68. How can you appeal to their buying senses?
Keep in mind in considering the appeal to their three senses that you and I, as a sales person, are now back stage. We are manipulating the scenery, the lights and the actors, to produce the effect we want on the audience - our prospect. We are "staging" this show - our presentation - to transport him mentally to an ideal tomorrow. In picking apart the elements of the presentation to find what it is made of, we are making a slow motion picture of a process which in practice often speeds so fast that its parts flow imperceptibly into one another.
Your prospect understands most quickly through his eyes. It is their major sense in perceiving the new, and far stronger than remembering what you say. Most people can visualize in their memory what Niagara Falls looks like, but few can recall the sound of the falls. Hence wherever you can use a sketch, a drawing, a chart, a picture, or a sample you are strengthening what you say a thousand times.
If you have just a little artistic ability, and can pencil your ideas on a scratch pad to the prospect as you talk, it is extremely effective. Planned presentations which are mainly visual need no defense. Visual technique is generally accepted as superior from every standpoint.
Don't neglect their hands. One of the most human reactions is to grab. There is a subconscious feeling of possession when we hold something - and this is the effect you are after - for him or her to picture a future day when they will using what you show them for increased profits. Let him or her handle your product and get the feel of it. Go slowly! They are grasping what you say with difficulty. A person can't take more than one idea at a time.
You're teaching now, and your customer is slowly absorbing your first lesson. Keep the language simple, so even a child can understand. Always assume he or she knows nothing about your product. Even when you repeat what he or she already knows, they like it, because it makes them feel well informed. Your voice should vibrate with enthusiasm - which cannot be faked.
This is a good time to ask reinforcing questions about their positive experience.
If you are cooking a new product for them to sample, take a good wiff of it yourself and then have them do the same.
If you are selling a boat, have them feel the smooth finish and tell them how it will easily glide through the water.
If you are selling a vacation, show them pictures of the fun they are going to have.
Comments:
If I know my sales call is going to be in an office over a desk, I bring lots of pictures. I talk slow and direct, with short imaging sentences, with a little longer pause, letting the client ‘see it working in his own mind’. What is even better is when I can get the client up and back in the area of their business the item is going to be used and start ‘painting. Remember quite time between ‘strokes of the brush’ is good. And try always to keep the flow of information smooth and easy to understand.
David Vize
Artists have a vision & then use that vision to create an image that others can see & understand. By illustrating their vision it allows the potential viewers to form the same picture or concept they are portraying. In sales it’s the same concept; you are painting a picture where the ultimate goal is having the customer see & understand how your product or service will be of benefit to them.
Carla McCrea
I could see where it would be good to paint a picture of our business to a client/customer. You could tell them to imagine their business where they would get the best quality of employees & customer service available, as well as corporate support.
April Swain
I understand the meaning behind this lesson. If someone can touch or see a product they will be more open to the product and the purchasing of it. This may not necessarily work with everything we sell because some services cant be “handled” . But we can pain them a picture of how our service can be of an advantage to them. It may take more imagination but we can put a “picture” in their head.
Brandon Sanchez
Nothing is real until experience it. How often do you purchase a product with out picking it up and examining it from all angles? You usually try on clothes, lie down on a bed or sofa or pick up dishes just to see if they feel right. Usually the less routine the purchase, and the more expensive the item, the more important it is to touch it before buying. This is why our Senses play a very important role in helping our customers understand and interpret their experiences. Our job is to manipulate those senses to our benefit and attract more customers through their own senses so that they can buy from us.
Yessie Narvaez
"In a study done on children, it was proven that the majority retained more knowledge when taught through movement or by taking a physical part in learning. I used this as a teacher and based my lesson plans around this idea."
Angie
"Organize your presentation in a way that will make the best appeal to his or her buying senses ... sight, hearing and touch."