Originally published as a guest blog contribution for SellingPower.comby Steve Schmidt
At a fundamental level, ethical selling is about being transparent — even when it feels risky or uncomfortable.
As they weigh purchase options and evaluate vendors, B2B buyers expect sales teams and their companies to behave in ethical ways.
Working with ethical salespeople and companies is a basic requirement among buyers. Harvard Business Review reported on research conducted by Bain, which has taken the 40 distinct kinds of value that B2B offerings provide customers and organized them into a pyramid with five levels. According to their report: “At the base of the pyramid are the table stakes: meeting specifications at an acceptable price in compliance with regulations while abiding by ethical standards.”
Selling with ethics and integrity is about behavior. You can talk about it all you want; what matters is how it manifests itself in the everyday actions of your salespeople.
Transparency
