Quit Saying “Honestly” and “To Tell the Truth” Unless You Are a Liar

Surprising to me is the number of times I hear salespeople and others use these lines or other similar lines.

When I hear somebody say either of these, I can’t help but think if what they’ve been telling me up to now has been a lie.

Allowing the customer to have confidence is a requirement if we expect to close a sale.  This means our words, our actions and our entire demeanor have to be geared toward giving them confidence.  If this is the case, then why would we ever think of using a word such as “honestly”?

I’ll admit using the word “honestly” can be a way to set up a sentence to give it more punch, but I’m sorry — it just doesn’t cut it. You have to use different descriptive words that allow the customer to feel what it is you’re saying without giving them any sense to doubt anything you’ve said.

A big reason I’m a stickler for this is because I’ve had numerous buyers tell me how when they hear a salesperson use a word or phrase like this, they can’t help but suddenly begin to re-process everything they’ve been told up to that point in time.

If you’re under the age of 30, you’re going to be far more likely to use words like this, and worse yet, you won’t see them in a negative light.  That right there is the problem.  It’s not what you think the meaning of the word is; it’s what your customer thinks the meaning of the word is that can and will do damage to your ability to close a sale.

The big conclusion I hope you receive is to not just stop using words like “honestly” and “to tell you the truth” in your discussion, but to think twice about everything you say.

Remember, it’s not what you think, it’s what your customer believes that matters.

Copyright 2012, Mark Hunter “The Sales Hunter.” Sales Motivation Blog.