The Best Question You Can Ask Your Customers in 2026

In this episode of the Inside Gift & Home Podcast, I’m sharing what I believe is the single most important question to ask your customers in 2026:

👉 “How do you want to work with me this year?”

This simple but challenging question transforms relationships, eliminates assumptions, and gives you a clear path for how to work your entire territory with confidence and purpose. Instead of guessing what your retailers want or assuming they prefer in-store visits, phone calls, or email-only updates, this question gives them the chance to tell you exactly what serves them best.

You’ll hear examples of what retailers may say:

• “Come visit me in the store and help with inventory.”

• “I don’t have time for appointments, just text and email me promos.”

• “Visit a couple of times per year and call me in between.”

When you ask this question, you stop operating in assumption mode and start operating in partnership mode. It changes how you plan your travel days, how you prioritize calls, and how you deliver value in a way that meets your customers’ real needs, not the needs you think they have.

Once you know how your customers want to work with you, it becomes so much easier to organize your plan, your calls, your communication, and your time. And that’s exactly what I teach inside Hybrid Sales Advantage™.

Enrollment is open now, and our next 8-week group coaching begins February 2026. If you’re ready to work smarter, create stronger customer relationships, and build a territory plan that finally makes sense, I’d love to support you. www.brokenvesselsales.com/hybridsalesadvantage

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