Can sales really be ethical?
By: Levin Andre
Tags: Ethics, Salesforce Productivity, Sales Development, Sales

Sales are heavily commission-oriented, with a focus on margins, growth, and business figures. The pressure is high. Sell, sell, sell — that’s the motto. In the meantime, however, there are increasing voices calling for more humanity, values ​​, and mutual respect — and not only from the customer but also from the ranks of sales.

Sales goals and sales success must be redefined

On closer inspection, the answer to the question of whether sales can really be ethical is: YES — no ifs or buts. Not only can sales be ethical, it must be. Hans Lutz Merkle, former CEO of Bosch, once said: “But there are things that you just don’t do”. And that also applies to sales. We all know the principle of the “honorable businessman”. The merchants of the 11th and 12th centuries relied on being trusted and doing business with them — and not being suspected of being fraudsters or liars, as this would have cost them their existence. To ensure this, clear norms were defined within the guild — one controlled each other.

Companies are still dependent on the trust of their customers today. The fact that it is, among others, members of the insurance industry (e.g. the “Ehrbare Versicherungskaufbaren eV”) who are turning to this principle again shows that the reputation of some industries seems to have been scratched. In addition to entrepreneurship and qualifications, ethical action is explicitly mentioned here as an objective in the form of “orientation towards good morals and decency”. This wording is chosen very “softly”, but this obligation is publicly stated.

The most recent example, the emissions scandal in the auto industry, unfortunately suggests that some companies today are even jointly considering how to bypass controls and avoid transparency. Or in a nutshell: How best to fool the customer in order to generate more sales or profit. It is irrelevant whether the sales staff and salespeople knew about the “cheat software”. What counts is the fact that management has clearly put internal advantages in the foreground — and deliberately at the expense of its own customers. This is exactly where the challenge lies: It is important to achieve the entrepreneurial goals in sales, to build up business relationships that are as profitable as possible and still follow ethical standards.

Sales that are based on basic ethical rules are not only just as successful per se as other forms of sales: Customers who have the feeling that a company acts according to ethical standards and advises fairly, bind themselves to a company even longer. The customer rewards honest merchant behavior with higher sales, loyalty and positive recommendation behavior. The honorable businessman can expect profit maximization, growth and sales success — not despite, but precisely because of his focus on ethical principles.

Without exception, honesty, honesty and trust are always assessed externally. The yardstick for how a company is rated is always the customer or the prospect.

Business and ethics are inextricably linked in sales

In particular, companies whose corporate purpose is primarily geared towards creating actual value must pay attention to the effects of their economic activity and strategic orientation on their own employees, suppliers, customers, the environment and society. The number of people who are intensely concerned about sustainability, the environment and other future issues and who also take this into account when making purchase decisions is growing all the time. The feeling of whether you are treated respectfully and fairly as a prospect or customer is latent anyway. Companies cannot avoid a review of their organization with regard to ethical standards. This leads from environmental aspects to product management to the way

An example from the trade: There are dealers who take a manufacturer’s products out of their range for a short time because the latter obviously wanted to sell the customer a sham package — for example, by a third less filling or a significant change in the ingredients without a corresponding price adjustment. The manufacturer tried to justify this with a new packaging design and pointed out that the changed filling quantity was noted on the packaging. This is a good example of responsible behavior: the retailer who removes the sham packaging from the trade demonstrates openness and transparency towards their own customers — even at the risk of reducing their own sales. Sales is one of the critical success factors of every company and is well advised to deal intensively with the standards of one’s own behavior. In the function of a link between the company and interested parties or customers. Before the purchase, during the purchase and also after the purchase.

Ethical sales take place especially when it doesn’t pay off immediately or when nobody notices

Almost every company uses terms such as customer orientation, fairness, win-win or the image of the “king of the customer” in communication. Employees are trained to give customers and prospects the good feeling of being welcome and being the focus. But friendship rarely proves itself in the sunshine. The decisive question is where the limits are and when the self-interest of the company (or that of the seller) is put above the interests of the customer. Ethical behavior is easy to implement when everything is going according to plan, the numbers are right and all eyes are on you. This is exactly where you can see who is really serious, because making ethical principles internally and externally the benchmark is not a project or a “nice-to-have factor”. It means consistency from big to small and especially then, when it takes place in the background. Behavior based on ethical values ​​also includes, in certain places, consciously doing without something, for example an assignment.

So that ethical behavior can really be practiced, the following points must be taken into account:

Ethical behavior is a matter for the boss and only develops its effect if it is carried “top-down” and consistently anchored in the corporate strategy. Ethical behavior can only be lived out in a credible manner if it is also practiced in the company — and voluntarily. Ethical behavior must be credible. Consistent behavior is an essential requirement. Companies cannot practice ethical behavior; only employees can do that. In order to reach people with this topic, ethics must be suitable for everyday life and practice.

