Enjoy today’s guest post from Engage Private Coaching Client Doreen Ashton Wagner, Chief Strategist, www.greenfield-services.ca

Establishing Trust & Rapport in NON Face-to-Face Situations

When I was approached to write this article by my friend Janice Buttle I thought, “sure, no sweat.” After all, I run a company that has helps meetings industry organizations grow their business through phone and email lead generation programs.  I’ve been teaching my clients and employees how to build trust and rapport for the last 14 years we’ve been in business.

But things are seldom as simple as they might seem.  And that’s because I believe the sales universe has shifted.  On the one hand social media advocates suggest we are faster to make connections or create “rapport” (think Twitter) but research shows we are slower to trust companies and salespeople.

Incidentally, I believe we are ALL salespeople – suppliers and planners.  If planners are looking to promote registration, secure sponsorship or land a coveted industry speaker for an event, they are selling.  So they too must work at establishing trust.

So if it all comes down to trust, what can be done to have the best possible framework for your business?

1. Be present online – The 2011 Edelman Trust Barometer annual study found that online search engines are the top source of information for companies.  To establish a high level of trust, you must have a compelling and current presence online.  Have you ever viewed a site and found their last blog entry is months old?  Or their client list includes names of companies that are no longer around?  Not very trust-building, is it?
2. Make is personal – Boost your trust factor by showing who is behind your company.  List your team members along with their biographies and links to social media sites such as LinkedIn or Twitter (but if that person uses Twitter for business purposes).  Resist the urge to use stock photos – the more personal you can be about your business, your staff or your event, the more trust you will earn.
3. Offer value first – Prospects visiting your website want to know you are worthy of their business.  Demonstrate your expertise with downloadable resources such as checklists or best practices.  This will elevate your status from just another company trying to sell stuff to one that cares to educate and provide valuable information.  Ask for the person’s name and email address and this can turn your website into a lead generation machine!
4. Be consistent – If your goal is to build trust with a regular communication mechanism such as an e-newsletter, make sure you send out your information consistently.  Sales expert Colleen Francis says, “Trust is built with consistent behavior over time… reliably delivering your message to your clients will demonstrate you can be trusted to deliver what you said.”  Check out Colleen’s article on how to build a regular communication program that keeps you top-of-mind with existing clients and prospects: http://www.engageselling.com/articles/article-get-inside-the-vortex.html.
5. Work your groups – One of my favourite ways to build new, trust-based business relationships is LinkedIn Groups.  I have posted questions in groups and have received valuable advice.  I have also answered questions and been able to help others.  The key is not to promote.  Recently I received the following message: “Hi Doreen. Your name just keeps popping up in my ‘people you may know’ list. I run a web development shop in NYC specializing almost exclusively in associations. Looks like your services might be very complimentary to ours and I would love to learn more. Touch base when you can. Regards, Jim.”  Because it was a very personal message, I was instantly more trusting!
6. Improve your testimonials – Ever been to a website that lists a company’s client list with just big company names?  How much do you trust that?  How about a testimonial that says, “I loved this hotel for my meeting!  Thanks, N.B., Association Executive.”  How believable is that?  If you don’t go all the way with testimonials, you may not be maximizing your trust potential.  Nielsen Research measured consumer trust in advertising channels and found that the most trusted source of information is social proof – recommendations from peers and on-line opinions.  It’s the Trip Advisor effect!  Wait, you say, “I can’t put the name of our client on our website competitors might try to steal my business!”  That is true, though I’d argue if you lose the business that way maybe you didn’t really have a loyal relationship in the first place.  But what if it can also bring you new business because prospects think, “wow, they do business with so-and-so”?

Building trust and rapport in new business relationships is a long, arduous process.  In this mobile, online world it often starts with your online presence before anyone even picks up the phone.  Make sure you cover your bases so that prospects will trust and be drawn to you!

Doreen Ashton Wagner is Chief Strategist at Greenfield Services Inc., a demand generation consultancy specializing in helping meetings industry organizations and associations grow their business.  A past president of MPI Toronto, she resides in the Ottawa region and continues to volunteer with MPI in Ottawa Ontario Canada.

Managers and owners of early-stage companies are often tempted to adopt a channel program versus having a sales team, thinking it will generate sales quickly without staffing headaches. However, it’s not always a silver bullet. I firmly believe company founders and in-house staff need to do the initial selling themselves.

