The Value of Connections for the Inside Sales Rep
Sales Prospecting Perspectives is pleased to bring you a guest post from Damian Davila, Content Marketing Consultant at idaconcpts.com.
In my experience as a marketer, I’ve only seen one way to establish yourself in the field. You have to develop a wide range of many personal connections who value what you do and to whom you provide added value.
In your business networks, as well as in your social networks, your aim should be to build your reputation as a trusted, valuable professional while constantly expanding your networks of connections. The objective is a steady stream of word-of-mouth, direct-referral, and repeat business, which is the lifeblood of any successful salesperson.
Relationship Building
According to a Harvard Business Review study, “Relationship Building” by Dr. Marina Halac, “Empirical studies show that the consultant's reputation, third-party recommendations, and previous use of the consultant are the most important choice criteria used by firms to select consultants. There is also evidence that repeat business represents a large proportion of consultants' revenues, between 60 and 80 percent.”
I can attest to the truth of these findings. That’s why I always ask myself:
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How are people in my networks perceiving me?
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Do they see me as someone they trust their money with?
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Do they see me as someone who does, or could, add value to their investments? What do they say about me when I’m not there?
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Will they recommend me?
The answers to these questions depends on whether you actually add value for your clients. But there’s even more to it than the returns you achieve. Clients deserve to be advised by a professional who sincerely cares about their well-being. This isn’t something you can fake. Clients can tell whether or not you are genuinely passionate about helping them achieve their business goals.
When you combine good advice with an enthusiastic, authentic interest in the aspirations and challenges of your clients, your clients will not just be satisfied—they will be delighted. They will become trumpeters of your trustworthiness, value, and dedication. They’ll send business your way and your reputation will spread through their networks.
Takeaway
Obviously, the larger your networks, the greater the benefit of a solid reputation. That’s why I’m always looking for opportunities to extend my number of connections and to reinforce those I already have. If you’re going to be successful as a salesperson, you have to be good with people.
Damian Davila is a professional marketer living in sunny Honolulu, HI. Since 2008 Damian has been writing articles on online marketing and web analytics at idaconcpts.com. Find Damian on Twitter at @idaconcpts andGoogle Plus.