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SELLING INDOOR RACING —
DON'T SELL WHAT THEY NEED; SELL TO WANTS, VALUES
By Art Sobczak

Do you…
drive a 1984 Cavalier,
live in a pop-up trailer at a nearby campground,
wear clothes purchased exclusively from thrift stores, and,
eat only Hamburger (or Tuna) Helper?
Didn't think so.

And you're like everyone else, including your prospects and customers. Which means that you just don't buy what you need to survive. You buy what you want. And an even stronger motivator is taking action based on what you value.

I've long taught that the best way to sell is to understand what motivates buyers, then help them experience those feelings in advance. This creates the desire to take action. Mediocre reps, on the other hand, approach calls with the intention of spraying their message, hoping they'll hit upon someone who will buy. And when resistance occurs, they fire back with objection rebuttals, which call "Objection Headbuttals," because it's like butting your head against a brick wall when you use them.

You've probably experienced the frustration of selling just to needs. Think about the prospect you proved you could help save a bazillion dollars a year, increase market share by 75%, decrease turnover to virtually zero, and eliminate customer complaints, but still didn't buy. You sulked around, shaking your head in disbelief, emitting primal-like noises in frustration, muttering, "What an ignoramus this person is! I can't understand why he's not buying."

Probably because you talked about your reasons for buying, not his.

Wants-Based Questioning

After you've generated interest with your opening, asked your basic questions, and built rapport, then you get into the real meat ... the reasons they buy. Their wants. Use questions such as;
"What, ideally, do you want the end result to be?"

"How would you measure satisfaction after you've used it?"

"If you could design the ideal product, what would it include?"

"If budget were not a concern, what would you get?"

Values-Based Questioning:
What do your prospects and customers value? What do you value?

Delve into someone's values, their core beliefs, and you'll know what really drives them.

Money isn't everything, and I enjoy it as much or more than the next guy, and often joke that it ranks right up there with food and oxygen as a priority. But I routinely pass up training and speaking projects because I limit the number of days I will travel.

I need money. I want money. But what I really value is the time home with my family, attending school functions and game, coaching ball teams, and bringing down my golf handicap. Values override needs and wants.

Once you've reached the comfort level with a prospect/customer where rapport and trust have been built, it's appropriate to ask questions that examine their innermost core beliefs, their values. For example, "What's most important to you about this project?"

"What will getting this project done the way you want it mean to you?"

Then, listen for the answers, and layer more questions to gain further insight. For example, if they say, "Well, it'll mean I'll come in under budget," dig deeper:
"And what's important to you about that?"

Again, for questions like these to work, the rapport must be there. I chide sales reps constantly for asking - too early in an initial sales call... "So what's important to you in a bathroom cleaning supplies vendor?" It typically gets a "Whaddya nuts or somethin?"-type answer, and deservedly so. It forces the prospect to think too much. As if the prospect places his bathroom cleaning supplies at the top of the things he lusts for daily. But, after the rapport is there, it's not so awkward to ask, "Bruno, I know this is just one of the many responsibilities you have, but I want to make sure I'm giving you the best recommendation possible.

So tell me, what's most important to you about the maintenance of your facilities?"
Make it a goal to question for, and to understand the wants and values of your buyers.

You'll build more trust, and have longer lasting customer relationships.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Art Sobczak, President of Business By Phone Inc., specializes in one area only: working with business-to-business salespeople--both inside and outside--designing and delivering content-rich programs that participants begin showing results from the very next time they get on the phone. Audiences love his "down-to-earth," entertaining style, and low-pressure, easy-to-use, customer oriented ideas and techniques.

He works with thousands of sales reps each year helping them get more businesses by phone. Art provides real world, how-to ideas and techniques that help salespeople use the phone more effectively to prospect, sell, and service, without morale-killing "rejection."

END

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