Customers have become more sophisticated and responsible; they have less time and a more complicated environment in which to operate. This has far-reaching consequences for businesses that rely on sales contracts with their customers. A client establishes a long-term association with a company by building a rapport with its salespeople. The degree to which this connection exists depends on how satisfied the client is with the sale (transaction) and with how he or she is treated by the vendor (relationship). What customers need today are partners they can trust to understand their needs and problems, recommend the right solutions, and help them handle the details.

It is important for salespeople to lay the foundation for satisfaction by helping customers set realistic objectives and expectations for products or services. Customers are interested in what the services and products can do to help solve their problems or make life easier for them. Sales staff must transform the features and advantages of the company’s offerings into terms a customer can understand, appreciate, and apply to his or her own situation. When this is done, salespeople build customer loyalty and ensure return business. It is critical that salespeople actively listen to what clients say and how they say it. That means having excellent communication skills to clearly and accurately articulate information and ideas, as well as to ask the right questions for determining customer needs.

Increased competition has encouraged specialization and diversification among products and services. Companies must be able to adapt, change course in midstream, and recognize opportunities before the competition does. Therefore, creativity is another critical part of building a base for customer satisfaction, enabling salespeople to generate new ways for customers to benefit from their company’s products or services. No two customers are alike, and it is important to recognize the different needs, unique styles, and distinctive ideas of customers. The subsequent recommendations made by the salesperson must be made with confidence and self-assurance. An assertive person effectively influences, listens, and negotiates so that others choose to cooperate willingly. This win-win approach means that both parties end up with their needs met to the highest degree possible. When it comes to negotiating terms and conditions of a sale, the customer representative must work collaboratively with the client to negotiate a mutually acceptable deal that forms a partnership.

Establishing a relationship in which the customer not only obtains valuable products and services but feels as if he or she is getting value helps develop trust, a cornerstone of the sales transaction. To continue buying time and time again, the customer must be able to believe, and believe in, the salesperson. An essential component is for the representative to establish personal commitment to the customer and always to act in the customer’s best interests. In the end, clients want trust, credibility, reliability, responsiveness, and empathy from their sales representatives.

Here are some interventions that are particularly recommended for sales staff: