Lately I have been more involved with our new customer interactions such as demos, etc., and I have noticed more often than not I feel nobody trusts me. I am new to the sales side of the business but is this the norm? I do have a penchant for telling the truth even when it may endanger a sale but I can assure you I am a very trustworthy and likable person. For this reason, it bothers me that the lack of trust is not only accepted in this industry (and many others) but it is warranted. Unfortunately, in many cases, this is a reflection on past sales activities/ methodologies of telling the potential customer whatever they want to hear to drive them into purchasing.
This can be changed! Building trust between vendors and customers in the building industry is critical if the industry is going to continually evolve in terms of using technology to optimize building performance. The norm inside the sales component should be “customer advocacy above all else.” Gone should be the days where I have to spend a majority of the time trying to convince them that I want the best end results for their buildings and teams rather than my pocket or them watching me like a magician and not focusing on the results but are laser-focused on finding the “trick” that we are trying to pull on them to prove our validity.
We all have the ability to make an impact. We can review things with the customer when they inquire about a new product to determine if it fits in with their building’s overall goals or if it is a patch that will quickly be rendered useless. Stop customers from making purchases without them having a full understanding of the realizable benefits. Let customers know upfront the hidden costs that can turn up around different software implementations and their potential outputs. Bring in outside companies, products, and experts if it means that the customer will have a better chance at the best solution.
At Resolute Building Intelligence, we are committed to leading these efforts by:
Being exceedingly honest with our software limitations and capabilities when speaking with prospects.
Showing actual live data within our software when demonstrating.
Encouraging the use of and have employed experts outside of our company to help our customers attain the best solution.
Explaining our processes in depth without fear of having them copied because it’s what’s under the hood that matters.
This is going to be a long and difficult road but I look forward to the day when the feedback changes from “what junk is this person trying to sell me” to “this person must have a viable solution for some of my problems!”