finding more and more people saying they want to work with others (suppliers, partners and customers) in a spirit of cooperation, consultation and respect not competition or deceit. This personal insight and awareness makes for much better sales people and much better sales results.

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