Trust Comes Before the Sale: Leadership Lessons for Sales Teams
Every good sales process is built on the same thing: the prospect has to trust that you have their best interests at heart before they’ll buy. On the latest Sales & Marketing Playbook: Unleashed, Craig Andrews and I talked with leadership coach Devi McFadden, and it was clear that the same rule applies inside your own company. Your team has to trust you before they’ll perform for you.
Mixed messages slow down your sales team
I asked Devi what happens when the owner or managing partner sends one message one day and a different one the next. Her answer: churn. People spend their energy trying to figure out what leadership wants instead of doing the work.
For a sales team, that shows up fast. Devi gave the example of salespeople who are having the conversations but not closing them, because they’re exhausted and pushing “good enough” out the door. If your team keeps hearing new priorities, your pipeline pays for it.
Earn trust by listening, not pitching
Craig asked Devi how she builds trust with a prospect for the first time. Her answer could have come out of one of our sales training sessions: be a listener. Listen to what they need, and be willing to help whether or not they ever become a client. Don’t get attached to what you think the answer looks like.
That’s the difference between a salesperson who gets used for free consulting and one who becomes a trusted advisor. People can tell when you’re there to serve them and when you’re there to close them.
Watch the leading indicators, not just the lagging ones
Devi described the lagging indicator of a leadership problem as attrition. By the time people are leaving, it’s late. The leading indicator is what your team keeps asking for. “If you’re hearing the same request from your employees over and over and over again, that’s an indication that there’s something that is not being met.”
Sales leaders can apply that directly. If your reps keep asking for a clearer process, better qualification criteria or more support with proposals, that’s not complaining. It’s data. That’s a big part of what we work on in ongoing sales coaching.
Getting clear means a clear value proposition
When Craig had each of us define “clear,” I went straight to the value proposition. Know who your ideal client is, because if you’re talking to the wrong person nothing else matters. Know what problems you solve. And be able to show the prospect what’s in it for them.
If you’re crystal clear on your value prop, it becomes easy to qualify or disqualify opportunities quickly, and the clients you do take on know exactly what to expect. Devi pointed out that leaders need the same thing internally: an employee value proposition, so the team knows the deal.
AI helps with volume, not relationships
On AI, my view is simple. Once you’ve identified your ideal client profile and your message, AI can help you get it in front of more people and do some early research. But it’s not going to replace the trust and the relationship. I get 15 to 20 AI-generated emails a day from people who apparently want to invest millions in my business. That’s what volume without an ICP looks like.
Devi’s test fits sales well: is this good, or good enough? A first-pass prospect list can be good enough. The conversation that wins the business has to be good.
The takeaway
Trust drives the sale, and it drives the team that makes the sale. Be clear about what you want, follow through on what you say, and listen closely to clients and to your own people. If your team’s results aren’t where they should be, let’s talk.
🎧 Listen to the full conversation with Devi McFadden on Sales & Marketing Playbook: Unleashed.
