Customers all know that the relationship we as sales people have with them is important. Successful sales people will tell you that deep meaningful relationships with their customers is a key contributor to sales success. Recently, I played a round of gold with a Vice President of Operations at a large manufacturing company. I asked him, “How important is the relationship you have with your sales rep?” It did not surprise me when he said,”Well, it depends on the type of vendor and what I am buying. Paper and pencils is a simple transaction, but a complex software system or shop floor machinery requires a dialogue over many months or years. I would prefer representation that I can trust and enjoy working with.”
Interesting. So I followed up with, “What characteristics do you like most in a sales person?” And he replied, “Honesty, Integrity, Knowledge of my business and industry, Knowledge of the represented product and company, and most important empathy.”
Most of his response was expected, but I was quite interested in the empathy statement. We discussed this in greater detail. It turns out, that for this one sample case, a sales person’s ability to acknowledge, understand, and empathize with the customer situation personally and professionally is of very high value. I made a few calls and strangely, this theme is recurring.
- Will this decision jeopardize my job if it is wrong?
- Will this decision cause my co-workers frustration?
- Does my organization have the ability to absorb this change right now?
- Are there business dynamics such as competition or regulation that are influencing my ability to act?
An understanding of these factors will help the sales person better identify with the customer and also better serve them through the process of acquiring their product or service. Further, people buy from people. Never forget that!
