Do you remember the times when you were in sales calls or meetings with your prospects and somehow they felt cold. Their responses were sort of “for the sake of it”. They were responding to you but “not responding to you”! Get the drift?
This happens frequently with umpteen salespeople. Did you try to think why it happens?
What do we forget in the sales conversations with prospects?
We mostly talk about the features and benefit which can make the customer sleepy.
So what is running in your customer’s mind?
He is thinking, “What is in it for me?” or “how will it help me?”
Isn’t it the same when you buy anything?
The most important word in that question is “me”.
The benefits you get, may not be the same benefits that others will get from the same product or service. So why will your prospect want to know the generic benefits?
Can we be more specific about the benefits? Can we align the benefits with the story of the pains and frustrations of the customer?
If done properly, you will create a powerful story in the prospect’s mind about your offering. He will see its needle-moving role in solving his problem or improving his performance.
Now you must be thinking, “Aha, now let me ’tell’ the prospect how my product will help ‘him’!”
And there lies the second big mistake that we make.
While you may like to “tell”, the prospect may not be ready to listen! In fact, he may not even like to be told to do anything.
So what is the modern prospect most interested in?
They want to figure out things on their own. They want to figure out how to solve their pains and how to reach their goals. All they want from you is that trusted advisor, who can help them navigate.
There is nothing more powerful than a smart question at the right time in a sales conversation.
It drives your customer’s attention to what is most important to them and gives them a hint about the possible path to their goals.
Here is a needle-moving sales tip from Betal Batrawy:
“Sell AGAINST the status quo (of the customer)
(meaning ask about the pain the prospect is facing with their current situation)
instead of FOR your product.
(meaning avoid talking about what your product will do for the customer)
His Examples:
Instead of saying (FOR your product)
“We help CFOs get more with the dollars they spend on health benefits.”
Say this (AGAINST the status quo of the customer)
“How are you handling your second largest cost of health benefits rising 9-12% YoY?”
—–
Instead of saying (FOR your product)
“Our platform can help you save time and perfect your customer experience at checkout.”
Say this (AGAINST the status quo of the customer)
“How can you see what makes your customers frustrated during checkout and quit?”
—–
Instead of saying (FOR your product)
“We provide real-time lead enrichment to make your response time to inbound leads only take seconds.”
Say this (AGAINST the status quo of the customer)
“How long does it take a really good inbound lead to get a response from your team? How long do you wish it could take?”
——–
Getting the drift?
Betal further explains this by saying,
“The key psychological difference between against the status quo instead of for your product is that it focuses on opportunity cost instead of benefits.
Opportunity cost is 2X more compelling than the benefit of gain. Plus opportunity cost is all about them, making them the center of attention and not you.”
This means, the customer is more interested in –
“What happens if I do no solve this? How will it hurt me? How much money will it cost me? How can I overcome this?”
It is about them. Your product is merely one of the tools that can solve their problem.
In this world full of choices, do you know what the customer appreciates the most?
It is the EMPATHY shown by the seller. It is how much you know about them and their problems. It is about how you handle them and guide them.
Finally, it is about how smart your questions are? Are they about them or you?
So, what is your question about and “against the status quo” of the customer?
And
Does it bring their attention to the opportunity they are missing?
