What’s love got to do with it? – Part II

Following on from my last post, when we explored the love angle to sales and considered ‘lovers, friends, acquaintances & strangers’, I also hinted that maybe sometimes love or more specifically “like” is overrated in sales. Allow me to elaborate:

There’s a frequently used saying in sales, ‘we buy from people we like’. The opposite is certainly true; we don’t buy from people we don’t like (unless we’ve no other option).  So therefore it’s fairly safe to assume that if we like someone, we’ll buy from them. However, the likeability factor, whilst important, is not the only critical factor in sales success and in my view many novices to sales and selling over-rely on this as their trump card. Inexperienced sellers often misinterpret like or getting along famously with someone as buying signals and get frustrated when they struggle to close or get a second date!

Often when I first meet  a potential new client and explore how their sales meetings generally go, they will tell me about how well they get on with prospects and how potential clients seem to really like their product or service. Explore further… zero outcome or still waiting for a result (but optimistic!). Now sometimes this is purely a timing issue and the sale will eventually come but too often it’s more.

What did they miss?  Well, like, or even love, is usually not enough at first to clinch the deal or get the sale. It’s vital in order to get permission to engage with your prospect and for them to open up to you but then the tricky bit – closing! Sometimes I find 'like' actually gets in the way of closing. Sellers have sometimes told me that they didn’t want to ruin the rapport by asking for the business or discussing price and kind of hoped it would happen by itself! Things got too cosy. Also, sometimes for the buyer things get too blurred – they really like the seller and intend to buy but once the seller is gone and time has passed, the real motive to buy is lost or forgotten. Like is usually not enough of a motive for taking action.

Particularly in the current climate, people are buying less with their heart and more with their head. Emotion will always play some part in the purchase decision but more and more it’s about real need. Do I need this or can I do without?

So whilst likeability is relevant, it’s usually not enough by itself. Assuming you’ve got your audience right, my simple sales success formula is:

 Likeability + Process + Tenacity = Sale.

 Yes focus on ‘natural’ rapport building, but also think about your sales process and how you will lead your buyer on an exciting journey with a logical and inevitable outcome or close. Remember to go to you sales meeting with clear objectives and structure – you are the choreographer/director of the meeting and need to lead the buyer to the final scene with clear direction. It’s not just about having a nice chat over a nice cup of coffee. Take control and most importantly don’t rely on your likeability for them ‘getting back to you’ – the buyer is quick to forget you once you’re out of the room so find interesting ways of staying in touch and moving things forward. Strike that vital balance between being interested and tenacious, without turning into a stalker or pain in the butt! 

  

 If you would like to fine tune your sales process and get better results, take a look at our Logical Conclusion Sales Programme by clicking here. You can also call us on 01388 420 411 or email info@winningsales.co.uk for details of group or personal sales coaching programmes to help you maximise your results.

 

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