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August 12, 2006

Trust – The Key to Sales

by Sridhar Ramanathan

Two ebooks showed up in my intray this week that I would consider must-reads. Coincidentally, the central message in both books was that trust is essential to sales.

Seth Godin, author of bestselling marketing books, writes in the RainToday’s The One Piece of Advice You Can’t Sell that “there is only one thing that matters when you’re selling professional services. Only one. Does the person who is buying from you (and her boss!) trust you?” I would contend that this is true for selling anything from services to software.

Brian Carroll, CEO of InTouch, writes in Eight Critical Success Factors for Lead Generation that “customers regularly illustrate the need for sales people who call on them to understand both their business and their needs while being sensitive to the pressures under which they operate. Sales people who meet these criteria become known as trusted advisors, and trusted advisors get the sale.” Brian goes on to show how marketing is here to create conversations with prospective customers that build trust by delivering value over time.

Posted August 12, 2006 | Permalink
Posted to Marketing Management , Sales Effectiveness