by Matt Clegg, Director of Sales, Dealstruck
As a small business owner, how many times have you felt someone from another business pushing you to do something purely for his or her benefit? The interaction can feel inauthentic, tasteless, and downright cold. Even if their product – from an objective view – proves to add value to your business, how the sales conversations plays out is often overwhelmingly more important than what is actually being sold. I hate that feeling too: the feeling that I’m being sold something without a relationship-driven regard for who am I as a business owner (and a human being).
In my first sales role at a former company (not Dealstruck), the VP of Sales told our sales team to “maximize profit.” What this meant was to charge the client as much as they could possibly pay in order for our company to make more money. This was the proverbial “full boat.” That company eventually failed because it formed the reputation of being a “chop shop” – the business was more concerned with its own success instead of its customers.
As a “salesperson” and a manager of a sales team, my job fixates me in a dichotomy: I’m required to think creatively about challenging my team towards success while ensuring our clients succeed, too. My goal, then, is to incentivize my sales staff to work hard and towards the best interest of our client. Are these things even mutually exclusive? Our answer at Dealstruck: Absolutely not.
At Dealstruck, we value transparency. Transparency is rooted in the fundamental belief that genuine openness leads to authentic relationship, and relationship builds value. Transparency complements our desire to only deliver the right product if it fits the right client. This means there are plenty of times where none of Dealstruck’s products fit a particular business owner and we end up not profiting from the relationship.
For example, a business owner has a capital need and obtains approval at his or her bank for a loan. The rate is just flat out lower than what Dealstruck can offer. At Dealstruck, we do what is in the best interest of the client, not the other way around. We send the client to their bank because that’s where they belong. From the get-go, our mission has always been to become a stepping stone for our clients to reach bankability. Our vision is much bigger than Dealstruck’s own success – it encapsulates the hundreds of success stories our clients have achieved.
When a potential borrower comes to us with a need, Dealstruck provides them the correct product at the correct price. At the end of the day, it’s not about the full boat