My father-in-law used to buy a new Ford car every few years. He would go to the same Ford dealership, and deal with the same salesman every time. This relationship went on for decades. This is a a salesman’s dream, to have loyal customers coming back and telling their friends to do the same.
Now was Dad getting a good deal in reality? Maybe. Was it a better deal that he could get from anyone else in the dealership, probably not. But that salesman was Dad’s guy. They had a relationship and it worked for many years. They knew each other by name, visited about family stuff and over the years, developed an understanding about what it would take to move a car off the lot. As the years went by, this same salesman sold a new car to each of Dad’s four sons. Why? Because of the relationship that was long-standing and was based on trust and integrity.
When the salesman retired, Dad tried to deal at the dealership again and he ended up going elsewhere to find his cars. Why? Because he had developed a “relationship” with his salesman and without him there, Dad no longer felt like he was getting a “good deal”.
So what was my father-in-law really buying? Was it a Ford car? Not really because Dad bought different brands of cars after his salesman retired. Was it the deal? No, because he was always able to get a satisfactory deal on other cars. What Dad was really buying was the relationship. So what are you selling?
Whatever your business is, you have customers and clients that are receiving a product or service. And although the money for those items is nice, if you want them to keep coming back, you had better be selling YOU. A good salesperson can sell anything, but a great salesperson sells themselves first, and has customers for life. If you are willing to invest time and interest in your clients, you will never lack for a sale. What are you selling?
