For Greg Robinson, success in sales is all about relationships, and he’s made it his mission for the past six years to get the word out about SDN Communications’ business internet services for the Rapid City, Black Hills and Pierre area.
“Let’s build a relationship and I’ll show you the value in having me on your side, but more importantly the value of what SDN can do for you,” he said.
Robinson has worked for SDN Communications since 2018 and was recently promoted to West River – Business Development Manager, in which he has a bigger role in SDN’s growth West River.
“Even though it’s a new role, I’m going to continue to do a lot of things I was doing. I am still going to provide service for my customers and do all the relationship-building I do with them,” he said. “It's just going to broaden my sphere of influence.”
Robinson is a familiar face on the western side of the state. He and his wife, Sue, have been Rapid City residents for 30 years. The Robinsons can often be found hiking trails across the Black Hills. They also have two adult children who live in the area, along with one granddaughter.
Robinson worked in several positions in Rapid City before joining SDN. He serves on the boards of directors of the Black Hills Works Foundation as well as Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Black Hills. And, he goes to “everything” in the area related to economic development.
“If it is an Elevate Rapid City event or a Box Elder event or Spearfish event — anything that has to do with economic development or growth in the region — I'm there,” he said. “You build relationships at those things. They’re not selling points; they're more relationship-building points. With this new role, it is really going to add credibility to those events that I go to.”
Robinson, Rapid City office 'deliver' on SDN's promise
SDN Commercial Sales Manager Jon Clayborne said Robinson’s relationship-building skills have had an effect, noting the difference between “the West River market before Greg Robinson and after Greg Robinson.”
“The positive impact Greg has made over the past six years is significant. The customers we serve trust Greg and our organization to deliver the highest level of service,” Clayborne said. “This is a testament to his ability to open those doors and the ability of the Rapid City office to deliver on that promise as well as every other department to execute on that expectation.”
Robinson said his three coworkers in SDN's Rapid City office — Network Technician James Nash, Outside Plant Engineer Ryan Smith and Lead Network Operations Technician Scott Oyen — are a big factor in SDN's growth in western South Dakota.
"I am blessed to have an amazing team in Rapid City that supports our customers both new and existing," he said. "They are a huge part of the success we have had West River. I couldn't do what I do without them in my corner."
Robinson said he has seen a lot of changes with technology and with SDN’s growth in the region in his more than six years with the company.
Early on in his career with SDN, Robinson said he was often met with, “Who’s SDN?”
“Now they’re calling me saying, ‘We want SDN because we’ve heard what you do, and we’ve heard how reliable you guys are,’” he said.
He credits his success to his ability to connect with customers, backed up by the solid connectivity of SDN and its member companies. One Rapid City business representative told Robinson he is “imprinting SDN on the community” because of all the events he attends representing SDN. As a result, she told him, “the first thing we think of when we think about connectivity is Greg from SDN.”
In addition, Robinson said he has frequent lunch and coffee appointments to help build relationships, which he joked has resulted in him gaining weight.
Robinson hopes to use his new role to assist SDN Communications member-owner companies grow West River, along with continuing to serve his existing customers and develop relationships that could eventually lead to business.
“It's the long play. It's not necessarily going to happen overnight,” he said. “I know today isn't going to always be a ‘no.’ Eventually something will happen, and they might be unsatisfied with their current provider, and they’ll call.”
