Article by B4 Sales & Marketing Expert, Peter Swanson, Founder and Executive Chair of Intertronics 

“That’s a very good idea. But I am sure you have also considered…”

About 30 years ago, we moved into a new home in a new village, away from our previous haunts. In 1995, finding good local shops and suppliers on the nascent interweb was challenging – there were very limited local business directories and review platforms. Google Maps did not exist.

So I did the obvious thing – I asked our new neighbours. They were a fabulous family who became great friends. And they knew their stuff. When I asked where they bought their meat, they gave us the name of a nearby farm shop with a butcher who were top class. Getting referrals from people in the know is much better than using Google Maps, even now.

When I asked our knowledgeable neighbour where he bought his wine, he told me to visit the wine merchant in the local town; the shop’s premises were built in 1537, although the business itself was only around 150 years old. They must have accumulated some expertise, I thought. “Go and speak to Declan, and tell him I sent you.” So that’s what I did.

Declan was a late middle-aged Irishman, with that warmth and twinkle that only the Irish can have. I didn’t want to let on that I knew pretty much piccolo about wine, so I said something along the lines of “We are having this menu for dinner and I would like a bottle of xxxxxx.” Fill in that blank with Bordeaux or Burgundy or Sancere or something equally ubiquitous that I had a chance of recognising. Declan then said these magic words:

“That’s a very good idea. But I am sure you have also considered…”, whereupon he drew me away to the shelves of wine and picked out a bottle for me. It was not what I came into the shop expecting to buy. Sensing my doubt he said, “If you don’t like it, return it and I will give you your money back.”  Declan had come with a hot recommendation from my neighbour, so I bought that wine. And you know what? It was delicious and suited the food perfectly.

This exchange became a feature of my wine shopping with Declan. “That’s a very good idea. But I am sure you have also considered…, and if you don’t like it, return it and I will give you your money back.” I never took a bottle back, even though I bought wine I was not expecting to. In a very short time, but quite gently, Declan became my trusted wine advisor.

My father was visiting us from the USA. Through decades living in Europe, extensive business travel, and a voluminous expense account, he had become quite a fan of and interested in Italian wine. I told him about Declan, but he demurred. “I know what wine I want.” We went wine shopping. “Dad, meet Declan. Declan, meet my father.” Dad said, “Declan, we are having my favourite pasta dish tonight, and I would like a bottle of xxxxxx.” Fill in that blank with Chianti or Barolo or Amarone or similar, I can’t recall which. And Declan said, “That’s a very good idea. But I am sure you have also considered…” We walked out of the shop with a case of wine, not at all what we had come in for – and we drank it all, with enormous enjoyment, and did not return a bottle.

Eventually, after Declan had long retired, and I had stopped going to that wine shop, I realised what a really good salesperson Declan was. Why?

• He was a product expert – he absolutely knew his wine
• He was authentic – he told me how he travelled to visit artisanal wine producers to find the best products, even if they were not well known or the biggest
• He was honest – he hardly ever offered me the wine which had the big advertising signs up in the shop (which they were obviously trying to push), because it wasn’t the best product for my personal needs
• He built customer insight – after a while, he got even better at understanding my taste, my price points, etc
• He backed it up – refunding a few bottles was a worthwhile cost in the overall scheme of things, especially as it didn’t happen very often. When it did, there was never a question, just your money back
• He built rapport – he had a gift for making people not feel inadequate in a consultative sales situation, but supported their learning in an understated but effective way

As a result of these things, Declan became my results focused trusted advisor on wine. In our adhesives business, this is a position to which we aspire for our customers. We do achieve this position quite often, but there is lots we can learn from Declan’s example.

There are three corollaries from this:

• Wine is a consumables business. My lifetime customer value to that wine shop was big. I didn’t shop anywhere else for wine for years, even after Declan retired.
• Going back to the top of this story, Declan was a referral. Declan’s position as a trusted advisor to my neighbour was so valuable, that he recommended Declan to me – and probably lots more people too. As I did. Referrals are the best source of new business you can get – but you don’t get them unless you are very good at what you do.
• In a world where customers are spending the majority of their buying journey online, and reaching certain buying decisions before you have a chance to speak, you need to be able to capture them when they call. “That’s a very good idea. But I am sure you have also considered…” is a great way to engage and start the conversation.