Everyone knows we live in a post-trust era.  The days when people trusted others until they gave them a reason not to are gone.  These days, trust has to be earned.

But trust is what advances the sales opportunity.  So how does today’s sales rep build the trust needed to succeed with customers?

Value = Trust:  the 21^st century sales equation

Today’s customers demand value at every step of the relationship.  No value = no trust.  No trust = no sale.  The 21^st century sales rep, who demonstrates value from the beginning of the relationship, builds trust. 

What your reps do after the first meeting with a customer has the power to advance the sales opportunity or cause the customer to slam on the brakes.  What they do here can either build trust or break it.

A rep’s behavior following sales meetings will either:

In this post, we discussed how to identify the different types of buyers in a complex sale, and how to use the questions they ask to pinpoint what their buying concerns are.  Understanding each type of buyer’s decision criteria is key to winning the business.  

This can be challenging, even if everyone involved is a relatively easy-going person.  But sometimes, there are personality factors that can make this process a bit more complicated.  That’s what happens when one of your buyers is a power broker or an antagonist. 

In my last post, I discussed the communication problems that arise when a person who thinks one way speaks to a listener who thinks in a completely different way.  The person doing the talking is presenting the kind of information that is important to him, but he doesn’t get his message across because what’s important to his listener is something entirely different.

I also talked about how incorporating Whole Brain^® Thinking into your sales process helps you identify how your prospects think so you can present the information your prospects need to hear to say, “I’ll buy!”  Now, I’d like to share some examples of how people and companies I know have used this information to increase sales, repair dysfunctional teams, and improve (or even save) personal relationships.

Have you ever been discussing an idea or explaining something to someone, and – no matter how eloquent you were – had the feeling that you weren’t being understood? 

Complex sales where there are numerous decision-makers can be difficult to navigate.  Closing such a deal requires an understanding of the different types of buyers, what their concerns are, and what influences their desires.  It also requires the ability to anticipate, identify, and address the factors each individual cares about.

There are three players in a complex sale: influencer/user, technical, and financial buyer.  In smaller companies, one person can serve in all three roles, but with larger organizations, there are typically two or three people fulfilling them.  

After you’ve completed your sales presentation or product demo, the buyer enters the evaluation phase of the buying process, and a scary monster frequently rears its ugly head: risk.  Risk can kill a deal, and its threat can increase as your prospect evaluates your offering.

What is the opportunity cost of going with this solution or vendor?
What will happen if I commit and spend this money?
Will I truly get the value I need?
What if I’m missing something?

You’ve just made a great sales presentation for a great prospect.  The whole sales process has gone smoothly from the beginning.  You like your buyers, and they like you and your offering.  They definitely want to do business with you!  If only you can agree on a price.

It’s easy and natural to get a little discouraged when a buyer asks you to lower your fee.  But don’t assume they’ve applied the brakes just yet.  Price is only 18% of the buying decision.  The competence of the sales rep, however, is 39% of the buying decision.  You may feel uncomfortable, but your customer has just offered you an excellent opportunity to demonstrate a high degree of competence by handling his request correctly.

The Internet.  That – in one word – is why cold calling is dead, even for B2B sales. 

During a sales call or demo, it is easy to be very product-focused.  After all, the product is what you’re there to talk about, right? 

During a sales call or demo, it is easy to be very product-focused.  After all, the product is what you’re there to talk about, right?