Logic vs Emotion: The Buyers Experience

We’re starting a two-part series today on logic vs emotion, particularly when it comes to making decisions. You know, buying a home is a really emotional decision, but it’s supported by logic. So, which is more important, in the decision?

Buyers are an interesting breed of people. They’re oftentimes unaware of their own internal driving forces. One way we see this is the fact that buyers believe that they are inherently logical in their decision-making. They’re not.

This isn’t just about real estate, by the way. It’s about all of the decisions that we make in our lives. Psychologists will tell you that we make decisions out of our emotions and support them with our logic. In fact, one study suggests that in that decision-making mechanism, emotion accounts for 85% of our decisions, and only 15% of logic.

The psychologist Daniel Kahneman suggests that when we take away the emotion from the decision-making process, we make poor decisions. So the decisions that we make are from the gut. The problem is we can’t really quantify that. The gut has no language. If the gut could speak, it would simply say, “want, want, want.” 

See, the emotional brain is doing the work. We just don’t recognize that. So if you want a simple example of this think about what the food server asks at the end of the meal. Some will ask the question, did you save room for dessert? That’s a logic-based question with a likely resistant answer.

On the other hand, some food servers will bring by a tray with all of the dessert selections on them so you can see them with your own eyes. In that instance, are you making the decision out of your logic or out of your emotion? Consequently, people who see a dessert tray are far more likely to order dessert, than those who are simply asked about seeing a dessert menu. 

So how do we trigger that emotion? What is our role? Let me offer you three ways that will help you to trigger your customer’s emotional impulse. Let me be clear on this. I’m not suggesting that you should be manipulative in any way. Your customer is going to make emotional decisions whether you want them to or not. This is about guiding them to make the decision that is in their best interest.

Emotional Transference

The first opportunity is to utilize the principle of emotional transference. And by that I mean you have the opportunity to model the very emotion that you want your customer to adopt. It’s not about being over the top or off-putting in any way.

But if you want your customer to be emotionally positive, you need to be emotionally positive yourself. It’s easier than you might think. There’s a conscious decision that can be made in favor of positive energy, and that positive energy is then easily adopted. Research shows us that people make quicker decisions when they are happier.

So do what you can to convey that positive energy and put them in a decision-making mood?

Sell with Stories

Stories are inherently emotional. They trigger emotion within us. Think about a good book, a good movie, or an upbeat song. These things are designed to elicit emotion. So what stories should you be telling?

Stories about your customer’s life, stories about the home that they will enjoy, and the way that they will enjoy it. When you know your customer well enough, you can take the best of their life today and transfer it into their new home.

Stay Future Focused

You see, purchasing a home can be a difficult short-term process, but in the long run, the customer will live in the dream home that they always wanted.

Your job is to keep them focused on the great life that is about to be. Talk about the future as if it is already the present. The fact is that your customer wants to make an emotion-based decision. Your job is to make it easy for them to do just that. 

If you like what you saw and read here today, you can get a lot more over on Sales365. It’s our social network for residential real estate salespeople. There’s more content from me, special workshops, and you’re going to hear from thousands of sales professionals sharing experiences and celebrating victories. Head over to sales365.io to get started or download the app today from your app store.

And until next time, my friends learn more to earn more.