Dishonest Salespeople

If you lie or misrepresent yourself and/or your product at any point during your sales process, you are risking the chance of never having an ongoing relationship with your prospect. A friend of mine shared this story and I wanted to pass it along to make my point. My friend, let's call him Joe, received an email from a gentleman who said he would like to schedule a time to go out to dinner with their wives and reconnect since it had been a while since they had seen each other. Joe was initially pleased to hear from him until he noticed the information under his name stated that he was now in the insurance business. Joe asked if this was a sales call and if so, he was not interested since he had recently revamped his entire portfolio. The guy insisted he just wanted to catch up and it was not a sales call. He showed up in a suit loaded with information and in full sales mode. Joe took the information and dropped it in the trash as he arrived home that evening. Not only did this new salesperson ruin his chances of ever doing business with Joe but also damaged their personal relationship. He destroyed the trust and it will be difficult to ever fully regain what he lost with Joe. As salespeople, stuff is going to happen. We can get busy and forget to call someone back or promise a delivery and something happens at the factory to cause a delay. Regardless of the conditions, you will never go wrong by being honest and straightforward, especially if you are looking to build long-term relationships with your clients. Tell the truth and be professional. This will set you apart from the crowd and build trust. Integrity is priceless and your customers will love you for it. Have a great week! Pierce