Had a great conversation with a sales consultant colleague of mine today. He has discovered that lots of professionals hurt how they SELL their services because of the way they BUY goods and services. Check it out….
Suppose you are extremely skeptical and suspicious when you buy. Further suppose you take a long time to make up your mind, and shop around for the best price. You might assume others buy like you do, even though plenty of people buy quickly and don’t shop around for the bottom dollar price. Therefore, you might give more information than people need to make a decision, and even hurt yourself by giving too much information or by not appearing enthusiastic enough to those ready to buy.
On the other hand, suppose you buy on impulse, going on first impressions and not spending time searching for the best bargain. Well, you might get impatient with people who need to be reassured and like lots of facts and figures.
The best way around this potential problem? Get good at assessing your prospects. Don’t read their minds or make assumptions about what they are thinking or how they will buy. Instead, ask open ended questions and find out! Get good at reading different types of buyers.
So, what type of buyer are you? Take a look as the holiday shopping season approaches for many of you. Think about how you buy, and how that might hurt how you sell.
Interesting stuff, no?
Andrew Neitlich
