To make the purchase, the buyer believes that of all the alternatives, including going with a competitor, not purchasing, or even delaying, that his interests will be best served, and his needs will best be met.

The key word is 'believes'. Any action, such as buying, begins with belief that the action taken will result in a desired consequence. The qualities of a salesman can greatly influence the beliefs of the buyer. The greatest influence will come when a buyer has developed trust in the salesman. A buyer's trust is his belief that the salesman's words and actions are genuine, and the result of making a purchase is known. The salesman's qualities that build trust are reliability, confidence, and being knowledgeable.

Of those qualities, reliability and being knowledgeable are the easiest to develop. To be reliable, a salesman must be predictable, accessible, and consistent. For example, by making regular appointments or visits to a buyer, the buyer can begin to set an expectation (or trust) that the salesman will be there on a regular basis. Always responding quickly to any inquiry from the buyer will also show reliability. This does not mean having an immediate answer, but an immediate response such as "In a meeting with a client, but I will meet with my service manager later this afternoon to answer your question. Do you need to know earlier?" will ensure the buyer's needs are being met.

There are two necessary ways for the salesman to be knowledgeable, encyclopedic knowledge of the products or services being offered, and complete understanding of the buyer's business, needs, and how the salesman's offerings affect the buyer. Continuous effort in training, study, research, conversation with experts, and listening to your customers will result in knowledge that will outshine competitors.

To develop true confidence, reliability and knowledge will have been mastered. Confidence comes from the alignment of all of the positive qualities of the salesman. When a salesman has alignment, confidence is on display, and it instills confidence and trust within the buyer. Buyers can sense, for example, when a lack of product knowledge manifests as a slightly less enthusiastic sales pitch, and may cause the buyer to doubt whether his needs are really best met with the salesman's product. Ultimately, a buyer's trust is earned, and the decision to buy may be made by the persistence of the salesman to cultivate positive qualities.