Using How People Buy to Your Advantage

In sales, there are three parties: the salesman, the customer, and the product. The salesperson has the job of getting to know the customer to eventually form a connection and make a sale, and the customer has the responsibility of deciding whether the salesperson is trustworthy and choosing whether to buy their product. Most people talk about tips for the salesman on how to understand and listen to a customer, but it’s also important to think about common patterns that influence how people buy.

This past week, our dear Professor Sweet invited a friend to come speak in class, Dan Hudock. Dan has an extensive background in sales and talked with the class about some key tips for salesmen and how people buy and sell in today’s market. He said that most people buy in four steps. Dan gave an example from his own life to illustrate this. He talked about a time where he was trying to sell t-shirts to a company. The company called Dan and said they were really interested in their products and prices. Then they asked a lot of questions to gather all the details. After that, the company repeated that Dan’s products would be a good fit and would like to get in contact with Dan to write up a contract. After a few weeks of no response, Dan found out that the company only called him to get a price estimate and then bought t-shirts from another business with lower prices. This example shows the four steps that people usually follow when they buy something: they lie, then they gather all the information they need, lie again, and then hide.

Both salesmen and customers can be sneaky in getting what they want, so to avoid this happening, here are a few tips to make sure your customer is truly interested. First, you want to see what your customer’s pain is. You can do this by asking open-ended questions and listening, so the client is prompted to talk more. If you know your buyer’s real issue, then they will be less likely to lie to you about what they want. Second, make sure that you know some things about your customer, and they know some things about you. This will help form a connection and open the floor for an honest discussion, not just one that talks about a product’s features. Once again, it’s up to the salesman to decide if the customer is a good fit for a sale. You may just be thinking about making a deal, but not all customers are good matches for a business. Finally, keep the line of communication open and honest with the client so they know that they can contact you. And don’t forget to get an appointment within 48 hours, or the customer may lose interest and go somewhere else.

With these tips, you can remember the pattern of how people normally buy and try and negate that as much as you can in a sales call. Keep in mind that anyone can use tactics and manipulation to get what they want, so focus on building a genuine relationship with your customer and use these tips to help your customer find the right match.