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Merriam Webster’s online dictionary provides this to help my memory and to allow me to quickly access past
definition of ethics: “the discipline dealing with what conversations.
is good and bad and with moral duty and obligation.” For me, active listening provides clear communication.
Exploring further, the word ethics is from the Greek In the book Be the Red Jacket, I created an acronym
word “ethos” meaning “custom, habit, character or for CLEAR to strengthen the communication process
disposition.” BBC.com simplifies the definition by through five active listening skills.
stating, “ethics is a system of moral principles. They
affect how people make decisions and lead
their lives.”
When people observe ethics, they do so by observing
other’s behaviors. This is important in sales because it is C
one’s behaviors that often lead to a successful “close” or a Clarity:
lost sale. You must listen for clarity so that you can
In sales, the first interaction is the most important. separate the tangibles from the intangibles
What this initially means is the phone must be answered and the knows from the unknowns.
or the voice mail, email, or text must be returned. During
recent interactions with other Realtors™ and experiences L
with past executive coaching clients, many times the
failure to answer the phone is the number one reason for Legitimize:
the sale not moving to that next step in the sales process. You must listen to legitimize the real issues.
The repeated phrase of “answer the phone” is probably Many times, perceived problems are
the most common sales behavior mentioned to me symptoms in disguise.
because many Realtors™ fail to do this. How the phone
is answered also determines if the salesperson will E
have the opportunity to move the caller to the next
step, the marketing phase. This marketing phase of the Emotion:
sales process is where trust and knowledge begin to You must listen for emotions. Here is where the
be realized by the “suspect,” “prospect aka sales lead” verbal words (and non-verbal gestures if you are in
or “qualified sales lead.” People buy from those the person or “zooming”) along with the syntax (speed,
know and trust. When “Googling” the word trust, this pitch, volume, and emphasis) are very important.
unsourced definition states that trust is “the firm belief
in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or A
something.” In sales, the potential customer or client not Agreement:
only has trust in the salesperson, but also in the product You must listen for agreement to find common
or solution. ground from which you can build ongoing trust.
A quick review of one’s trust factor would be to ask
existing clients or even colleagues to rate you on a scale of
1 (poor) to 5 (outstanding) with regards to the following R
statements. Retention:
B I am reliable. You must listen for retention because the information
C I am truthful. you are receiving is critical to your sales success.
D I have proven my ability to you. In many cases, the facts that you are receiving
E I have the strength to fulfill my obligations or have been heard by others, but they simply failed to
promises to you. listen. Active listening is all about truly hearing and
F I have demonstrated courage in our interactions. then remembering what the other person has just
said. This last listening skill tip is the reason I use a
The last statement is one I added because sometimes it notebook for all conversations.
takes courage to move the sales process forward as well as
courage, to be honest.
The first contact lays the foundation to build trust
or distrust. One of the keys to building trust is active For me, the second most important key is to do
listening. For years, I kept a notebook and wrote down what you promised to do. This is embedded with in the
keywords, buying parameters, the decision-makers, the definition of ethics specific to the focus on obligation.
time frame, and of course the budget. This behavior has When the salesperson indicates or better yet promises to
continued in real estate. Later, I transcribed my notes into send something, to call someone, and to get back to the
the Customer Relationship Management System (CRM) prospect, he or she must honor that moral obligation.

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