Sales Psychology:
If you are in sales, have you asked yourself these 2 simple questions?
- Do you believe in what you are selling and your ability to close a sale?
- Do you know who your customer is and what motivates them to buy?
These critical questions dive deep into the psyche, condensing how we think about ourselves as sales professionals and how we approach the needs of our prospects. Our honest answers can inform us about our sales approach, how we prospect for clients, how we close sales, and better yet, how often we close.
There is always an element of luck in the life of a sales professional, but relying on luck is simply not a winning strategy. Understanding the why and the psychology of selling can propel you into a new category of highly effective sales professionals, increasing your efficiency, skill, and your success.
Psychology of Sales: You, the Professional
The Pareto Principle – Break into the 80/20
Did you know that 80% of all sales in any vertical are sold by 20% of the salesforce? Gain the winning edge of these top producers by honing your skills and time efficiency. Focus on the key areas that you can improve by setting small, achievable goals like understanding your target customer, and addressing objections before your clients have a chance to. These adjustments can have major impacts because of the compounding power of small efforts.
Mindset and Self-Perception
Do you believe you will succeed and make six figures this year? If you believe you will, you are more likely to reach that goal. If you have a negative outlook, the universe will hand you subpar results; it’s like a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Have you thought about your goals? Understanding where you want to end up and believing you will get there are the first steps towards achieving your goals. Having a positive mindset makes a difference, and research shows that this mind trick works!
Power of Environmental Cues and Suggestion
How you present yourself and the environment in which you work can have a big impact on your potential clients trusting you. If they have trust they are more likely to… well buy from you.
By dressing professionally when showing up for appointments in person or on a video call, you will show that you have authority. The tone of voice is also critical, come off too passive, and your client will not commit, come off too aggressive you may make them feel uncomfortable.
Preparing for your presentations also has value. If you have a plan and have prepared, you are less likely to stumble over your words and come off as sloppy or unprepared. Practice what and how you are going to say things during your sales pitch and anticipate objections.
Your body language also sends powerful queues; making eye contact and facing your client can help speed up your rapport. One simple technique is to mimic the body language of your client. Mirroring their posture will ease any tension that may come with a sales pitch.
Psychology of Sales: Your Prospect aka Your New Loyal Customer
There are certain aspects of sales that you cannot control, but on the flip side, there are lots of things you can do! When it comes to prospecting, focusing your efforts on identifying who buys from you and their identifying factors is more valuable than cold-calling everyone.
Your Buyers Can Help You Prospect
Do your current clients have something in common? By looking at their commonalities, you can create a customer persona and focus on that subset of the population to generate more qualified leads. Some easy high-level details are your customer’s average age, gender, average income, geographic area, the industry they work in, and other factors like cultural considerations or religion.
The second step would be considering how you got their contact information, did you find these prospects turned into loyal customers through a direct mail card, a referral, or did you generate them via social media? Why does this matter? Knowing how your clients are searching for solutions to their problems, aka your product, will inform you how your target is traveling through the sales funnel. How they learn about and decide that you and your product are the solutions should direct where you spend your time prospecting, reducing wasted efforts on lead sources that do not work for you.
For example, if you generate your sales from prospects who found you via social media, spend more effort there, likewise if most of your sales come from referrals ask for more! The end goal is to know who needs your product and target them where they find information to solve that need.
Personality Types
You have mastered your confidence and your goals, and you have a list of promising appointments. Your final test is overcoming the presentation with the many buying personalities that you come across. By listening to your potential clients, you can quickly determine what type of buyer they may be. By anticipating behavior based on these buyer categories you are more likely to make the sale.
- The apathetic buyer – this type of customer is not really a customer; they have made up their mind and you should likely move on unless you want to practice overcoming objections.
- The self-actualizing buyer – The dream customer, they know what they want, they know the features and benefits, and the price they are willing to pay for it.
- The analytical buyer – This buyer thinks and considers before they make a purchase, be very clear and ready to prove that you and your product truly fit their needs.
- The relater buyer – This customer is focused on the relationship and human aspect of the sale. Testimonials and stories go a long way here.; Don’t rush this buyer, they thrive on the experience.
- The driver buyer – This is a no-fuss customer, get to the nuts and bolts. This customer wants results and quick.
- The socialized buyer – This type of prospect wants to get things done; by finishing a task. As soon as you have an agreement, get signatures and follow through on documentation for the customer.
The best time to improve your sales skills is always the present. We hope you have found these tips useful. Go out there with a positive mindset and become a top producer! With small adjustments and practice you can grow your sales reach. If you are looking for more detailed information on the Psychology of Selling, we highly recommend Brian Tracy’s best-selling book by the same title. And if you want to learn more about creating a customer persona, check out this article from HubSpot.
