PRIME+ Selling System Blog

Sales managers in the alcoholic beverage industry are always looking for ways to get an edge up on the competition. It's one of the most challenging goals to meet, yet it can also be one of the most rewarding. Being outcompeted and poor sales and marketing are in the top ten reasons many businesses fail. The small percentage that makes it, however, has no doubt found a way to get an edge up on their competition. 

One of the most important things you can do in sales is finding what works best for you, your team, and your business. Here are the two most common selling approaches and how they work. One, in particular, will be right for you. 

Relationship Selling  

As Patricia Fripp once said, "To build a long-term, successful enterprise, when you don't close a sale, open a relationship." 

What is relationship selling? 

Much like it sounds, to relationship sell is to sell using a sales technique focused on building relationships with customers to close deals. This means the products/services are often on the back burner while the interactions with individuals are better prioritized.  

The most common techniques associated with this sales approach includes: 

• Connecting with customers on a more personal level 
• Being a good listener 
• Show your expertise when the time comes 
• Add value to your customers' lives 
• Always be honest with your answers 
• Be authentically yourself 
• Prove reliability (follow through with commitments)  
• Be patient 

How is it effective? 

Like with any approach, there are some notable advantages to using relationship-based techniques: 

• Loyal customers typically purchase more 
• Can receive a good amount of honest insight from your clients (can improve where needed) 
• Doesn't take much to close multiple sales 
• These kinds of interactions often lead to positive feedback, reviews, tutorials, etc.  

What are the pitfalls?  

On the other hand, there are also some pitfalls to consider when working with a relationship-based approach. They are as follows: 

• Putting so much attention on current customer relationships can lead to new and potential customers being neglected — not good for bringing in new clients. 
• Getting too close can cause problems (sales/customer romantic or inappropriate relationships)  
• More is expected from returning customers, including standards, discounts, etc. 
• Since this approach is primarily focused on building connections and relationships with consumers, it can take a long time to get it where it needs to be profitable for the company. 

Fact-Based Selling  

What is fact-based selling?  

Fact-based selling is a consultative approach using facts, data, insight, and better storytelling to maintain relationships. Meaning simply telling customers they can benefit from your product won't work. In this case, you would say something like, "As you can see in this report, 98% of our customers who responded to the survey felt like our product either "significantly improved' or 'completely resolved' their problem."  

The best things you can do when fact-based selling is to: 

• Always look clean, professional, and engaged when presenting. 
• Connect with your audience, prioritizing their needs and how you can strategically meet them. 
• Have a clear call to action that outlines your prospect’s next steps 
• Deliver with excellence by taking the proper measures to prepare and smooth out any problem areas. 
• And, of course, be fact-based. Data should back your whole purpose and strategy. 

How is it effective?  

This approach can be instrumental in the alcoholic beverage industry because it can grow your brand awareness and business now instead of down the road. This doesn't mean the customer won't stick around for the long term — after all, proven results eventually lead to strong consumer relationships. 

When successful, fact-based selling actually strengthens the relationship due to the customer realizing you have their best interest in mind by focusing on their particular needs. 

It's also effective in the following ways: 

• A more professional sales approach 
• Consistent, repeatable, predictable process to follow 
• Backed by relevant and reliable data 
• Offers a more trustworthy look into product and service results 
• Maximizes product/service and sales performance 

Are there any pitfalls? 

With fact-based selling, it's much easier to back the product you’re selling because you have evidence to support your pitch. However, it isn't quite as bonding as relationship-based selling. 

On the other hand, that can also be another reason it's effective — no customers are left behind in importance to prioritize those who have been around for a longer period of time. And results build relationships. 

Which one will boost your sales? 

While both approaches are well-known and commonly used, a fact-based approach can genuinely transform the culture of your sales department — mainly because it can move them from a relationship-based model to a consistent, predictable, repeatable process. It's much more reliable and easier to execute, putting your sales team in a better position to get the customer to take action and close the deal.