Rocket Fuel - Creating friendships in a sales environment
This week, I'm going to continue along with last week's theme of building friendships over workships and how we can create those friendships within a sales environment.
This week, I'm going to continue along with last week's theme of building friendships over workships and how we can create those friendships within a sales environment.
So, let's talk about this friendship. Put the thought of work to one side for a minute: if I said to you "go out and make friends with somebody," think about how you would actually do that.
Imagine that you met someone at the gym, or at a club (back in the day!) how would you get to know that person?
You'd ask them little questions, like "where are you based? How far did you travel to get to the gym/club?"
Then you'd move on to the more personal topics, like family.
Slowly, with an exchange of questions, you start to stumble on to something that you might have a mutual love of.
I'm really into theatre, so I talk to my theatre friends about different shows, different actors... It's just something that we do, and this helps to form a friendship. Once friendships are started you can build on them, and people will start to gravitate toward you because you have something in common.
It's no different in the business arena and in a sales environment: it's this element of making friends that will help us in the sales process.
One of the best things that we can do to help make friends in the sales process is to take an interest in the customer. Take an interest in what they do, and in their company: talk to them about it! How long have they been established? What growth plans do they have?
Eventually, as the questions go along, you might talk to them about needing to rearrange a meeting because they're going on holiday... "Oh, lovely, where are you going? I've been there/I know somebody who's been there..."
You can see how this starts to mould together, and it's so important!
I was talking to a company last week about their sales teams. They're quite technical people, and they haven't remembered this edge. And it's this edge (friendship) that will set you apart from your competitors, even if your prices are similar. It will be the friendship, the fact that they like you that will secure the sale for your business.
