How To Catch Your Customer’s Most Common Lie

By Mike Michalowicz (Google+)

Customers lie to you all the time.  Not because they want to take advantage of you or manipulate you, they actually want to save you from hurt feelings.  But these lies, even with good intentions, can hurt your business big time.

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  • Hartman227

    If they lie to you- it just PROVES you never built a true  relationship with the customer that would stand the test of time.  Client retention!!——— The relationship is  the foundation the house is built on.  If I  have a client that would lie – or manipulate the facts a bit….even a white lie- a social grace- I would like that customer to belong to my competitor.  Run everything Quality Over Quantity—- I’d rather have 100 Great customers than 1000 with 800 of them lying to me- even to spare my feelings.  Life is too short.  Live & die by the 80/20 rule.  And the 20 percenters need to be very close to you — close enough to close the office door & tell you that you suck – when you suck.  Otherwise – EVERYTHING is a lie!!!!
    It’s funny– after 18 years in sales- when I meet with someone I can’t stand- meaning I can’t see myself building some sort of bond with this person- I double the bid.  (sometimes 3x if they are really objectionable!) If they’re going to make me struggle- and not enjoy dealing with them- I’m making bank deposits until the day they do LIE about the fact that Corporate made this change – not them.
    Life is short ——–

    • Carolina_D

      Personally, I would prefer to make them ‘eat their words’. Winning someone over to your side is one of the greatest triumphs a small business owner can enjoy. I think your attitude is akin to ‘cutting off your nose to spite your face. Yes, it IS ‘work’ to get someone to admit they were wrong, but that’s what we’re here for. You aren’t going to grow your business if everything is ‘personal’ to you. We’re recruiting customers, NOT ‘bffs’. I am the first to admit that SOME people are ‘lost causes’. They find their joy in life from complaining about everything and everybody. I’ve had certain men (and ONE woman) tell me that they don’t ‘deal’ with female CEOs, managers, etc. These people are easily identified though.They will either tell you how they feel straight away, or insist on speaking to a ‘man’. (Even here I have managed to change a few minds.) There are also the ‘general troublemakers’ who are willing to try ANYTHING. including blackmail, to try to get what they want for the price THEY want. But, after a year or two we learn to identify and avoid these types. They are, thankfully, in the minority. The rest are worth fighting for. I don’t know about you, but I need all the customers I can get. The more, the better. (Really, there is no such thing as ‘enough’ customers.) Oh, and I ALWAYS provide ‘quality’. I don’t cut corners, ever. If a potential customer tells me he can get the same product(s) for less money, this is my opportunity to make them understand why they CANNOT get the ‘same’ product(s), even for MORE money, nevermind for LESS. Once you explain the differences between your products and a competitor’s (DO YOUR HOMEWORK HERE!) and how spending a bit more on YOUR product now could save them a LOT of money in the long run, then you will have made your sale, at least about 90% of the time. A good salesperson will have no problem bringing people over to their company. Oh, and if your ‘unwanted’ customers are interested in kitchen/cooking products, well send them MY way. I’ll gladly take them off your hands.