Driven more by esteem than need, buyers want all the trending bells and whistles in a product. And yet, will most probably use one ‘bell’. If in doubt, how many features on his phone do you suppose the average person uses? It’s the seller’s job to know all the bells and whistles but limit the sale to sharing only those necessary to close
He listened keenly to my responses then said, “Let me show you something.” He opened his laptop made a few keystrokes and turned it towards me. “Is this the kind of website you’d like, or is this one better? I liked the first. He didn’t bother to explain to me how it was made; he just showed me what I wanted. In other words, he made it easy for me to understand, choose and decide. This is what I’d like us to talk about today.
Observing these six aspects helps in doing so. Explore through questions. Limit options. Eliminate Jargon. Educate where necessary. Offer appropriate alternatives. Share only what is necessary.
Paradox of buyer
But first, a back ground. Driven more by esteem than need, buyers of electronics want the latest features in a gadget when they are buying it; but driven by lay-ness and practicality they want it easy to use when they get home. They want all the trending bells and whistles and will most probably use one ‘bell’. If in doubt, how many features on his phone do you suppose the average person uses? It’s not much different the other products or services.
Buyers want to know there is variety in the features but will barely use 20% of them. Yet, they will never buy the product if it has only what they need. They’ll feel short-changed. That’s why “in patient cover for 10 million shillings”, and “flat fee for all your bank transactions” ride on this feel good factor. It’s important for the seller to have as much product knowledge as possible, but to also know how to share it in a simple to understand manner.
Read through the lines
When selling a computer for instance, getting excited about Core 2 duo, 5 Series, 2GB RAM and all the gizmos is not of much use to the buyer. Exploring through simple questions is more productive. “Do you seek a laptop or personal computer?” Laptop. “Which one do you currently have?” It is black and has Q written on the top. (Meaning he is lay to the bone) “You mean like this one here?” (Make it easy for him to choose) His eyes light up, Yes. “It’s a good laptop. Why do you want to change?” It’s getting slow and I was told it’s been overtaken by time.
Plus I keep getting this annoying pop up to upgrade to Windows 10. (He’s a technology laggard, hates change but wants a faster machine) “Ok. Which programs do you mostly use? As in Excel, Word, Corel Draw, iTunes?” No. Just Word, PowerPoint and sometimes Excel. During my free time I dabble a little with Publisher though. “OK. Is yours a field job, like sales or is it a desk job? (To know whether to get him a heavy or light duty one) Desk job. “Are you particular about the colour?” Not really. Show me what you’ve got…
It’s a conversation not interrogation
Chances are that this exchange will happen as he moving about your showroom or his eyes are browsing the display window. Meaning it’s a conversation, not an interrogation. “I think you will like this one. Your laptop is a 2 Series and we are now in 5, which is why it is slow. (Educating) This one is a 5 Series and comes with Windows 10 fully installed. (Suitable alternatives) You want to move to Windows 10 because lower versions will struggle with inevitable upgrades and you will have a much smoother end exciting experience (not inter-phase). Here try it out” (He does). It comes in two colours-this brown and green. The price is the same. And to help you in your presentations, let me show you what a slide presenter can do…. “ (Extra sale)
Limit options to needs
Too many options, confuse the buyer; so limit them. Notice that a much more superior machine was sold, but the conversation centred on the buyer’s needs. Let him be pleasantly surprised when he discovers the other things he’s new laptop can do. Likely when he gets oohs and ahs from colleagues, friends and family. After all, he’ll trust their admiration more, than he would have done your pitching.
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