Some define selling as a process of identifying their prospects' and customers' "pain." Books and articles admonish salespeople to "find the customer's pain." This can be valuable, since relief from pain is most certainly a motivation for buying.
Pain takes many forms in our prospect's lives.
> Pain could be a dishwasher that runs six hours instead of one or two hours, thereby increasing energy costs and reducing opportunities to remove dishes from it.
> Pain could be the car that's difficult to start on humid days, thereby reducing reliability.
> Pain could be a closet rod that fell down in the middle of the night leaving the clothes in a large wrinkled pile on the closet for.
But where I think some are misguided is when salespeople think only about pain as a motivating factor for buying, as if it is the root cause for all purchases. But it isn't. Looking exclusively at pain as the reason for buying products and services can cause you to miss other reasons why people buy.
> I didn't buy 12 boxes of Girl Scout cookies from six different girls to relieve pain.
> I didn't download the new Zero 7 CD or go to the Minnesota Orchestra concert to relieve pain.
> I didn't buy my wife a necklace to relieve pain.
> I didn't buy my daughter a book at her school's book fair to relieve pain.
> I didn't buy a collection of municipal bonds to relieve pain.
> I didn't buy our latest piece of art to relieve pain.
> I didn't buy a Vineyard Vines tie to relieve pain.
It's great to understand pain is a motivating factor for some purchases in some situations. But don't stop there. Customers buy for more than just one reason. Focusing on only pain is like focusing only on the quality of the wine while dining. Don't miss out on the rest of the meal!
Missing other buying motivations can be painful!
If you like this post (or don't) please click on "comments" below and share your comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, in the financial, real estate, and insurance markets, and other consumer-selling industries.
Contact Skip | Join Mailing List
Follow on Twitter | Connect on Facebook | Connect on LinkedIn
Recent Comments