How Relationships Hinder The Sales Process

In my last tip, I mentioned that sales relationships can become an obstacle to the selling process. Here's how this works.

A sales person develops a set of relationships, and then settles into a routine of seeing those people on a regular basis. Those customers come to rely on him, and their purchasing patterns revolve around those regular visits. As long as they order in a sufficient quantity, life is good.

But now, those same customers aren't filling the coffers like they used to. And the sales people find themselves boxed in. They have created expectations in their customers, and those expectations now prevent them from investing time in developing more lucrative relationships. How can they call on someone else, when doing so would mean that they can't see their buddies as often? That would jeopardize their current relationships. And, besides, they just aren't comfortable cold calling on prospects because they haven't done that in years.

So, their reliance on relationships has caused them to neglect the development of their own competency, and built the walls around their comfort zones so high as to be almost insurmountable. Faced with the demands of the new economy, they find themselves woefully under equipped as sales people, and fearful of striking out of their comfort zones. Unsure what to do as they see their boat steadily sinking, they default to bailing even faster, and hope the storm goes away.

Dave Kahle is one of the world's leading sales authorities. He's written twelve books, presented in 47 states and eleven countries, and has helped enrich tens of thousands of sales people and transform hundreds of sales organizations. Sign up for his free weekly Ezine, His book, How to Sell Anything to Anyone Anytime, has been recognized by three international entities as "one of the five best English language business books.” Check out his latest book, The Heart of a Christian Sales Person.” All information can be found at www.davekahle.com.