What is relationship selling

That prep work paves the way for an engaging, value-based conversation. They can break from the script, ask more informed questions and provide insights the buyer is more likely to find useful. Still, researching every prospect in a market can take time a rep may not have. To save time, Volas suggests analyzing your sales territory and figuring out your target market.

Then cross-reference those prospects with similar customers in your user-base and examine why they purchased the product, what compelled them to reach out and why they stay. Those insights provide a high-level snapshot of what your prospects will most likely value. Then dig deeper. Volas sets up Google alerts for both the company and its industry, listens to earnings calls, tracks Crunchbase for funding news and consumes any content her prospect is producing.

LinkedIn can also be helpful to gather information on your buyer. Her goal is to find anything that will help start a business conversation. Ultimately, those questions and insights are what form the foundation for a relationship.

At Aspireship, Scott uses those conversations to learn where her buyers vacation, what they like to eat and what they do for fun.

The key to effective small talk is to be genuinely interested in the buyer and lean into what sparks their attention. Scott recommends sharing stories the buyer can relate to and asking follow-up questions. Those moments forge stronger personal connections, she said. At Groove, Rothstein suggests finding one relatable conversation subject to open a conversation with before a call. Not all customers enjoy small talk, however.

Some buyers have packed schedules or just prefer to get straight to the facts. To gauge how interested a buyer will be in small talk, Scott takes note of her correspondences with them. Still, taking time for a brief personal check-in is a valuable strategy to make the call seem more like a conversation and less like a transaction, Rothstein said. This is where Rothstein often sees sales reps make their biggest mistake — jumping straight into the solution.

But first, the rep needs to ask enough questions to understand what that problem is. Doing background research will also help make those questions more specific. If you see the company wants to expand its new logos and your solution can help solve that, ask about it.

This leads to a more productive call, and it builds your credibility as an expert. This is where customer proofs can help. When a rep introduces a relevant customer story to relate to the buyer, they build trust.

In other words, if the buyer wins, they lose, and vice versa. This mentality erodes trust and forces your negotiation partner to act selfishly. The solution? Act like a win for your prospect is a win for you. The main principle underpinning relationship selling is simple: Always think about the long-term impact of your actions.

Here are several ways you can incorporate relationship selling techniques into your sales process. Dishonesty is kryptonite to business relationships. Be a continued presence for your clients. Interact with them on social media, send them value-added emails, and pay attention to the details of their personal lives so you can ask about their kids, past-times, goals, etc.

And you do — but in addition to the tickets, you also arrange a private meet-and-greet with a speaker you know they look up to. Do your best to meet every due date and commitment. Every time you keep your word, you bolster your trustworthiness. Make your customers feel good. A sale is a one-time event, but a relationship lasts long after the prospect signs on the dotted line.

Editor's note: This post was originally published on December and has been updated for comprehensiveness. Originally published Jun 10, PM, updated June 10 Logo - Full Color. Contact Sales. Overview of all products. Marketing Hub Marketing automation software. Service Hub Customer service software.

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Subscribe to Our Blog Stay up to date with the latest marketing, sales, and service tips and news. Thank You! You have been subscribed. Start free or get a demo. Sales 8 min read. Relationship selling. They get to extract value, while you get to exceed quota. What is relationship selling? A couple of statistics highlight the importance of relationship sales:. There is also some evidence to suggest that over-reliance on automation during the sales process is impacting the overall ability of salespeople to build lasting customer relationships :.

This is even with all the email automation tools out there! This means that lots of relationship building opportunities for future pipeline are simply not happening. A basic sales process looks something like:. If we briefly delve into psychological theory, adding value can trigger the principle of reciprocity — when someone gives us something, we feel compelled to give back in return.

There are a number of potential techniques or skills that can help to drive the relationship:. Some people do a great job of going in cold when they meet someone, but for most, a bit of preparation helps. Doing a bit of research about the prospect and their industry can help you out when it comes to striking up a conversation. Try to anticipate the sorts of issues they may be having, or simply to have some current knowledge about what is happening in their world.

Research and preparation can also help you to time your approach as appropriately as possible. Timing is important in the sales strategy; if you strike a really bad time, that can be the end of the potential relationship.

Your research may have helped you to discover this already, but finding common ground is a simple technique that helps you to get to know someone on a more personal level.

People tend to connect better with someone they feel has shared experiences with themselves. Some examples might include location, where you went to school, having kids, pets, hobbies, similar job backgrounds… These are the things that are a lot more interesting than musing about the weather.

This means talking less and listening more! Many salespeople are talkers, but you need to pause and think about how you build a relationship with the prospect.

Give them the chance to speak! I sent a message to the dealership via the listing online — really, I just wanted to know the price so I could work out if it was within my budget or not.