Sales people are often perceived as not telling the truth in order to obtain personal gain. In the New International Version of the Bible, Jesus uses the phrase “I tell you the truth” 78 times. He used that preface each time he was saying something of great importance to his disciples. But he didn’t just ‘say’ it. He backed his words up with facts and evidence.

In sales, if we just say the words “the truth is,” or “trust me” it actually triggers doubt and skepticism in the prospect. Why? Because we’ve all had a bad experience with a bad sales person, and we remember it like it was yesterday. So our “trust-meter” goes bonkers when we hear the words without any substantiating evidence behind them. In sales, the words alone are never enough. A successful sales person must master the art of demonstrating integrity and trust-worthiness by ‘showing’ – not telling – that they are honest and truthful throughout the sales conversation and beyond.

Some ways to show you are telling the truth include:

• Listen first before sharing any features and benefits so you know what is most important to your prospect and only talk about those things.
• Do what you say you’ll do, when you say you’ll do it – even on the simplest things.
• Admit when you don’t know something and offer to find the answer.
• Never try to convince someone to buy, instead, allow them to draw their own conclusion about doing business with you, or not.

To guarantee successful sales, those that don’t end in buyer’s remorse and refunds, is to show that you are truthful and trustworthy throughout the sales process — even if it means not getting the sale. In the end, you’ll preserve the relationship and leave the door open for future business.