Successful selling is a creator of relationships; relationships aren’t a creator of successful selling. So, what is a relationship? Many salespeople think that a relationship is a friendship. They think they need to give their clients sports tickets or take them fishing. It’s nice to make friends; however, that’s not going to determine whether you’re going to get the sale.
People don’t necessarily buy from friends – they buy from people they trust to deliver. Especially if risk and hassle are on the table and they need to make sure that the person they just endorsed for their project is not going to let them down or get them fired or cost them political capital in their organization. So, how do you build a relationship? By producing results, acting professionally, and demonstrating your value from the get-go. A friendship may form in the wake of a sale, but it’s your reliability and performance in the sales setting that are going to win you the next sale.
