Sales Training Article: Key to Shared Goals Is Trust

By John Holland, Chief Content Officer, CustomerCentric Selling® – The Sales Training Company

Would your buyers consider you trustworthy? I’ll explain why that’s vitally important.

Prior to an important meeting or discussion, many people prepare by identifying their objectives. For salespeople making calls on a regular basis this is an important step that is likely to be skipped as they become comfortable and experienced.

A core concept of CustomerCentric Selling® is: No goal means no prospect. I suggest a logical objective for an initial conversation is to have a buyer share one or more business outcomes they want to achieve through the use of a seller’s offering. Knowing the type of company and the title of the buyer should allow a seller to develop a menu of potential goals.

As with many things in life, a seller may want to step back and realize they have work to do before Key Players will be willing to share business goals. Steven Covey said there are two components of being deemed trustworthy in that someone must display sincerity and competence. Most executives will share their business goals or problems with salespeople that believe are trustworthy.

Buying cycles don’t start until buyers share a goal or a problem they’re willing to spend money to achieve or address. If your buyers don’t deem you as trustworthy, or sincere and competent as Covey indicates, then you’re not likely going to get insight into those goals. It is a watershed event when goals are shared and once it occurs the buyer starts to realize there is potential value if a seller’s offering can address their needs. Shared goals mean the buying cycle has begun, but the process starts with how your buyer feels about you.

Take a look at the sales training workshops available to you.