Experts have been quick to tell us that technology changes everything—that Sales 2.0 is an entirely new way of working. And I was one of the first to scream: “No, no, no!”

Social media, marketing automation, the cloud, and other technological innovations have transformed the way we work, but not how we sell. At the end of the day, sales is still about people buying from people.

Technology has certainly changed how we gather information about prospects. It’s also changed how they gather information about our companies and what they expect from salespeople. And let’s face it: If you’re not active on social media, you’re not in business. However, our smartest, tried-and-true business-development, lead-generation, deal-closing tool is and has always been ourselves. And that’s not going to change anytime soon—if ever.

Relationships Rule in Sales

The digital world, as great as it is, threatens our personal connections. The next time you’re in a restaurant or even at a business meeting, notice how many people can’t take their eyes off their mobile devices long enough to focus on the people in front of them. And that’s a problem, especially for salespeople, whose career success is determined by the ability to build relationships.

Whether your business is ultrahigh tech or low tech, your customers buy from you because they like and trust you—or because someone they like and trust has referred you.

For relationships that actually drive business, you’ll have to stop typing and start talking.

Keep Technology in Its Place

Technology certainly has an important role to play in sales. There are hundreds of great applications that help us organize our sales processes and work more efficiently—from CRM, to marketing automation, to social-selling tools.

Social media can be a particularly valuable sales tool, but it is not—as many would like to believe—the end-all, be-all for salespeople. It’s a great place to start conversations, ask questions, and showcase your expertise. Use it to research prospects so you can have richer dialogues—online and off. But don’t use it to toot your company’s horn or pester people with your sales pitch. People do business with people they genuinely like—not with your puffery and not with your company.

It’s our job as salespeople to make connections. And those connections are cemented with in-person meetings or phone calls, not status updates.

So put down the mouse, step away from the computer, and actually talk to the clients, prospects, and referral sources who can make or break your quota. It doesn’t matter whether you take your car, catch a flight, hop a bus, or pick up the phone. Just make the effort to connect. You’ll be glad you did.

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