Being Reliable
So much of sales success comes from basic fundamentals of being a reliable person. Not magic closing moves. Not sales tech. Not some tricky way of asking questions.
Here's a stat I recently came across... "42% of prospective customers say they would be more likely to make purchase decisions if their sales reps kept their promise and called back in a timely fashion." (Source: Invesp)
Notice that phrase, "kept their promise." I see this time-and-time again - whether it's salespeople, co-workers, or even leaders. The simple act of doing what you say you're going to do will separate you from the majority, because it builds trust.
So the next time you say, "I'll follow-up with you next week", or "I'll get the plan to you by Friday," make sure you mean it. Write it down. Put it in your calendar. Just do what you say you'll do and you'll win more often.
I believe that when we say we’re going to do something, we mean it in the moment, but then day-to-day realities set in and those commitments slip through the cracks. All sorts of excuses come up… “Oh it’s not time sensitive anyway,” or “They won’t mind if it’s a couple days later,” or “It’s not a big deal that I’m late, we can still cover everything in less time.” But those small excuses add up, and can be the difference maker for customers. If the client has two companies with similar capabilities, will they choose the one with the salesperson who misses their commitments (even small ones) or the one who is consistent and reliable?
Here are 7 small and easy tips to crank up your reliability - and follow through on what you intend.
Decide - The first step is to make a commitment to yourself that you want to be a dependable and reliable person. Write it down to make it more official. Put a signature line on it if you want!
Give Yourself Some Breathing Room - Think you can turn that proposal around in 2-days? If it’s not highly time sensitive for the client, tell them you’ll have it to them in 4-days. And then deliver it early if you can.
Reset Your Clock - As my college golf coach used to tell us, “If you’re on time, you’re late.”" Reset your own clock that if a meeting starts at 10, in your head and in your plans, it starts at 9:55. Because the meeting will start at 10, but will it start with the feeling of “Jeez, where the heck is John?” or “Oh look, John’s already here and ready to go.”
Notebook - I’m a huge fan of the old fashioned notebook. Most things I do are online and cloud based so I can access anywhere (documents, spreadsheets, emails, etc.). But my daily to-do list is written down. And when I make a commitment to do something, I write it in that notebook. Personally I only go out 1-week in my notebook. Anything longer than 1-week out goes into my online calendar.
Calendar Obsession - My online calendar is an extension of my being. I’m obsessive about my time, watching my calendar to see what’s next, and also adding buffer time each day to get work done, grab lunch, or to make sure I have time carved out for daily client contact or to touch base with folks on my team.
Status Updates - If a project or proposal I’m working on for a client is going to take more than a couple weeks, somewhere in the middle of that time window I’ll send the client an email to let them know it’s all coming together and that we’ll have the plan to them on schedule. This will relieve any doubts the client has in their mind as to if you’re going to deliver on time, because most people don’t.
Proactive Alerts - If you’re going to be late to a meeting, or are falling a day or two behind in a commitment, give someone a warning. Even if you’re going to be 3-minutes late to a meeting, send a text or email to give others a heads up so they’re not wondering if you’re going to show up. Plus they may want to use those few minutes to check email, call their spouse, etc.
None of these are hard to do, but it all starts with a commitment to yourself to be a reliable and dependable person. That simple, yet important, characteristic will set you apart from the majority.