Making the sale is what it is all about. That is always what it is about. The challenge is that you have competition selling the same products or services. Sure, for many customers it is all about price but, for a vast majority, there are may more things to consider beyond mere pricing. So, when your sales people are out there selling your products and/or services, are there other things that they should be selling also? Things, perhaps, that are just as important?
- What must surely be included in any sales program is the company’s story. This is where your sales team can separate you from your rivals. Here is where the potential client or customer can understand why they need to be with you. All brands must have a back story to be successful. Who are you and why do they need you?
- Your company’s culture is also important to the overall, and long term, success of your brand. Everyone, especially your sales force, must be the representative of your company culture. Through them, and everyone who works at your business, they show the outside world they type of people that make your company a success. As customers and clients interact with your company, the more they become swept up into your culture, the more you have an opportunity to bring them closer and to make them a part of your company’s family.
- In the end, it is all about trust. Do your potential clients and/or customers trust you and your brand? That’s why it is so important for the sales teams to tell the company story and to explain the culture so that customers feel safe with you and know that there are dependable and trustworthy people behind the scenes making everything work perfectly for them. Honesty is what separates the great from the average. Sales teams that lie and tell fairy tales are always found out eventually and it costs your brand trust and respectability. In addition, keeping everyone, especially the sales team, constantly updated with regard to what is going on will prevent them from making statements that end up being wrong or misguided. Everything and everyone is involved in every conversion. There is no separation between who you are and what you do.
-Written by Kevin Sawyer