What Your Customer Needs Right Now
In stressful times, people turn to their leaders.
When I say “leaders,” am I talking about authority figures like executives, government officials, or parents? Maybe. Maybe not. The truth is a title doesn’t make anyone a leader. A leader is ANYONE who provides assistance, information, and guidance to those who need it.
So guess what that makes YOU to your customers!
You, as a salesperson, are a leader. Your customer is looking to you.
Are you in a position to give them what they need? What does your customer need from you during uncertain or scary times?
Your customer needs calm.
If you don’t read Seth Godin’s blog, you really should. He wrote a post on March 20th. It’s worth looking up. One of the things that he said in that post was that “panic needs a network.” If one person panics and nobody else responds to the panic, it doesn’t spread. But if everybody picks up on the panic, it spreads like wildfire.
On the flip side of that, calm has a dampening effect. Even if your customer is nervous or afraid for some reason, your calm has a dampening effect on all of those emotions. Give them calm.
Your customer needs connection.
We want to trust our leaders, and you are a leader. What is the shortcut to trust? The shortcut is likability. When we as human beings decide that we like you, we also decide that we trust you. It is imperative that you build a sense of connection with your customers.
Your customers needs facts.
Somebody once said that everyone is an expert on their own emotion, but that does not make them an expert on the facts. When you provide your customer with facts, you move them off of emotion and into the logical realm.
Now we already understand that people make purchase decisions based on emotion and justify these decisions with logic right? So it’s not that we don’t want our customers to be emotionally charged about the purchase decision but we do want them to understand the facts.
There’s a really good chance your customers are hearing “facts” about interest rates and current market conditions from other sources than you. However, you have the opportunity to make sense of these facts for them, in their world.
Think about it this way if you’re selling new homes (but also applies to many other solutions). Your customer is looking to make the largest purchase decision of their lives. More than likely, they are only making this decision a few times throughout their lives.
As a new home sales professional, you help people make this decision all the time, it’s what you do. You should absolutely know the facts and be able to share these with your customers. You are providing the confidence they need to make a good decision.
Your customer needs a game plan.
I love the word “let’s” in a sales conversation because it infers mutual purpose. It infers partnership. You’re not trying to get your customer to do something against their will. You’re trying to join them in their journey.
They have a problem to solve and you’re going to lay out the plan that says, “Let’s do this.” But it better be in the best interest of your customer.
Your customer needs reassurance.
Neville Chamberlain was the Prime Minister of Great Britain in the early days of World War II who was essentially removed from that office because he had tried to negotiate with Hitler.
He tried to say, “Oh, everything’s going to be fine. He’s a reasonable guy.” Hitler was not a reasonable guy. Enter Winston Churchill at a time when Britain needed solid, stable action. Churchill stepped in and said, “We are going to get through this.” In the face of astronomical odds, he gave people reassurance that Britain was going to fight. And people rallied.
How can you reassure your customer? How are you doing in these five areas?
Not just with your prospects, by the way, but how are you doing in these five areas with your peers, with your support staff, and even with your management? What are you doing to show that you are a leader?
Until next time, learn more to earn more.
