This week, we’ll deal with what emotion should be in the sale, and what emotion shouldn’t.
Last week, we discussed the fact that in the information age, logic trumps emotion the vast majority of the time – at least when it comes to selling. And I made a promise. That promise was that I would discuss the role that emotion does play in selling. And I keep my promises.
So with that in mind, let’s discuss emotion. First, you should understand what emotion does; emotion can either derail the customer’s desired buying process – or it can accelerate it.
Remember that customers now have an abundance of information available to them before they ever talk to you, and that they would prefer to use that information to make the right – logical and intellectual – buying decision. When the job of selling is done correctly, we assist and facilitate that buying decision. But we can screw it up by injecting emotions into the sale. The first – and worst – emotion in selling is a 4-letter word that starts with “F.” And no, it’s not what you’re thinking.
It’s FEAR. Fear is the obstacle of everything good in selling. That’s true whether it’s your fear we’re talking about, or the customer’s.
We first have to acknowledge that most customers have fear, on some level, when they begin dealing with salespeople. They’re afraid of getting taken; of making a bad deal or a wrong buying decision. Our job is to remove it – but too often, salespeople not only fail to remove that fear. We intensify it.
The number-one thing that will create and amplify the customer’s inherent fear is a perceived lack of honesty and sincerity. That plays into the common stereotype of salespeople as being pushy and untruthful; and it makes customers uncomfortable. And as you know if you read my material, comfortable customers buy. Uncomfortable customers don’t. If you don’t know that, watch this video.
Some of the common ways that salespeople induce fear are:
- Phony “fish on the wall” selling that attempts to build fake rapport.
- Defensive selling tactics that attempt to maneuver customers into a position where it’s difficult for them to say no.
- Failing to give a straight answer to a direct question.
- Not respecting the buyer’s intelligence.
- Not respecting the buyer’s buying process.
Do any of these things, and we enhance and intensify the customer’s fear – which means that the customer builds walls that prevent you from buying. The fix? Sincerity and a real focus on the customer’s needs and issues.
Now that we know we want to eliminate fear from the process, there’s an emotion we want to include in the process – Passion or Excitement. Nothing sells quite like a genuine passion for your work, your product and/or service, your company, and your customers.
Buying things is fun. Or at least it SHOULD be. Too often, however, it’s not. It’s not because we fail to make it fun; or worse, we take all the fun out of it. People buy things from people who enjoy and are excited by their own work. They have fun when you’re having fun.
So the question is, are you having fun when you’re working? Why….or why not? And more importantly, what can you do so that you ARE having fun?
I see entirely too many sales calls that are completely devoid of any passion, excitement, or fun. And those calls are what I like to call “ineffective.” What can you do to inject that fun back into your selling?
