Successful sales is all about people and their relationships. If you can build and nurture good, solid relationships with the people you sell to, your services and/or products will always be in demand.

Everyone likes to say yes, both in their business lives and in their personal lives too; but saying yes mustn’t mean just acquiescing to someone else’s desires or demands, just to please them, or to make life easier. Sometimes you have to say no, but not in a negative way. But how you may ask, can “NO” not be negative?

The one thing that people value above all other things is honesty. Saying things just to please the other person is a recipe for disaster. The fact of the matter is that others are reliant on what you say, and what you do, in as much as they will then make decisions and promises based on what you have told them. If what you have conveyed to them turns out to be untrue, their own strategy going forward will crumble because it was based on an untruth.

The fact of the matter is that too many people feel that saying no is unpalatable because they fear it is not what their clients want to hear. But successful sales is all about managing your clients’ expectations. If you know you cannot achieve one of you customer’s key objectives; price, due delivery date, or quality, you need to speak up, and the sooner the better. Saying no isn’t being negative, it’s a positive statement of truth.

Okay, so that client is not going to be a happy bunny, but imagine the fallout if you don’t forewarn him/her. What will happen is that they in turn they will be letting their clients down because the stock isn’t available; or, if the quality is not up to specification, product will get returned and payments stopped or credited; or, if the price isn’t as agreed, someone’s going to end up being out of pocket. Any client given any one of these outcomes is going to be very disgruntled, and the most likely outcome is that you’ll lose him/her once and for all, and there’s no greater cardinal sin than losing clients.

But when you learn to say no, you are stepping forward and managing your customer’s expectation. You remain in control of your situation, but more importantly, your “no” puts your client in control of the situation too, and it allows them to consider their options and take appropriate action.

Forewarned is forearmed. Now it may be that you lose that particular order; not desirable, but what are the alternatives? If your would be customer finds out about the problem at the last minute, he/she will be very angry. You stand the chance of not only losing that order, or not getting paid for it, but the likelihood is that that customer will delete your name from his supplier list for good.

The one thing any client wants is a supplier that he/she can trust. Saying “no” actually proves that you are caring for your client. Once your customer realizes this, it sends out a very powerful message; a message that you tell it as it is. Nine times out of ten, this sort of honesty not only works in your favor, but is the sort of thing that breeds loyalty.

Most people would rather buy from someone they know and trust. In both business and personal life you only get to let someone down once. After that they will feel you are an untrustworthy source and they’ll run a mile; not only that, but they may spread the word too, and your reputation will be shot. So don’t see saying no, as meaning that you have failed; see it for what it really is; an opportunity to win your client’s respect.