Try these three sales strategies to help salespeople work beyond needs and price to sell the very best solutions to their customers.
In 1997, I conducted an extensive search for a new automobile. I probably looked at 10 different brands and spoke to 15 different salespeople. Since I was young, most of the salespeople focused on keeping the price low.
Then I met David at a Toyota dealership. Of course, he asked about my budget, but he didn’t stop there. He asked me about:
- My work
- The number of miles per month I was going to drive
- How I was going to use the vehicle
- Why certain things were important to me
He then proposed a Toyota 4Runner. Because this model was above my budget constraints, I assumed David was going to suggest a stripped-down version. Not even close. In fact, David proposed that I include premium tires and lumbar support, and that I wait six weeks so I could have the color I wanted. After beating him up on price a little bit, the total monthly payment was $533. My budget was $400. Guess what? I bought it, including the premium tires and lumbar support.
Why would I do that? I didn’t need a 4Runner, and I certainly didn’t need lumbar support or premium tires. I bought it because it was the most valuable solution for my situation. Almost 30 years later, that 4Runner is still my favorite of all the vehicles I’ve owned. I didn’t need it, but my life was better because I bought it.
The moral of the story? Stop selling your customers what they “need.” A professional gets past their customers’ needs to understand their situations and design the very best solution for them. That’s the meaningful value great salespeople bring to their customers, and why their customers are loyal to them.
Reality check: Price is always a factor, and the most valuable solution almost always has a higher sales price. So, how can salespeople work beyond needs and start selling the very best solutions to their customers?
Here are three sales strategies that will help you become an amazing sales professional who delivers the very best solutions to their customers.
1. Develop the Right Mindset
One of the most common things we hear from our clients is: “If our customers don’t need something, we don’t sell it to them.”
While I understand the intention behind this comment, it’s the wrong mindset to have if you want to deliver meaningful value to your customers. If David at the Toyota dealership had this mindset, I would’ve purchased a vehicle and grown out of it in a couple of years. Instead, I kept the 4Runner for seven years and loved every minute of it! The experience was better and made more financial sense than the other (cheaper) options. I didn’t need a 4Runner, but I was better off because I purchased it.
Create a self-concept that you provide the very best solutions to your customers, even if those solutions are the most expensive.
This can be difficult because salespeople have been conditioned to believe that they’ll lose if they charge more. If you’re doing your job and identifying the best solution, both of those beliefs are false. You must do your best to make this shift in self-image because confidence will follow.
2. Understanding Everything About Your Customers
Many salespeople show up to a discovery call and simply ask questions to clarify customer requests. This is okay if you hope to have the best price on needs. However, if you’re going to deliver the very best solution to your customers, then your sales strategy must be to understand everything about them.
First, know the marketplace. Understand the trends and problems in their marketplace. This could mean:
- Geographic location
- Vertical market
- Business size
Next, get to know the account:
- How are they organized?
- Who is on the decision-making committee?
- What are their problems?
- Why are they meeting with you?
Finally, and most importantly, get to know the people involved in the decision and their influences. Feel their pain. Ask them how the problems impact them individually. Ask “why?” a million times:
- Why do you need to update your conference room?
- Why is the IT department so heavily involved?
- Why don’t you think it’s okay to propose a cloud solution?
- Why does this matter to the business?
- Why does this matter to you and your department?
Get to the bottom of their answers. While other salespeople are asking technical questions about customer requests, you should be asking about the request: who is influencing it, what pain is behind the request, why, why, why?
Once you have answers at this level, you’ll be able to deliver a solution that provides the most meaningful value to them.
3. Start Doing It Now
Don’t wait to have the right mindset or know everything about your customers. Get started now. Your mindset will shift as you do more. Your knowledge will grow as you work with this concept. Starting right now, sell your customers the very best solution for their situation, not just what they need. How?
You must get past their needs and get to the level of solutions that make their situations better. Most of the time, these solutions are more expensive, but the overall experience and value are more than worth it.
Chris Peterson is founder and president at NSCA Member Advisory Councilmember Vector Firm.
