STRATEGY
Adam Caplan
Self-service
selling
Adam Caplan, author of Born to Sell - The Natural
Sales Method, takes a look at the issue of why
salespeople need to act like customer service agents
M
ost salespeople
think that
customer service
agents are people
who haven’t got
the courage to sell, and most
customer service agents think
salespeople cause most of the
customer service issues they
have to deal with.
I’d caution all salespeople
against thinking negatively of
customer service agents as there’s
a huge amount all salespeople
could learn from them.
Let’s look at what customer
service is all about.
In essence it’s all about
helping the customer, isn’t
it? Great customer service is
helping customers with their
problems, providing support,
and keeping the customer
happy. Shouldn’t salespeople be
thinking the same thing?
I’d go so far as to say that if
a salesperson is not thinking
along these lines, they should
consider either changing their
attitude towards sales or ‘get out
of Dodge’ and find another job.
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STRATEGY_TB36_adamcaplan.ga.indd 49
Simplify the Law
TM
WHY IS GOOD
CUSTOMER SERVICE
SO IMPORTANT FOR
SALESPEOPLE?
Consider what damage
poor customer service
does in reducing trust,
removing goodwill,
destroying any future
re-orders, and blackening
your name so that you will
never get any referrals.
So why give good
customer service? In
essence, you’ll get more
business, you will feel
better about your job,
yourself and your place
in the world, it’s more
fun to help people get
what they want, and it
has huge positive
psychological benefits for
your personal wellbeing.
As a salesperson, your
attitude should be one of
customer service rather than
salesperson service - help
the customer to what they
want and you’ll get what
you want down the line, as
opposed to help yourself to
as many sales as you can do
by whatever means possible.
talkbusinessmagazine.co.uk 49
Do without lawyers
29/08/2014 12:19