My husband and I spent a few days at one of our favorite places, Signal Mountain Lodge in Grand Teton National Park. As we checked in, I observed many things the lodge and staff did to create a safe environment during the pandemic.
The lobby included plexiglass dividers for check-in, bottles of sanitizers and signs on the floor to manage social distancing. What really impressed me was the presentation of the keys to our condo by Mary, an employee. “You will find all of the dishware in the condo in the dishwasher,” she said. “We clean every single item between guests’ visits. Also, please review the list on the dining room table. It will tell you all surfaces we sanitized.”
As we walked into our condo, I felt relaxed, safe and happy with my lodging choice.
But also, it made me think of this question: Are we making it safe for our prospect to buy from us?
Probably not enough.
Here are two sales strategies to make it safe to work with you and your company.
1. Let your clients do the selling. What do I mean? Coach and train on the power of storytelling. Client-success stories can be weaved into all parts of a sales conversation, answer a question, deal with an objection or give a tangible example of how your product and services add value.
For example, if a prospect asks, “How would your company deal with this?”, teach your sales team to answer with a client-success story. “Well, with a recent client we discovered a similar issue and we were able to do X, Y and Z.”
Storytelling also taps into another influence skill called “social proof,” discovered by Dr. Robert Cialdini, author of Persuasion: The Psychology of Influence. For example, testimonials are a common form of social proof. Hearing about another person’s positive experience makes a prospect feel safer about engaging with your company. Likewise, sharing client stories is another way of making prospects feel safe.
2. Try the good old grocery story approach of selling. You know, try before you buy. Grocery stores have long recognized that sampling is a great way to sell new products. I’ve gone to the grocery store with my list only to discover it was food vendor day. So of course, I just had to taste the new type of meatballs and the latest artichoke dip. I was comfortable purchasing because I was able to try the product before I purchased it.
Brainstorm with your sales team on creative ways your company could create a try-before-you-buy purchasing scenario.
The question we all should be asking and answering in today’s environment is: How safe are you and your sales team making it for your customer to buy from you?
Good Selling!
