Let’s move along to the second characteristic of our Authentic Selling model; following the Authentic acronym, we’ll look at U—Undisputed Results. Actually, let’s talk about undisputed results and you.
As we said last time, being an advisor to your clients is of upmost importance in today’s selling environment. Operate with the customer’s best interests in mind. Know their business well enough to be able to tell them what they should—and should not—do. (And, yes, we’re saying you should take this approach even if saying “no” means you don’t get the sale.) You are putting the buyer first—just as you would want someone to do if they were selling to you.
You’ll make yourself indispensible to the customer by being an authentic advisor to them; you’ll stay at the top of your game with undisputed results.
Undisputed results are measurable, notable results that are beyond reproach. This is sales success that no one can question. People will marvel at your success, but that’s all they’ll do. They cannot question how you got there because you always operate on the up and up. Always.
Let me be specific and offer a scenario of disputed success. Perhaps you’ve heard people talk about a top-producing salesperson using comments like, “Yeah, he sold a lot, but talk to some of the people who bought from him; they’ll tell you they felt like he took advantage of them.” I call this disputed success. Yes, it’s still technically success, but at a cost—a big cost.
I’ve worked with people who’ve enjoyed million-dollar sales, and yet, their clients requested their removal from the account after only six months. There’s no denying that these salespeople could be successful, but success without authenticity cannot be sustained. It will not lead to undisputed results; eventually the reasons for their removals came to light. They didn’t deliver on their promises. They lost their “relationship capital,” and they lost their good reputations, too.
All this is connected. When you become an advisor to your client and you honor your business relationships and put the buyer first, you will overachieve. You will enhance your reputation. You will obtain undisputed results.