Death by Assumptions – Why Assumptions Kill Business Relationships, and How to Avoid Them

Death by Assumptions – Why Assumptions Kill Business Relationships, and How to Avoid Them!

What is the number ONE MISTAKE sales / business development associates make with their prospects and clients? Getting fooled into making assumptions!! You know what I mean … you are knee deep in what appears to be a productive and efficient Q&A with another party, you are asking efficient and timely questions, they appear to be emotionally committed to solving their problems, then BOOM … Rapport disappears, you feel the interaction starting over, and you cannot figure out how it happened. It’s an easy trap to fall into, and nobody is immune. I am not referring to the typical “making an ASS out of U and ME” scenario. I am referring to the catastrophic mistake of assuming anything about anything, and watching all of your hard work and rapport disappear.

First of all, making assumptions sends the message to your client that you are lazy, or perhaps have failed to prepare. Assumptions also notify the client that regardless of how well they communicate their needs and wants, you think you always know best.

So if sales professionals know that making assumptions is poor practice, why does it happen? A better question … why and how do we engage in this behavior when we actively try to avoid it? Confident people have a tendency to believe they know things about people and situations before they really do. Certainly we want to hire sales people who are confident, experienced, well trained and skilled at reading people, situations, and anticipating wants or needs. However, what we do not want is our sales professionals assuming the answer to anything without first asking efficient questions.

Often times visual ques, short pauses or moments of silence send us misleading messages, and based on how we interpret those signals we make assumptions as to their meaning. If we ask clarifying questions, we avoid the assumptions. When we do not, they pile up … one after the other forming this giant mountain of mis-information. I explain further by leveraging an acronymic definition of the term:

A – They are asymmetric with intention. One makes an assumption with the intent to help a client, move a process along, and to make things easier. Unfortunately, the end result is opposite of the desired outcome.

S – They are slothful, lazy in nature sending a message to the prospect / client that you failed to prepare, or that you are not asking the right questions. Worst yet, you are perceived as a person who lacks skill and discipline. How can one be trusted to solve problems without the skill and discipline to do so?

S – They are subtle and ego driven. Like a thief, assumptions rob you of your integrity before you realize it happened. Your ego and false sense of security lull you to sleep, then you wake up without a sale ... or perhaps any further contact with your client.

U – They are unimaginative because along with the careless nature, it requires no creativity or empathy to assume. Both prospects and clients need sales professionals to effectively help them solve problems and make effective decisions. It is very hard to do without creative solutions.

M – They are “ME” oriented because we never assume anything to truly help others. They are made to make us appear proactive and ahead of the curve. The resulting delay often times causes the opposite to happen.

P – They are purile. They signal a lack of wisdom, maturity, and forethought.

T – They are tired because people have made poor decisions since the beginning of time, many of which based on false information. The modern world is moving at an accelerated pace and has no tolerance for this old / tired behavior.

I – They are isolating. Make assumptions about the needs and wants of your clients, and you will experience what it’s like to be alone without the sale. Make too many assumptions, and your clients will leave you with nothing left except a cold call list.

O – They are obstructions. Sometimes assumptions are made without recognition, or at least when it is too late to remedy the error. Thus, they hamper one’s ability to solve problems and help clients get exactly what they want. The assumption becomes an un-penetrable barrier.

N – They are negligent. The final truth about making assumptions is that they are always 100% avoidable. All you need is a systematic Q&A process that leads you to discover exactly what a prospect wants. Assumptions cannot cohabitate with clarity. In other words, the solution for avoiding assumptions is already available to you. IF you fail to use it, you choose to fail. That’s negligent.

Regardless of how one feels about this information, there is one truth that cannot be dismissed. Assumptions about anything, or in any situation will always lead to miscommunication. Allow that to happen too often, and the relationships you have taken so long to build will be gone forever. Without relationships, goals cannot be reached, and objectives cannot be achieved. The result of that is catastrophic ... and 100% avoidable if one refrains from making assumptions.

#communication #sales #strategy #salesefficiency #selfimprovement