ELU Squared – Likability

ELU to the power of two:

Let's begin our focus on the third of The Six Characteristics of the Champion Sales Professional: Likability. I am going 'old school' on this one, with the popular sales expression, "People buy from people they like." There is a new school approach, that says the buying process has changed so much over the past several years, that likability no longer matters.

Some sales coaches are teaching that it is far more important to be the most knowledgeable sales person, or the most prepared sales person, or the sales person with the best product. And, no doubt, all of these things are essential and will be discussed next in this series, under the topic of Love: Do what you love and know it well.

Likability, is a critical soft skill. It is positioned third in the series because it is just as important today as it was in yesteryear. In fact, it might be even more important now than in the past? With the advent of technology allowing the buyer to research companies and products, it is easy to assume that the 'human' side of the sales process is no longer relevant.

I have recently had conversations with several sales executives who agree that the human element is going to be of greater importance in the next ten years, as people realize they don't want their world reduced to bits and bytes. A great source on this subject is Daniel Pink, who writes about it in his book, A Whole New Mind – Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future.

Where do you stand on the likability scale? Important to the sales process? More so or less so, in today's world?