Ryan Dohrn answers Diane from Philadelphia about using client relationships in sales pitches. He never shares confidential details, but highlights long-term customers to show he's a helper, not a pushy seller. The more you help, the more you sell, and service and personal connection beat price every time.
Hi friends, Ryan Dohrn here answering your listener questions. Thanks so much for them, by the way. We get a lot of them, so I appreciate it. Diane from Philly, you are up. You're the next person here on Ryan Answers Your Questions. So, uh, Diane, let's take a look at your question. Diane's question is, why are you such a big fan of comparing and contrasting clients? I feel like if I talk about one client to another, I'm gonna get myself in trouble. How did you get over that? All right, great question from Diane in Philly. So first of all, I don't ever talk about clients to other clients in unethical ways. Instead, part of my shtick, if you will, or part of my sales strategy, uh, Diane, is I like to talk about my customers, those that love working with us. Now, I do it in a very ethical way. I might say I've been working with so-and-so, with Rex over here at Atlanta such-and-such, and we've been working together for 15 years. He loves this, he loves that, he loves this, he loves that. No, I might not get into specifics, but when I can say that I love Rex from Atlanta and here's the reason I love working, I love Tiffany from Nashville and here's the reason why, and I talk through this with others, it helps them understand who I am as a person. I'm a helper. See, the last thing you want to be is a salesperson. Nobody wants to talk to a salesperson. I'm an advisor, I'm a consultant, I'm a friend, I'm a helper. And by the way, you— oh, you just happen to pay me for this stuff. I never want to be seen as a salesperson. Now, nothing wrong with being a salesperson. I've been doing this 30 years, fed my family successfully, nothing but sales and marketing for 30 years. But when I really moved from marketing really into like almost full-time sales, I recognized Unfortunately, most people don't like salespeople. We all kind of like each other because we're fun-loving and have a good time. Recognizing, friends, that the more you help, the more you will sell. The less you sell, the more you sell. And I think that's really, you know, vividly, vividly important. So again, Diane, comparing and contrasting clients doesn't mean you're giving intimate details. Now, if you can get a success story from a customer, a case study, a white paper, research from your clients. Wow. I mean, that would be amazing to have that kind of data with permission to share. Typically, I don't have that. What I'm doing is talking ethically about the clients I have, how much I love them, how much we get along, how great we are working together. I want to sell people on me, and the reason is because everybody's focused on price. When price becomes the deciding factor 2 products seem similar. So I am the differentiating factor. Me, customer service, the way I deliver things, how I work with people. A lot of times I'm the deciding factor. So Diane, don't be afraid to compare and ethically contrast your clients. Get out there and talk about how much you love your customers, and you'll be amazed. It will resonate really, really well with most people. All right, good question, Diane. Keep them coming. Friends, I love your questions. Send them to me, ryan@ryandohrn.com. And I'm speaking at virtual sales meetings. I'm getting on the airplane again and coming and doing national sales meetings. We've got very safe ways to make that interaction helpful. I can help you plan your sales meetings as well. Reach out to me, always happy to help. Find out more over at ryandohrn.com, D-O-H-R-N. All right, friends, we will see you next time.
