Authenticity: The Key to Sustaining Relationships

We have a lot of fun in this column finding interesting ways to communicate, to stand out and to turn heads from our competitors. Selling, at its best, is a great sport and a wonderfully challenging and invigorating way to make a living. But it is also important to remind ourselves from time to time that nothing sells better, over time, than honesty and authenticity.
 
It is great to try any number of selling techniques but to sustain performance and, more importantly, relationships; we have to be authentic and consistent, because people will always get to our core, and when they do, they should respect us more than ever.
 
One of the reasons we are so disgusted with most politicians these days is because their handlers have them flopping around so much in reaction to public opinion and polling. That not only discourages us from trusting them, but it makes us angry that they really think we can be so stupid as to not recognize the manipulation. They are the salespeople and we are the prospects, and if they do not respect us enough by talking straight and being consistent, they are not likely to close the sale, much less generate any long term trust.
 
So let the politicians and their handlers be disingenuous . . . we will give our prospects and clients much more authenticity, consistency and, bottom line, respect because that is most certainly what they deserve.