Being disruptive is usually frowned upon — a loud student in a classroom, a heckler at a concert or show — but some forms of disruption should be embraced.

Such is the case for making sales, says John DeRosa, director of contractor training at SRS Distribution. In this video chat with RC/RSP Publisher Jill Bloom, DeRosa explains how distributors should be in the mindset of disrupting the status quo to compel customers to buy from them.

“I think a lot of salespeople have this mindset where look if I just keep calling on them and I keep telling them how good we are, that eventually, I would get an order,” said DeRosa. “Is the goal to get an order? Because that could be easy to do. I would suggest that your goal really needs to be to earn a customer, and to do that, you need to develop an intimate relationship with them and disrupt their way of thinking to the point where they can see the world as a better place with you in it.”

DeRosa admits that it is easier said than done. To help distributors achieve that effect, he provides four tips on how to positively disrupt a customer’s thinking. These include adding value to forming relationships, which DeRosa says goes beyond bringing customers doughnuts or the occasional golf outing.

“Try to identify their problems or difficulties or dissatisfactions, and on the basis of discovering those problems and difficulties, figure out how you can help the contractor solve those problems but do it in a way that is sort of biased to your strengths,” he said.

Watch the full video here or download the podcast and listen on the go.