Relationship Selling: Are You a Sales Vendor or Sales Guru?

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Relationship Selling: Are You a Sales Vendor or Sales Guru?

Written by Leanne Hoagland Smith

What would you do? Your phone rings and a potential customer asks you should he or she register for a workshop being conducted by one of your competitors. Would you:

Encourage her or him to attend?
Make a negative comment about the competitor?
Feel insulted he or she had not taken advantage of your services, but have the audacity to ask you to about the competition?
Believe you are being used for your expertise without any compensation?
Smile and know he or she views you as someone who is credible and unique?

This has happened to me numerous times and my response is to:

Smile over the phone!
State it is not my style to knock the competition.
Ask why are you considering this action?

After a further dialogue, I then share my thoughts specific to what has been discussed.

However, in many cases, it is easier to react negatively to such a situation instead of being proactive.

In the book by John Butler, "Odyssey: The Business of Consulting," he detailed the four levels of client engagement:

Good Soldier – product-oriented, seen as a vendor and a commodity
Competent Warrior – process-oriented, seen as a staff member and a commodity
Trusted Adviser – solutions-oriented, seen as a peer with a customized solution
Master Practitioner – partnership-oriented, seen as the "guru" and as unique

Even though this book is about consulting, it can easily be transferred if you sell products. In today's marketplace the goal is increase sales and relationship selling continues to be the best way. After all, client engagement levels are the steps within relationship selling.

For example, are you seen as a vendor, buddy, a good old guy or gal? This is probably the viewpoint held by 50 percent of all customers.

As you continue to work with each customer you build your relationship and may move into the next level of being more than a friend because you are starting to bring additional value to the relationship. Your competencies are starting to shine.

Time progresses and your clients start calling you about other issues beyond what you are able to help them. Your level of trust has been firmly established.

Finally, you are viewed as the guru and unique by not only your customers, but others within your marketplace or sphere of influence.

As you progress upward through these levels of client engagement no matter if you sell products or services, you will also see your income increase as well.

Remember sales is a process that combines marketing and selling skills. No matter what you call it, relationship selling, consultative selling, SPIN selling the end result is to increase sales by building term partnerships with your customers where both parties believe it is a WIN-WIN.

Leanne Hoagland Smith
		About the author:
		Leanne Haogland-Smith has over 25 years in sales. Her true joy is selling and helping clients unlock the results that they want. She holds a core belief that the majority of answers are within each individual or organization and, sometimes, people just need an outside perspective to help them discover those answers. Leanne has written more than 1000 articles on sales and process improvement. Learn more about Leanne at www.processspecialist.com .