However there are also many sales people, often very successful who have learned to provide service to their clients – who usually seek out a salesperson – It’s pretty individual really. Those sales people don’t use the urgency tactic, because they know that rapport with the client will create a loyal bond, where the client relies on you and trusts you. But the urgency tactic..it’s real and it’s old-school.

I mean.. people (most) realize that its all just BS. Personaly…I think its just an outright LIE if no realy urgency exists thats why you have to CREATE it!!!!! If you ask salespeople, they wont even its a lie but just misleading…same thing isnt it? In the retail environment, I believe salespeople are there to provide HELP with a purchase but since they get paid on commission they have to pressure you. Look, noone even likes commercials so why do think people dont have the greatest respect for salespeople, especialy the ones that wont leave you alone. In reference to non-retail sales, I will admit, I have succumbed to the pressure of salespeople…when I was younger and stupid. Logicaly, if you want to buy something, the normal thing to do would be to shop around for it and decide which brand, type, store etc is best for you. So, who do salespeople sell to exactly? Especialy with the advent of the internet and abudance of information? Are there that many gullible people out there? As soon as you see or think of a salesperson, the first thing that comes to my mind is PRESSURE. What if commission based sales was replaced with a salary to help, educate, inform, advise people on a purchase WITHOUT having the pressure of meeting the quota which is inadvertently transfered to the customer….oh yeah…I forgot, that job already exist….its called customer service.

That’s simply not true. I’m a retail sales person (I sell high-end electronics). Recurring sales are a substantial part of my business (not as much as single-purchase, but still). It’s true that I’d rather have cash in hand than wait for you to make your mind, but if I pressure too much to buy today, I know I’m just going to lose my sale to those dorks at Best Buy that make $9 an hour.

In sales one builds relationships, identifies the needs of the client and identifies the urgency and severity of that need in order to close a sale. Are you building these relationships for no reason? Of course not, it’s to sell a $600,000 product.

I’m by no stretch saying all salespersons are trying to score that one sale and not the recurring one built off a strong trusting relationship, I’m just saying that there is a subset that will drive hard in order to close and that consumers need to be aware of what’s going on. I also don’t think of salespersons in a negative way or that they’re slime-balls, they’re doing their job and if they’re doing it well, that’s laudable. A consumer has as much responsibility and accountability in the transaction as the salesperson.

However, many of us in the sales profession are consultants during a complex sales process. My company creates niche software with a potential market of less than 1,000 buyers. The average sales cycle is over one year. My training brought me to realize every sale must be a “win-win” outcome. In other words, my company gains a new customer, and the customer gains a better way of operating. We aren’t a perfect fit 100% of the time, and it is my job (definitely hard to do, but necessary) to qualify each and every prospect. I’ve told potential customers many times that they just aren’t a good fit for us. It’s not necessarily based on the functionality they need but instead on their business philosophies. We want to do business with people who will be good customers and make great references.

So I kindly suggest you take a step back and realize not all salespeople are out to get you. During that year of evaluating, I develop solid relationships with our future customers. It’s all about building trust in them and consulting them on how we can help. The last thing I want to do in a situation like this is to throw out that relationship by dangling an artificial carrot.

By the way, my company competes with about 13 others in this market. We have the most expensive product, yet 7 times out of 10 we get the business. When I say “expensive”, I mean the difference between a $600,000 sale and a $350,000 one.