When trust in business, and organisations in general, is low, no one is more affected by it than salespeople. Salespeople are at the frontline of the business. They are the visible face. So when things go pear-shaped, the ones who lose credibility and trust are salespeople themselves. The famous Edelman report and a study conducted by Roy Morgan reveal that trust in businesses is at the lowest it has been since the GFC.
A big part of the burden of rebuilding trust in a B2B environment lays on salespeople. They are the face of the company and usually the ‘owners’ of the relationship. So when trust is low or lost for some reason that is not their own doing, salespeople’s work becomes compromised.
Roy Morgan’s research has found that the top three drivers of mistrust in brands in Australia are:
- Greed, self-interest, profits before customers
- Dishonest and deceitful, false and misleading advertising, making false product claims
- Being unethical, lacking integrity
And although this study was conducted across retail brands, buyers in B2B organisations are the same consumers who show a low trust in brands, making it difficult to imagine that their perception in businesses in the B2B is any better.
Building trust in the first instance is a long process that requires time, skill, professionalism and an outstanding level of service or product, including post sales service, delivery and customer service. When trust is lost, regaining it can be even more challenging because there are many factors that play a part in it.
Firstly, salespeople usually have to deal with the misalignment between marketing and sales. We see it time after time: marketing projects an image to prospects and customers that indicates that everything or anything is possible, or whatever is the promise they choose to promote. However, more often than not, this is not the reality of what the selling organisation can deliver, or at least, not in any conditions (which marketing campaigns seldom mention. Not on purpose, but there’s so much information you can throw at an audience at once). And even when marketing and sales are aligned, there can be poor customer service post sale or lack of technical support.
Secondly, even if the person with whom the salesperson has the relationship within the buying organisation still trusts the salesperson and their business, the decision making process is not linear any more. There’s a high chance that this contact person is not the only decision maker. Decision making takes longer and professional buyers and corporate governance and process get in the way making interactions, discussion and making decisions all the more difficult and adding unnecessary levels of complexity.
Lastly, and to add this knotty ball of wool, there is the other side of the coin now with many businesses and salespeople who don’t want to do business (or sell) to certain companies. Why? Well, more and more companies are refusing to do business and help unethical and abusive companies make more money, grow and progress. Obviously it’s rarely in the salesperson’s hand to make these decisions, but more and more they are influencing them in the B2B world. It’s also a matter of image and integrity for the supplier organisation, to be part of the crookedness of certain business. With the level of transparency across the supplier to consumer chain now is quite easy to identify which company has been part of what. And if you are selling to an organisation of dubious doings, you may get caught in some nasty situations that can cost you a lot more than your reputation.
So, what is a salesperson to do in this context? The only way forward is to regain trust to be able to re-establish a relationship with customers and prospects.
There are 4 characteristics successful salespeople have that help them rebuild trust:
They are flexible:
- They use data that their organisation has been collecting to contact their prospects and clients at better points in the buying process. They understand that first time buyers and buyers that have bought from them before have different contact needs and act accordingly.
- They contact their prospects or buyers with more relevant information starting the conversation already from a point where is clear that they understand the buyer’s stage.
- They communicate clearly and with the frequency needed at each particular situation and not following blindly rigid corporate guidelines
They are transparent:
- They show their prospects or clients every part of the solution, conditions and explain where each item and number come from and why. If necessary they also disclose their own suppliers
- They don’t hide information and they don’t lie.
- They say no when they won’t be able to do something. They don’t create expectations they know they won’t be able to fulfil.
They are consistent and predictable:
- Successful salespeople behave consistently across the whole buying journey. They use the same language, they set the tone –candid, formal, etc.- and stick to it. They present themselves in person the same way they do via phone, video calls, or emails and messages. There are no surprises.
- They are predictable and they keep their word.
They genuinely care:
- They genuinely care and they show it.
- They are good listeners and are empathic.
- Their prospect or customer’s success is at the centre of every solution they present.
- They follow up during implementation to ensure all goes well.
Of course, these are key characteristics of successful salespeople in any circumstance, however, we are seeing that without them it is very difficult to regain the lost trust.
Author: Sue Barrett, www.salesessentials.com