Of Promise-Makers and Problem-Solvers

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I saw a salesman lose a customer the other day. The customer was upset that the salesman's company didn't offer a service that he thought they should provide. After the salesman told him that it simply wasn't feasible, the customer proceeded to call one of his competitors. After he got off the phone, I watched him tell the salesman that he would be taking his business to the competitor, because the competitor promised to offer the service. The salesman's response: "I guarantee you that he is lying."

Was the competitor lying? Yes. Did the customer care? No. He heard what he wanted to hear, and it led him to a buying decision. All too often, customers make this mistake. They want to hear that they will given benefit on top of benefit at little to no cost to them. This type of thinking, though, does not make business sense. A business cannot survive without making up for costs somewhere. The customer in the above scenario should have asked himself, "How is it that the second salesman is so insistent of his promise while the first salesman deems the service as impossible to offer? What is the second salesman keeping from me?" But the customer didn't ask that. He assumed that value comes out of thin air. In reality, there are only two possibilities: the second salesman is making more money or the second salesman isn't telling the truth.

What customers really need are not people who make promises. They need people who deliver. They need problem-solvers, not promise-makers. Sure, it feels good to be promised great value with little cost but, in the end, when the promise is broken, the need is greater than ever. When a salesperson says that something isn't feasible for a given price, a saavy customer should ask why, rather than running to someone who will tell him what he wants to hear. The smart shopper will make the salesperson explain. Utlimately, the ball will go back into the customer's court. The question won't be, "Is it feasible?" The question will be, "Is it worth the cost?"

This is a caution for salespeople as much as it is for customers. It's always easier to get new business by making big promises. But, in the long run, you will be remembered for how you delivered on your promises. What matters is how well you keep your promises, how well you solve the problems for your customers that they are paying you to solve. There is no greater headache, no greater reputation-destroyer, and no greater confidence-crusher, than servicing a client to which you've made a promise that you are unable to keep. It's much easier to rest your head at night when you've lost a client because you've told them the truth than it is if you've lost a client because you've told them a lie.