Nice Salespeople Finish Last?

They say that nice guys finish last. Really? In sales, nice guys can finish first and win the deal. Of course, turkey salespeople can win deals sometimes too. But more often than not, customers buy from people they like and trust.

“Nice” can be defined by terms like pleasing, agreeable, delightful, amiably pleasant, and kind. Websters further defines it as characterized by, showing, or requiring great accuracy, precision, skill, tact, and care.

You see, nice salespeople get it. They win over customers by their pleasant charm and their adept skill, as well as their apparent concern for the customer.

Field research (IDC) bears this out by showing that customers buy 53% of the time because of the “purchase experience.” Specifically the salesperson and/or team gained trust and were valued by the customers because they offered valuable perspectives, educated and helped the customer navigate alternatives, were easy to buy from and gained trust and support throughout the organization.

You can summarize that and say that winning salespeople showed “skill, tact, and care.” Bottom line: they were nice.