When you let someone else run the sales of your product, you risk losing control of the sales cycle, your reputation and your revenue flow. Also, a channel will never be as passionate about your product as you are. They’re looking for the easy win and will give up on tougher prospects early, prolonging the sales cycle while potential sales are walking out the door.

When you’re new, your company’s reputation is extremely fragile. By staying in control, you can iron out bugs when they happen, and can develop deeper relationships with your customers. A channel can be a lucrative sales tool, but only when it is used to enhance rather than replace a direct sales team.

Committed to ensuring 2012 is your best year yet!

In a tough economy, many businesses panic and start competing on price alone. You don’t have to make that same mistake. Fight back by concentrating on your strongest asset—the value and benefits you offer to your customers. Tony Cram of Britain’s prestigious Ashridge Business School (and noted author of “Smarter Pricing”) recommends conducting a “benefit audit.” Here’s what that entails:

•  Examine whether there are innovations you can offer in your product line. Consider how you can improve the range of choices you offer your customers.
•  Reconsider customers’ needs. Are they changing? If so why…and find out how you can keep meeting those needs.
•  Reinforce peace-of-mind in the mind of the buyer about choosing you. Offer a money-back guarantee, or extend the warrantee on your product.
•  Personalize and position yourself as a leader or expert in your field. Be more than a provider to your customers, be a resource. That’s something that has unique value in any market.

Committed to ensuring 2012 is your best year yet!

Colleen

I had a Diner’s Club Card 15 years ago when I worked for PS Software and before we were bought by OpenText. The card was cancelled when we switched to OpenText processes. Did I mention 15 years ago?

Since that time Diner’s Club has been sending me monthly statement. Most of them I missed, because I thought they were junk mail. This week opened one and found it was a statement. So I called, thinking maybe I had a case of stolen ID and someone opened an account in my name. I was assured it was my card, from 15 years ago that had never been cancelled.

I asked them to cancel it and they said they could not – because THEY owed ME money. $0.86 to be exact.

By my calculations they have spent about $0.35 X 12 months X 15 years to send me statements reminding me that they own me $0.86. That’s a total of $63, and the stupidest account policy I have ever heard of.

I wonder how many other Diner’s Club accounts are losing money this way? Please, just close the silly account. I don’t care about the $0.86. I promise. But, if you really need to, have you ever thought that it would have been cheaper to just mail me a cheque?

You can’t make this stuff up.

Colleen

I am very lucky. I get the chance to work with a variety of sales groups in a variety of industries. Through that, I get to see first hand what works and what doesn’t.

And as we kick off the New Year, I want to share what top sales organizations do as they start their year to set the stage for success. The specific actions they take now to create a culture of sales success that will drive their team to top revenue performance.

I’ll be reviewing these specific strategies to making 2012 your team’s best year yet,
this Thursday at 1pm Eastern on my brand new, complimentary 60-minute webinar:
“Creating a Culture for Sales Success”.

You can register instantly right now by clicking here: www.EngageSelling.com/success2012

As a sales manager, executive or business owner, it’s the perfect place to learn the precise actions you need to take to right now to position you and your team for success.

In this intensive one-hour session, we’ll cover the critical items you’ll need to put in place as part of a comprehensive culture for success, including:

1. Not just revenue targets but key performance indicators so reps (and you!) objectively know they are on track for success
2. Compensation incentives that reflect the behaviors you have determined are  critical for each team member’s success
3. A pipeline measurement process so you’ll know accurately where you are each month, be able to sniff out red flags, and ensure your teams is not over or underestimating their potential and take corrective actions if required
4. Feedback mechanisms for reps including the resources to ensure they can make meaningful changes in behavior

Don’t miss this FREE content-packed webinar – you’ll hear precisely what top sales organizations due to ensure their team’s top performance by creating a culture of sales success. 

You can register instantly right now by clicking here:
www.EngageSelling.com/success2012
Thursday, January 12th at 1pm Eastern / 12pm Central / 10am Pacific

Dedicated to increasing your sales,

Colleen Francis

P.S. Start your year off the way that top performing sales organizations do – create a culture for sales success. Register instantly here: www.EngageSelling.com/success2012!

P.S.S. Know a colleague or friend who should be on this call? They can register themselves directly at: http://www.engageselling.com/success2012.