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Comments or Suggestions?
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By Thomas Wood-Young
Building trust is critical to success in relationship-building and sales. There are many ways to build trust such as listening, asking probing questions, working to understand customer needs and providing excellent customer service.
H aving worked with hundreds of sales people, I have noticed an interesting aspect of trust building that many sales people overlook or take for granted and that is being organized.
If you want to build trust, get organized.
Many sales people do a poor job of meeting customer needs because they are not organized enough to follow-up, return phone calls and provide adequate customer service. They let things fall through the cracks, drop the ball on follow-up sales calls and do not make enough contact with prospects and customers to close the sale. This often happens due to poor organization.
There are three distinct parts of organization. Develop a method for each one and you are on your way to getting organized and being more responsible with your prospects and customers.
1. The To-Do List
This is simply a list of things that need to get done today. If you do not get it done, move it to the next day. Watch your priorities and write down your to-do list. Avoid the sticky-note method, set due dates and focus on your priorities.
2. Your Calendar
Your calendar, or appointment book, is used to record things you do that are scheduled. Only use your calendar for scheduled events, not to track items on your to-do list. Your calendar’s focus is time oriented and helps you make the best use of your time.
3. Contact Database
The third component of being organized is your database of contacts. This is used to record contact information and notes from your discussions. The most important function of the contact database is to set up a reminder for callbacks and follow-ups. More than any other tool, this database reminds you when you need to contact someone.
There are many excellent paper and electronic systems to help you get organized. Find one that works for you, or contact me and I will offer a few ideas. Organization will help you build trust and increase your sales.
Tom Wood-Young, MBA is an Internet marketing consultant helping companies increase revenues on the Internet. He is the author of "Intuitive Selling" (www.IntuitiveSelling.com) and can be reached at 719-481-4040, or email at tom@woodyoungconsulting.com Call for a free consultation.
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