Can any business stay alive without its clients and customers? No, of course not. Ensuring these individuals continue to support your brand is not negotiable. Which leaves the question, how exactly do you encourage them to stay loyal to your products or services?
The answer is very simple; It’s all in the approach.
Your Approach Matters
Human beings are quite simple, they crave a great deal of care and sincerity. For that reason, you and your employees need to take care in your approach. Giving your consumers spick-and-span service, special attention and extra help will ensure that they visit your business more often. (1)
Go the extra mile and you will build a concrete relationship and welcoming connection from the start to preserve their loyalty. Get them hooked before even buying anything.
What is a sales approach?
So what is a sales approach anyway? Is it a certain walk or a hypnotizing dance that screams “buy my stuff”?
Well, kind of, it really is just a strategic way a salesperson convinces would-be customers to buy a product. Salespeople should be versatile as using one sales approach over another could be helpful. This comes down to what they are selling, what their background is and what means of communication they are most comfortable with.
There are a few bulletproof ways to do this:
The Problem Solver
Some people find themselves scratching their heads when it comes to choosing the right product or service. They could be looking for the best home or business insurance or just a first-rate toaster that won’t set their kitchen on fire. Selling a solution, is the go-to approach you should use when a buyer has a problem that you can resolve.
The trick here is to ask the right questions and enthusiastically paying attention to the customer to identify the problem. This approach will help you give a better idea of what solution to offer.
The Chum
It takes a very special someone to take on this kind of approach. We’re talking about that bubbly, warm and friendly social butterfly who likes making people feel important.
This is because people are likely to do business with people they are at ease with.
The best sales person for this will be able to tap into the customer on an emotional level, tugging at their heartstring is the mission here.
Oh! and this needs to be sincere.
Customers can smell a phony approach and will scatter like antelope across the savannah at the first sign of danger.
The Specialist
Some clients like to get straight down to business, to them someone who is “overfriendly” might be a bit of a BS approach. Here you will need salespeople who are logical witty and not resort to emotional tactics to land the deal.
Here, the salesperson needs to be a know-it-all when it comes to every aspect of your business.
They have to be innovative thinkers, problem solvers, and an expert in the field with all-encompassing trustworthiness.
This type of salesperson has to put in effort and study all of the relevant information in the industry. This includes keeping up with relevant trends, and changes.
Doing well in this approach tends to bring a lot more success and extra long-term clients.
They will most likely trust you more, and approach your business for guidance and recommendations. This approach gives room for word-of-mouth referrals as your clients will see you as a fantastic resource.
The Tricks of the Trade
Sales talk can be pretty complicated. The biggest cause for consumers to step away from a potential sale is a lack of knowledge and understanding. That’s right, they basically lack the required expertise or are over eager to sell a product or service.
An article in the Harvard Business review stated that 12% of salespeople are excellent, 23% good, 38% average, and 27% poor.
It stands to reason that there is a lot of room for improvement. Rather than obviously going headfirst into your offer and focusing on your company, change it up a bit and show that you actually care about your clients and customers.
Have a look at a few tips below that will help you improve your likelihood of getting sales, and change the way your clients perceive you.
Recognize Your Target Market
You have to do your research so that you can know more about your intended customers.
For example, doing a survey can be a massive help in becoming familiar with the existing client demographics. Who are the people that are approaching your business?
Also looking at why others are paying attention to your competitors is an important question that needs to be looked at.
This will help you to identify ways to increase your current number of customers and clients. As soon as you have fleshed out the areas that need to be looked into it is easy to work towards your business objectives.
Draw a perfect picture of your target customers and make sure you approach them in such a way that will make them devoted to your business.
Know What You’re Talking About
If you don’t know the ins and outs of your own business how can you approach customers and tell them about it?
Get information about the products and services that fall in line with your business. Salespersons need to be aware of it in as much detail as possible.
Do research on which products and services your intended customers like the most, as well as what customers of your competitors like best.
This will give you the ability to make changes so that those customers can visit your outlets. Show preparation as salespersons have to be knowledgeable when faced with hard-hitting questions from customers. Scrambling around for answers will leave a bad impression on the customer.
They Must Have Your Product
Not everybody you approach will be interested in what you sell. On the flipside, people like themselves. Giving them a taste of what their life would be like when they purchase your product is a great place to start.
Think about Samsung’s catchphrase, “Do what you can’t,” or Uber’s “Move the way you want”
These catchphrases are very hush-hush about what they sell. They tell you what you can do or feel with what they sell.
When a professional and well known graphic big design company calls a company whose website needs a makeover, they don’t go with, “Hi! I’m Cobus from Rhinoberry, and I sell graphic design services. I’d like to introduce my services. Is this a good time?”
Sigh. That isn’t interesting; it certainly doesn’t make anyone curious to find out more. Instead, do this. “Hi. I got you live on my first dial, and when you hire me, I’ll give your website a fresh new look.”
Now, they’re interested. No intro and no explanation. Instead, here we have managed to gain their attention and plant the first seed of inquisitiveness. Only after confirming an interest, should you take the time to introduce yourself and your services.
Declare a State of Urgency
Scare tactics are for horror movies and not recommended to make a sale. On the other hand, creating a sense of urgency with clients who are undecided about your offer can be a handy approach.
There are a few techniques you can use to get your potential client to spend money on your offer:
- Offer a short-term discount or incentive
Whether you offer a bargain price for customers who purchase by a certain end date or add an extra offer by an exact date, these proposals can build a sense of urgency by satisfying a critical action with even more value.
- Emphasize the Immediate Benefit of Your Product
You should have a concrete understanding of the problem your client or customer is trying to solve or what it is they really want. Creating a sense of urgency by highlighting how spending their money on your product can deliver an instant way out or relief to their problem.
- Communicate Scarcity
With the knowledge that your offer is limited or only available for a while can create a sense of urgency for your target market.
Selling products that are limited-editions, or are a service that is only available to a certain number of customers, can tempt buyers to spend their money immediately.
Conclusion
In an age when everyone is trying to sell something, consumers have become fed up with all sorts of mundane sales pitches.
Crowded industries have become a major problem to selling a product or service. By following the tips listed above, landing sales through whatever means will become different and make your sales discussions stick out from the rest.
So, do your homework, personalize your approach, be human, and don’t be afraid to be up-front with your potential buyer.
This will demonstrate that you want to associate with them on a deeper level before attempting to make a pitch.
