Beyond Transactions: Leadership Perspectives on Lasting Customer Relationships 🤝

Being a Sales Expert isn’t just about closing deals or hitting numbers — it’s about building trust, creating connections, and becoming the kind of professional customers (and retailers) actually look forward to seeing. To help guide the way, we asked our Team Leads to drop their best advice. The result? A mix of wisdom, personality, and practical gems you can start using today.

Let’s dive in 👇

🌟 Brenden Kim: Build Trust Like a Pro

“One key tip I’d offer to Sales Experts is to build strong relationships with front-line retail staff. These team members are instrumental in driving sales — they’re often the first point of contact for customers and can influence decisions by recommending our heat-not-burn products.

Confidence is also a key indicator of success on the sales floor. It's not just about knowing the product — it’s about standing behind it and pitching it with conviction. Our product is positioned as premium, and if we don’t approach it with a premium mindset — from our attitude to the way we communicate — the interaction won’t feel authentic or balanced to the customer.

At the heart of it all is trust. Customers need to trust the retailer, and by extension, trust us. That trust is built through consistent, confident, and credible interactions — and it starts with strong alignment between Sales Experts and front-line teams.”

🔥 Key takeaway: Confidence + trust = your sales superpower.

🤝 Simon Tran: Be More Than Just Numbers

“One piece of advice I’d share is that being a great sales rep goes far beyond the numbers. At the core, it’s about who you are, how you carry yourself, and the experience you create for your customers.

The best sales reps strike the balance between personality and professionalism -- bringing warmth, authenticity, and approachability while also maintaining a standard of reliability, consistency, and respect that earns trust over time.

Equally important is showing respect for the customer’s wishes, needs, pain points, and time. Not every visit is about making a sale, sometimes it’s about listening, understanding their challenges, and building a relationship that shows you’re invested in their success, not just your own.

Ultimately, the reps who find the most success are those who bring their full selves into the role. They’re not just focused on short-term gains, but on creating long-term trust and partnerships that make our brand stand out in the market.

At the end of the day, success in this role comes from being the kind of professional that customers look forward to seeing, not just because of what you sell, but because of who you are.”

🔥 Key takeaway: People buy from people they like — so be authentic, approachable, and professional.

💡 Ivan Lopez: Small Things, Big Wins

1. Know Your Customers The secret to this job is really knowing your customers. Build strong relationships, listen to what they need, and make them feel valued. When you do that, they’ll not only come back but also bring more people who trust their recommendation.

2. Connection Is Everything Sales is all about connection. Learn to connect with people—greet them warmly, wish them a good day, remember their names. Believe me, those little gestures go a long way and can make a big difference in your results.

3. Small Things, Big Impact Never underestimate the small things: a smile, good energy, and genuine interest. These details build trust and make people more open to hearing what you have to say.

4. Keep a Great Attitude In sales, some days you’ll have zero results—it happens. But every conversation is a seed planted. The next day, that can turn into 2 sales, then more and more. The key is to never give up, stay positive, and always keep your head held high.

5. Be Consistent Consistency is what separates good salespeople from great ones. Show up every day with the same energy and focus, even when things are slow. Over time, that discipline pays off with stronger results.

🔥 Key takeaway: Your energy and attitude shape your results — consistency turns effort into wins.

✨ Michelle Araullo: Do Your Best, Always

“My golden advice to all SEs:‘Do the best you can until you know better.’ One of the many quotes that I live by, this one by Maya Angelou.

Your best is always valuable. Because in trying, there will always be wisdom that comes with it.”

🔥 Key takeaway: Effort matters. Growth comes from showing up, learning, and leveling up.

☕ Massimo Tanferna: Coffee = Connection

“Hello Team,

My name is Massimo Tanferna, Quebec team lead closing in on 1 year. I've helped manage and grow the Quebec team to what it is today. If I can offer one piece of advice for existing and new SE's looking to join our wonderful team is get friendly with the retailers, they are your best friends in terms of referrals, everything needs to initially go through them before getting to you.

A coffee to the retailer will go a long way ;) Genuine interest in his personal life will than confirm your genuine approach, bond will be built, you as an SE will be top of our sales charts in no time 🙂”

🔥 Key takeaway: A coffee, a conversation, a connection — retailers can be your biggest allies.

🚀 Final Thoughts

What do all these leaders have in common? They know that success in sales isn’t just about selling — it’s about connecting. Whether it’s building trust with retailers, creating authentic customer experiences, or simply showing up every day with consistency and positivity, the path to being a top Sales Expert is built on people skills as much as product knowledge.

So next time you’re out in the field, remember: bring your confidence, your authenticity, your consistency… and maybe a coffee or two. 😉