| Two of the most valuable lessons we
need to understand in order to achieve success in sales
are:
1. People buy what they want, not what they need, and
2. People buy what our product (or service) does, not
what the product (or service) is.
One of the most frustrating things about sales is that
you may know beyond any doubt your prospect needs your
product (or service), but they do not purchase your
product (or service) because they do not want it. On
the other hand, you will meet prospects who have no
apparent need for your product (or service) but purchase
it anyway.
If you are selling a product (or service) which provides
time off for your prospect—time off that they
do not want—they will not purchase from you. Many
people need reliable transportation at a reasonable
cost. What they end up buying is an expensive vehicle,
which may stretch them financially. Yet they buy it
because they think it looks good. What they needed was
a mini van, and what they drove off the lot was a convertible
or gas-guzzling SUV.
When you are performing your “needs analysis,”
you must always ask your prospect what they want. Remember
that their wants are, to them, a “need.”
It may be a need to boost their ego, or a need to impress
people they know, but to your prospect that need is
as legitimate as the need to have reliable transportation.
This is the emotional side of selling. Wants are emotional,
and your prospect is seeking from you the logical justification
to make the purchase, which is the need.
We must learn how to sell what our product (or service)
does, not what it is. A vast number of bread toasters
are sold every year, because what people want is a slice
of toasted bread. They bought a toaster because they
needed to have a slice of toasted bread. The reason
why there are so many toaster models is that some people
want to toast muffins or bagels, not bread. They may
purchase one with a white exterior instead of a silver
surface, so as to match their kitchen aesthetically,
but what they want is a slice of toasted bread. What
our product (or service) does is the logical side of
selling and justifies the purchasing decision.
For maximum sales effectiveness, learn to sell both
what the prospect wants and what the product does. |
