This post on relationships before value brought some interesting and thoughtful email responses. I didn’t make my case that value is part of the relationship and not a substitute for the relationship well enough. I’ll have to go back do better.
In the meantime, let’s take a look at the decisions facing your dream clients.
Scenario One
Choose only one.
- I know this salesperson cares about me and my needs. They’ve spent time with me. I trust them to help me in my business. I know they have the ability to create value for me.
- I don’t know whether or not this salesperson cares about me and my needs. They haven’t spent any real time with me. I don’t distrust them, but I don’t trust them either. I know they have the ability to create value for me.
- I know this person cares about me and my needs. They’ve spent time with me. I trust them to help me in my business. They don’t have the ability to create value for me.
Who do you buy from?
I was recently faced with this purchasing decision. I wanted to choose the third option. Because the third choice had the relationship, I went back to them three times to request that they work to create the solution I needed. This story doesn’t have a happy ending.
Scenario Two
Choose only one again.
- I know this salesperson cares about me and my needs. They’ve spent time with me. I trust them to help me and my business. I know that have the ability to create value for me. Their price is higher than their competitors.
- I don’t know whether or not this person cares about me and my needs. They haven’t spent any real time with me. I don’t distrust them, but I don’t trust them either. I know they have the ability to create value for me. Their price is right in the middle of the pack.
- I don’t know whether or not this person cares about me and my needs. They haven’t spent any real time with me. I don’t distrust them, but I don’t trust them either. I know they have the ability to create value for me. Their price is lower than all of their competitors.
Who do you buy from? Answer before you read on.
If you chose the third option, you are making a transactional buying decision. I wonder how this impacts the way you sell?
Scenario Three
Choose only one again.
- I know this person used to care about me. But I haven’t seen them in quite a while. I still trust them because we have a history together. But they haven’t brought me a new idea or made any significant improvements in some time. I don’t know whether or not they can create any new value.
- I don’t know whether or not this person cares about me or my results, but they’ve made an enormous effort to spend time with me. I don’t distrust them, but I don’t know them well enough to completely trust them yet. They continually put new and valuable ideas in front of me.
Who do you want to spend time with? Why do you want to spend time with them? What do you hope you are able too determine during the time you spend with them? Complacency kills.
Your dream clients make decisions that look like these scenarios. Which choice are offering them?
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