Does my butt look big in this?

A client’s wife recently told a customer in her retail store that an outfit she liked wasn’t the most flattering for her figure. Her husband’s face lit up as he recounted the story proudly to me.

Apparently this customer in his wife’s store was all set to buy the outfit she was wearing, but his wife (a mature and lovely lady who I’ve known for years) pointedly let her know it wasn’t the best purchase for her.

I laughed when her husband told me the story – it’s exactly the sort of thing I would expect his wife to do. She was my travel agent for years and I vividly remember her telling me: “Kirsty, you’re not doing it that way” (usually for my own safety and always for the best in hindsight!)

The best salespeople in my opinion will always overlook the glory of a quick sale in favour of building a lasting relationship built on trust. It’s a lesson usually learned with years of experience.

“How amazing would it be if you could teach an 18-year-old salesperson that trick, eh!”, the client said proudly of his wife’s actions.

How amazing indeed.

Kirsty Dunphey is the youngest ever Australian Telstra Young Business Woman of the Year, author of two books (her latest release is Retired at 27, If I Can do it Anyone Can) and a passionate entrepreneur who started her first business at age 15 and opened her own real estate agency at 21. Now Kirsty does lots of fun things which you can read about here. Her favourite current projects are Elephant Property, a boutique property management agency, Baby Teresa, a baby clothing line that donates an outfit to a baby in need for each one they sell and ReallySold, which helps real estate agents stop writing boring, uninteresting ads.