When people come into your business do they already know that they are or are not going to buy from you? The answer to that question is no, they don’t. How many times have you walked into a business with no intention of buying anything and bought anyway?
As a salesperson your job is not to assume that someone is or is not going to buy. Though if you have to make an assumption, assume that the customers in front of you are going to buy. If you assume that your customers are not going to buy, did they then not buy because they weren’t ever going to buy or did they not buy because you treated them differently in some subtle ways that may not be picked up by the conscious mind but will be stored away by the subconscious. Also the subconscious mind contains information that we are not actively aware of but may nonetheless influence decision-making.
Research has shown that customers will make instinctive decisions with their subconscious mind. As consumers, we are not aware of what’s in our subconscious. Although that we may still be influenced by things we have heard, seen or experienced before stored in the subconscious.
As humans we prefer things that are familiar to us as well as simple to understand. Make it simple for your customers to make understand your products and make decisions to purchase.
A tip of the glass from me to you
E Column
by Elizabeth “E” Slater, In Short Direct Marketing
A recognized expert in the fields of direct marketing and sales in the wine marketplace. Slater has taught more wineries and winery associations how to create and improve the effectiveness of their direct marketing programs and to make the most of each customer’s potential than anyone in the wine industry today.
Follow E on twitter @esavant and facebook.
More people would benefit from training in salesmanship.
Here’s a start:
“No Thanks, I’m Just Looking: Sales Techniques for Turning Shoppers into Buyers” by Harry J. Friedman
Link: http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-1118153405.html
And they would benefit from training in conversation openers/opening lines.
“Save Yourself from Tedious Small Talk” (Wall Street Journal)
Link: https://www.wsj.com/articles/spare-yourself-from-tedious-small-talk-1495551562