Satisfied employees are the foundation of any successful sales. Anyone who values ​​sales based on ethical aspects needs employees who feel they are being treated fairly and decently. Only on this basis will they develop the necessary self-motivation and willingness to perform that are required to achieve the ambitious sales goals. The key is often hidden in the internal structures. If sales reps spend 40% of their time writing interview reports or quotes, and doing back office work, the pressure to get results the remaining 60% of the time increases. As a result, there is often a lack of the necessary attention and prudence that are essential in professional sales. Ethical principles, For example, an intensive needs assessment and fair advice are then sacrificed for a quick conclusion. It is taken what is “at the gun point”. The seller sells for the sake of selling.

If a sales representative has the feeling that everything is being added to the customer while he himself has to fight over every little thing with his manager, then this does not have a positive effect on motivation. Rather, what is needed is a fair remuneration system and a work organization that is geared towards ensuring that the salesperson can spend as much time as possible on what they have been hired for and what they do best: give good advice and do business. Business is not done between companies, but between people.

Internal structures, processes and, above all, internal communication must therefore be checked to determine whether they support ethical sales or perhaps even (unconsciously) stand in the way. The inadequate implementation is usually not due to the lack of the corresponding values, but rather the lack of answers to the question: “What is currently preventing us from acting accordingly?” Experience has shown that structures in which managers and employees in sales offer appropriate freedom and support from the Top management have good qualifications.

Ethics in sales begins where the normative level is left and the gray area is entered

Guidelines, norms and rules of the game are the basis of normative management. This is where ethical standards for the company and thus also for sales can be anchored. However, successful sales largely take place outside this level. Virtues and skills such as foresight, diligence, sincerity or honesty cannot be prescribed. And that’s why employees are needed who already have these ways of thinking and behaving or who have an environment that supports them in moving in this direction. Trust, courage and self-confidence in yourself are an important prerequisite.

The customer is not bound to the company, but to the seller. This is shown again and again when employees leave the company and the customer follows “his salesperson”. On the other hand, customers leave when they are dissatisfied with the seller or the service — and not always just because of the offer.

In practice, ethical sales begins exactly when managers no longer see employees as a means to an end, but as the goal of their actions. Then the seller can (and may) see the customer as a person and act accordingly responsibly.

Trust is given in principle and thus an obligation for the company and the seller. This is supplemented by a “healthy distrust”, which minimizes the negative effects of “blind trust”. This applies to both inside and outside.

is given in principle and thus an obligation for the company and the seller. This is supplemented by a “healthy distrust”, which minimizes the negative effects of “blind trust”. This applies to both inside and outside. Taking responsibility : Not only for your own actions, but also in taking responsibility for things that are due to others.

: Not only for your own actions, but also in taking responsibility for things that are due to others. Fairness internally and externally. Open dealing with weaknesses and problems.

internally and externally. Open dealing with weaknesses and problems. Transparency and openness in the team and in cooperation with other areas. And towards the customer.

Ethical sellers ask themselves the following questions:

Do I basically and consistently act in the interests of my customer? Do I think and act in such a way that I can confidently look in the mirror in the morning? Do I advise my customers openly, honestly and regardless of whether they end up buying from me? Do I regularly check what I am doing to see whether I am still selling as I intended? Do I do everything I can to develop personally and professionally so that I can be the best advisor / seller for my customers? Is my focus on sustainable, long-term and resource-saving solutions and products?

Under no circumstances should employees feel that they are at a disadvantage if they act according to ethical standards. Because ethical sales also include not doing business, even if it were possible. It is just part of telling the customer that in this particular case you cannot offer the best solution. If there are no alternatives, the potential revenue is gone, but the customer comes back. If you don’t, the short-term sales are there, but the customer is gone at the next opportunity. From an economic point of view, this behavior is therefore not a loss, but an investment in the future. A win for the seller, the company and the customer. From this point of view, value-oriented behavior in sales is absolutely practical and suitable for everyday use.

There are many reasons to set up or restructure your sales from an ethical point of view. The categorical imperative should be mentioned at this point: “Only act according to the maxim by which you can also want it to become a general law”. Or to put it another way: “But there are things that you just don’t do”. The majority of employees generally feel comfortable with ethical behavior, as they are mostly in line with their moral ideas and their own value system. The crux of the matter — as with many other projects — is the consistent implementation at the level of principles and the strength to withstand the daily temptations.