Sell More by Expressing Gratitude

Who does not value genuine appreciation? Who does not enjoy
a warm smile and a sincere thank you after doing something
for someone else. In a sales context, that "something"
might be as simple as another person agreeing to meet with
you.

One begins to transmit our thanks in the expression of our
initial greeting. A sincere smile, a firm handshake, direct
eye contact and expressing genuine appreciation for their
time is always a winning way to start off a meeting.

Once a sale is completed, salespeople have an unhealthy
tendency of paying less attention to their customers. A
follow up call or subsequent visit goes a long way toward
guaranteeing customer satisfaction.

Service after the sale is often critically important. It is
via this attention to their overall satisfaction that we
say thank you as well. People will long forget their
purchase but not their experience. We also say thank you
when we seek their best interests, keeping them abreast of
new products or services that will benefit them.

After several meetings with the plant engineer, project
engineer and machining-cell manager, I sold a
machine-vision system which was intended to ensure critical
measurements and overall product quality. These particular
individuals, though familiar with the technology, had no
practical experience using it. They purchased the system
from me not simply because of the merits of the technology,
but because of the promised support after the purchase,
support which they would need to successfully implement the
system.

Being a capital goods purchase, they were sensitive to the
scale of their impending purchase and the fact that they
were "sticking their neck out" working with an unproven new
vendor.

This was my first sale to this new customer. I remember the
purchasing manager calling me, wanting reassurance that
their purchase was indeed what they needed and would work
for their application. She was concerned about the price
and the fact that I was a new vendor. I explained to her
that the product was only part of the sale, that we would
fully support this technology with proper training and
working with their engineers to ensure the results they
were looking for. Our engineer would not leave their plant
until the vision package was working as promised. I further
explained that this sale was our first opportunity to be of
service to their plant and we were determined to provide
more than they expected so that they would feel comfortable
about working with us in the many additional applications
in various departments in their plant. I thanked her for
both her interest and scrutiny.

Not only is this customer appreciated, but they know they
are. I have made it a point to show my appreciation for the
opportunity to serve their needs. This is not done through
buying meals or gifts, but by verbally saying than you and
delivering more than they expect. They know that our
company values their business. Furthermore, they know that
they can count on us to so what we say.

One more thank you opportunity, often overlooked these
days, is a thank you note. Whether it is an email or a
rare, memorable, genuine hand-written card, customers
notice. They notice because so few salespeople do it. Be
different.

Saying thank you and demonstrating your appreciation is
always a winning strategy. People do business with people.
People also like to be appreciated. Remember that, and you
will enjoy what you do and your customers will enjoy doing
business with you.

----------------------------------------------------
Daniel Sitter, author of both Learning For Profit and
Superior Selling Skills Mastery, has garnered extensive
experience in sales, training, marketing and personal
development spanning a successful 25 year career.
Experience his blog at http://www.idea-sellers.com