To Be Perfectly . . . . . STUPID!

So I'm chatting with a salesperson for twenty-two minutes. I'm the customer. He's the salesperson.

Then, he says this:

"To be perfectly honest with you, I think you should [insert salesperson's nine-word recommendation here]."

The two of us talked for 22 minutes, yet he was being perfectly honest for only 9 words? The other 2000 words (or so) that he spoke to me were not "perfectly honest?"

What a silly thing to say to a customer! He could have just as well preceded all his other words with, "To be perfectly DISHONEST with you..."

Sometimes stupid phrases seep into our personal language, and "to be perfectly honest with you" is one of those. Banish it from your verbal quiver! It's use simply calls into question the honesty of everything else you've muttered to your customer.

Honestly!

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Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers, a B2C sales training and consulting company. Subscribe to the free Selling to Consumers Sales Tips Newsletter.