Every once in a while, a statistic doesn’t just catch your attention—it slaps you awake. And reminds you of what customers want.
Like this one shared by a customer: “When a farmer invests USD 16,000 in our soil testing, he unlocks savings of USD 100,000—simply by using less, but better-targeted, fertilizer.” Read that again. Sixteen thousand unlocks one hundred thousand. That’s not a sale. That’s an awakening.
And once recovered, it reminded me of something fundamental: successful selling always begins with what customers want. Here are three powerful lessons it resurfaced.
1. Open the sale with outcomes, not features
How you open a sale significantly influences how it unfolds. Make it about the what the customer wants and you have his attention.
Like this hawker did when he told me, “Boss! Hiyo wiper yako ukizidi kutumia itakuharibia kioo.” (If you continue using your wipers as they are, they’ll spoil your windscreen).
Or, this Business Development Manager from an oil manufacturing company that stopped the CEO of a manufacturing entity short with this insightful opening: “You will make savings of 30% on fuel and improve efficiency in the factory by 23%, by using our fuel.”
Now then. In both cases the buyer bought. Why? Because both openings aligned with what customers want—savings, protection, efficiency, outcomes = what the buyer gains.
If you are addressing an executive overseeing a 10,000-hectare farm, stating in a vendor qualification meeting that, “Why you should choose us is because you will make savings of 100,000 dollars every season,” will most definitely get his attention and quite likely, you, the contract.
It really does matter how you open the sale. Lead with outcome. That’s exactly what customers want: clarity on results.
2. Sell customer benefits and value—not your features
The next reminder the statistic brought to the fore was how to sell customer benefits and value as opposed to your product features.
The $16,000 advanced soil health diagnostics that map nutrient levels, biological activity, and crop-specific needs sale is good for you. Stopping to apply fertilizer blindly and starting to apply it precisely is a good for the farmer. It’s what customers wants.
But value is even better. Value is what they feel in their wallet and their heart: 84,000 dollars net saved—money that stays on the farm. Better yields from healthier soil. Freedom from guesswork. Confidence in every application decision.
A feature informs. A benefit convinces. But value makes them reach for their wallet because it delivers what customers want.
Understanding what your customers want
The $100,000 saving is good for the customer. But when it happens, it automatically comes with what you want.
So, follow the wisdom in this quote: “Give people more of what they want and they’ll give you more of what you want,” because it’s as true in sales as in life. Or, this gem: “Customers don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care (about what customers want).”
So, unlike your competitor, show how much you care for the savings they’ll make, the windscreen they’ll protect and that the training will keep them compliant with regulation. It’s benefits-driven selling – just like a politician.
And for this to happen you must be able to articulate your value proposition. And to adapt the benefit and value to the respective audience. Including users, who can easily undermine your sale.
3. Handle objections by reframing the cost of doing nothing
The third thing it brought to mind was the importance of handling objections in sales.
“But 16,000 dollars is a lot…”
This is where the weak salesperson panics —and the strong one smiles. The weak one desperately stutters: “Yes, I have even told them that…” or, “We can give you a discount…,.” Or, just freezes.
An objection is not resistance. It is curiosity wrapped in fear —an opportunity to return to what customers want.
Here’s one way to handle this one: “Price is what you pay, value is what you get. Let’s look at what doing nothing costs you. If you’re using fertilizer without precision, our data from farms similar to yours shows that you could be over-applying it. Even a 10–20% inefficiency is already costing you more than USD 16,000 every season. Is making informed decisions and up to 30% in savings something you would like?”
When you handle objections by reframing the loss of inaction, you deliver exactly what customers want—security, clarity, and a smarter path forward. The moment they realise inaction is the real expense, the sale becomes a service you’re offering, not a transaction you’re pushing.
So, don’t fight their objection. Redirect it toward the cost of staying the same. Effectively handling objections moves you from average to stellar seller
Figure out and give what customers want
The USD 16,000–to–100,000 USD insight isn’t really about soil, fertilizer, or even agriculture. It’s a reminder that in every industry, customers are searching for clarity, confidence, and value. When you open with outcomes, translate features into benefits, and handle objections with empathy and intelligence, you stop selling products and start enabling better decisions.
And when you consistently show customers the cost of inaction and the power of informed choices, you elevate yourself from transactional seller to trusted advisor.
That alignment with what customers want is the engine of sustainable success in selling.
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