In this slideshare, we show how sales professionals can leverage three key principles of swift trust to sell in a virtual setting.

1. HOWVIRTUAL
SELLING
LEVERAGES
“SWIFTTRUST
THEORY”
BRIEF
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2. “SWIFTTRUST
THEORY”
BACKGROUND
Trust building is a long-term
endeavor. People need time to share
experiences, fulfill promises, and
reciprocate openness.
But what happens when a group
must develop trust under
circumstances that do not allow for
long timelines or in-person
meetings?
A small team of social psychologists
at Stanford attempted to answer
this question.
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3. WHAT IS
SWIFT
TRUST
THEORY?
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TIP
This theory emerged from the discovery that fast-
forming groups can quickly develop the trust that
many originally believed was only possible among
those with long, shared histories. However, the
researchers explain that this is “a form of trust that
has some unusual properties.”
Understanding these properties is important for
sales professionals engaging customers in a virtual
medium.
Without the theory of swift trust, a sales professional
may simply default to an approach more appropriate
for in-person interactions.
SCIENCE

5. 3 KEY
PRINCIPLES OF
SWIFTTRUST
IN AVIRTUAL
SETTING
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6. 1. EXERCISE MORE EFFECTIVE
PREPARATION WITH A ROLE-
BASED FOCUS
By understanding the role each decision
maker inhabits, the sales professional
will be better equipped to speak to
individualized concerns.
The key is to remember that the
“blurring of roles will lead to a slower
build of trust,” according to the
researchers.This approach allows the
sales professional to both adjust the
messaging to each stakeholder and use
valuable call time to ask the deeper
questions that cannot be answered with
research.
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2. RECOGNIZE THAT STAKEHOLDER
ATTENDANCE IS NOT STAKEHOLDER
ATTENTION
It is easy to confuse a stakeholder’s
attendance with their attention.The
two are not the same. It is the sales
professional’s job to recognize that just
because a customer is on the call does
not mean they are aligned with the
value proposition of the solution.
Overcoming this challenge of selling
virtually means that the sales
professional must engage each
stakeholder.
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3. STRUCTURETHEVALUE PROPOSITION
AROUND INTERDEPENDENT GOALS
Trust building will accelerate when
there is a shared definition of success
and a key role for each stakeholder to
play in achieving that success. It is the
sales professional’s job to identify that
shared definition and speak to it early
and often. Additionally, the sales
professional must be aware of the
increased difficulty of doing so in a
virtual setting.
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3 Key
Principles of
SwiftTrust in
aVirtual
Setting
The sales professional will
be in a better position to
address each stakeholder.
EXERCISE MORE EFFECTIVE
PREPARATION WITH A
ROLE-BASED FOCUS
Sales professionals should
ask questions of specific
stakeholders.
RECOGNIZE THAT
STAKEHOLDER
ATTENDANCE IS NOT
STAKEHOLDER ATTENTION
Sales professionals must
differentiate between
independent needs and
interdependent needs.
STRUCTURETHEVALUE
PROPOSITION AROUND
INTERDEPENDENT GOALS
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10. In this new era, many
selling organizations
have responded to
challenges by making
the leap to selling
virtually.
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Sales leaders must acknowledge how
the nature of the interaction has
changed and how they can change
with it.
Selling virtually in an effective way
means much more than simply
replicating existing selling skills in
front of a camera.

12. Copyright © 2020 Richardson. All rights reserved.
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