Saturday afternoon. The front door bell rang. I put down my work and walked to the door. Through the glass I could see a woman, maybe in her late 20s, bundled up in a large parka over which she was wearing a smock emblazoned with the logo of a national nonprofit organization to which I donate money. I opened the door and invited her to step inside out of the cold.

She introduced herself, “Robin, like the bird”, and said that she was representing the local chapter of the national organization to which I have donated money. When I told her I was a contributor, she asked whether that was at the local level or the national level. When I said, “national”, she shared why she was knocking on doors and ringing buzzers this Saturday afternoon: The local chapter is facing higher than expected demand for its services and is asking community members to help defray the cost of those services.

Initially, I misunderstood. She explained, again, and I nodded to indicate I understood.

As soon as I nodded, she reached into her parka pocket and pulled out a mobile device, smiled, and said, “shall we go ahead?”

When I said, “yes”, she displayed a QR code on her mobile device and said, “Here’s where you go to do that.”

Four things stood out to me about this moment. First, the strength of her commitment – she was cheerfully canvassing on a blustery, cold December day. Second, her eye contact – she never looked away from my face. Amazing. I couldn’t look away from her. Third, she smiled through the entire conversation, a warm presence. And, fourth, when she came to the close, “shall we go ahead?”, she didn’t hesitate. There was no uncertainty. I was VERY clear that she intended that I donate. Immediately.

“Be sure you put my name, Robin, at the bottom where it asks for the canvasser’s name, please”, she said. I did.

Nick Miller and Clarity train banks and bankers to attract and develop deeper relationships with small businesses. Many more Sales Thoughts like this and a host of other articles and resources at https://clarityadvantage.com/knowledge-center/ .