Episode #371: The Real Know, Like And Trust In Sales In Japan - Part Three - TRUST

Why do buyers hesitate to trust salespeople, even when they like them?

Buyers can enjoy talking with you and still avoid buying from you if trust is missing. In most industries, customers have choices, and they don’t have to buy from us. Unless supply is fully restricted (rare for 99.9% of salespeople), trust becomes the real deciding factor behind repeat business and referrals.

When trust is low, buyers assume the salesperson is primarily protecting their own interests. When trust is high, buyers feel safe engaging deeply, sharing real problems, and making decisions with you as a partner.

Mini-summary:
Liking opens the door, but trust closes the deal — especially in competitive markets.

Kokorogamae (心構え / true intention, mindset) is the inner posture behind our actions — what’s truly in our heart as sales professionals. Buyers sense it fast.

Ask yourself honestly:

• Are you focused on what you get — commissions, targets, bonuses, status?

• Or are you focused on what the buyer gets — outcomes, success, risk reduction?

A sales mindset rooted in buyer success aligns with Zig Ziglar’s famous idea:
“You can get everything you want in this life, if you will just help enough other people get what they want.”

When your success is tied to the buyer’s success, trust becomes natural — not forced.

Mini-summary:
Kokorogamae (心構え / true intention, mindset) is the hidden driver of trust; buyers trust sellers whose intentions serve the buyer first.

Do you have a sales philosophy — and can it survive pressure?

A sales philosophy is your personal guardrail: the values that guide what you will and won’t do in pursuit of a deal. It’s easy to embrace ethical selling when business is good.

But sales pressure is real:

• If you’re on commission and not selling, you’re not eating.

• Even on salary, missing targets can threaten your career.

That’s why philosophy without discipline collapses under stress. When pressure hits, your kokorogamae (心構え / true intention, mindset) determines whether you protect the buyer or protect yourself.

Mini-summary:
Your sales philosophy matters most when you’re under stress; kokorogamae (心構え / true intention, mindset) determines whether you stay true to it.

Why is a desperate salesperson dangerous to everyone?

There is nothing worse for trust than desperation. A desperate salesperson destroys two brands:

1. The company brand
   Buyers ask: “Why would a reputable company tolerate unethical sellers?” Trust in the organization drops.

2. The personal brand
   Once your reputation is damaged, buyers remember — and they warn others.

Desperate selling creates short-term revenue but lasting distrust. In Japan, where long-term relationships and reputation matter deeply, this damage can be permanent.

Mini-summary:
Desperation kills trust and permanently harms both company reputation and personal credibility.

When sellers push a solution mainly because it pays them more, buyers eventually feel it. Even if they don’t confront you, they back away and stop trusting your recommendations.

If you ever find yourself thinking:

• “This product helps me more than it helps them,”
  you’re already in dangerous territory.

Long-term sales careers are built on fairness, consistency, and buyer-first thinking — not “deal hunger.”

Mini-summary:
Self-first selling might win a deal today but loses trust — and the future pipeline.

How do you build an unbreakable personal brand in sales?

A trusted personal brand is priceless, and it grows from consistent buyer-centered decisions.

That means:

• Taking a long-term view

• Leaving money on the table when it protects the buyer

• Recommending what’s right, not what’s easiest to sell

• Choosing integrity even when it costs you short-term income

Over a career, these choices compound. Buyers come back because they feel safe with you. They introduce you to others because your reputation reduces their risk.

Mini-summary:
Trust compounds over time; consistent buyer-first decisions create a brand worth more than any single commission.

What does this mean for sales professionals in Japan (日本企業 / Japanese companies and 外資系企業 / multinational companies)?

In Japan, trust and reputation are business currencies. Whether you serve 日本企業 (Japanese companies) or 外資系企業 (multinational companies) in 東京 (Tokyo), buyers reward partners who:

• act fairly,

• stay consistent,

• and show real commitment to customer success.

This is a core focus in Dale Carnegie’s 営業研修 (sales training) and リーダーシップ研修 (leadership training):
how to build trust through mindset, communication, and ethics — not tricks.

Mini-summary:
In Tokyo’s relationship-driven market, kokorogamae (心構え / true intention, mindset) is a decisive trust signal.

Every salesperson eventually faces a choice:

• defend the buyer-first path,

• or abandon it under pressure.

We already know what the right thing is. The question is whether we will live it — consistently.

Because buyers don’t just buy solutions.
They buy your intention.

Mini-summary:
Your kokorogamae (心構え / true intention, mindset) is the real product buyers evaluate.

• Trust is the true closer in sales; being liked isn’t enough.

• Kokorogamae (心構え / true intention, mindset) determines whether buyers feel safe with you.

• Desperation destroys both company and personal brands for years.

• Long-term success comes from consistently putting buyer outcomes first.

Founded in the U.S. in 1912, Dale Carnegie Training has supported individuals and companies worldwide for over a century in leadership, sales, presentation, executive coaching, and DEI. Our Tokyo office, established in 1963, has been empowering both Japanese and multinational corporate clients ever since.