Key Takeaways from The Transparency Sales Workshop

When we heard that Todd Caponi would be speaking at an EO Chicago event in January, our sales team couldn’t wait to attend! Todd is the founder of Sales Melon, a self-proclaimed nerd, and the author of the award-winning book, The Transparency Sale. We’ve always strived for transparency in all we do here at Candor Threads so we were excited to learn from Todd and up our transparency game! Read on to see our key takeaways from his workshop.

1. Transparency Sells Better than Perfection – Know Your Pros & Cons!

Todd stressed the importance of knowing your company’s pros and cons for various consumers. If you’re not entirely sure what your pros and cons are, Todd recommends performing a Google search on your own company. Doing so will unearth a myriad of information you may have been too close to see. From there, you can use the information found to inform your marketing messaging. For example, Candor Threads offers custom apparel with minimum quantities of 30 pieces or more. This can be viewed as a con for a consumer looking to purchase less than 30-pieces. By making our minimums clear in our marketing, we save the consumer (and us) the valuable time needed to find the right fit.

It also helps to know your competitor’s pros and cons! When a consumer, needing less than 30 pieces isn’t sure where to turn, Candor Threads can point them in the right direction. Now, the consumer is happy, they’ve saved time, and they think of Candor Threads as the transparent company who helped them!

2. Set the Right Expectations

Our team has always believed it is better to under-promise and over-deliver than the opposite. While this is generally a safe rule of thumb, we learned from Todd that this isn’t necessarily the best way to be transparent. Leading with transparency and unexpected honesty can help you sell more! When supply chain issues were at their height, we weren’t entirely sure when customers would receive their products. Because of this, we considered providing longer than usual delivery dates, just to play it safe. Being transparent about potential delays while providing a realistic delivery estimate is far more enticing to our customers than the doom and gloom of a long possible wait time that may never happen. This method builds a sense of trust between our customers and us. This sense of trust will come in handy down the line when they’re ready for more custom apparel!

3. All 5-Star Reviews Can Hurt Your Bottom Line

96% of all consumers check a company’s reviews before making a purchase. 85% of those consumers go straight for the negative reviews to see where things could go wrong. Candor Threads has always strived to maintain a 5-star rating across the board. We love to please and the thought of someone being dissatisfied has literally kept our sales team up at night!

Todd served up a strong dose of reality when he explained that companies with all 5-star reviews sell at the same rate as companies with a 3.25-star average rating! If you want your company to rack in more business, surprisingly, a star rating of 4.2 – 4.5 will do the trick more than a 5-star rating. People value transparency above all else. As human beings, we need to see the negative to process the positive. So, go ahead, leave us a bad review! It will help us to learn from our mistakes while providing a more transparent view for future customers.

4. Be Flawsome!

No, it’s not a typo. Being flawsome is a term coined by Tyra Banks. Todd thought it fit well with his teachings and ran with it! It means to be awesome while accepting your flaws. When we lead with our shortcomings, customers won’t be left wondering what our flaws are. They’ll feel more confident making a purchase with us because they have all the puzzle pieces in front of them! Candor Threads offers impeccably printed apparel, but sometimes we have longer turnaround times. By being upfront with our customers, they know exactly what to expect. In turn, they’ll be able to make an informed decision they feel good about. And, if you’re still dubious, check out how well this method worked for George Costanza on Seinfeld.

Wrap-Up

So, there ya have it. We took so many great points from Todd’s presentation and we’re so glad we went! For more information about the transparent sales process, be sure to check out Todd’s book – The Transparency Sale. And, if you’re in the market for custom apparel from a transparent company, be sure to contact us at Hello@candorthreads.com. We’ve spent the last 40 years producing quality, custom apparel for groups of 30 folks or more. We would love to create something fun for your group!

Have a candorific day!