Building relationships is central to what we do in sales and relationship management. For many of us, it's one of the things we do best and one of the things we enjoy most. We work at building relationships - meeting people, asking questions, listening, and finding ways we can help others be successful. It pays off in so many ways.

Of course, building relationships is not always easy. It takes time, thought, and insight. And now, due to the pandemic, we are increasingly having to do this without the benefit of being face to face. Here are a few ideas to consider:


Network relentlessly. Leverage social media to build your network, finding warm connections to open doors to new contacts. Utilize referrals to get introductions to other people. In that way, you start with credibility. According to Hubspot, only 3% of buyers trust sales professionals, yet 92% of buyers trust referrals from people they know.
Conduct research calls regularly. These are calls where your focus is on learning. With everyone you connect with, listen more than you talk. At the end of each research call, ask for names and introductions to others.
Stay in touch with decision makers. We see decision makers even less now, so it's useful to try to stay connected. An easy way to do this is to engage with them on social media. Follow them, comment on their posts, and share items with them that they may find interesting. Another way to stay connected with decision makers is to do periodic research meetings. Here is how you might request these meetings:

"Hi John, it's Laura from Acme. We appreciate our relationship very much, but due to the pandemic, we are feeling a bit out of touch with you and your vision. I am wondering when I could get 15-20 minutes on your calendar to get current with our knowledge. This will certainly help us to be a better partner to your team. What day and time would work well for you?




Building relationships is harder now, but it's more important than ever!