For years I have heard the comment that 'the customer is always right'. Baloney! There have been many times that I as a customer have operated under false assumptions, bad advice, unrealistic expectations, rumors and hearsay. I'll bet if you think about it, that you too have not always been right as a customer.
I am not suggesting you get into a tug of war with a customer about who is right or who is wrong. If you treat a customer as if they are wrong regardless of whether they are or not, you may win the argument but you can kiss any more business with them goodbye.
So what is a salesperson to do when the customer is operating out of a set of beliefs, values or expectations that they feel they are right when in truth they are really wrong? (I don't want to get into a discussion about what is right or wrong. I have covered this concept several times during the past few years in my tips and many of my books.) What I want to make clear is that regardless of whether the customer is right or wrong you have some options.
1. You can argue with them and no matter who wins you will lose their business.
2. You can get your ego in the way and end up being right, but what's the point?
3. You can point out where the customer is mis-informed but still treat them with respect and professionalism.
4. You can cave in and let them be right even when they are not. (Over the long term this is not a wise approach.)
5. You can turn the problem over to someone else to take the heat.
6. You can get a manager or supervisor involved (what we call higher authority in negotiation) and let them handle the issue.
It is vital to remember that life is perceptual. That everyone sees things differently. You and the customer can be looking at the same color and they see light blue and you see dark blue. How can this be true? It just is. There are hundreds of shades of blue. Do you want to lose business because you insist that the customer agree with you and your interpretation of a color? We are only talking here about color, imagine if it were something more complicated.
Customers all bring a great deal to the buying table. They bring their; experience, expectations, likes, dislikes, memories, knowledge, desires and on and on. When there is disagreement or conflict it is usually due to the salesperson and the customer looking at the same issue, feature, situation etc. through a different set of eyes.
It's your turn.
- What do you typically do when a customer is wrong?
- What is your strategy or your technique(s) for disarming any potential conflict?
- Is what you are doing working?
Tim Connor, CSP is an internationally renowned sales, management and leadership speaker, trainer and best selling author. Since 1981 he has given over 3500 presentations in 21 countries on a variety of sales, management, leadership and relationship topics. He is the best selling author of over 60 books including; Soft Sell, That's Life, Peace Of Mind, 91 Challenges Managers Face Today and Your First Year In Sales. He can be reached at tim@timconnor.com, 704-895-1230 or visit his website at http://www.timconnor.com. |
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