Consumers must make quick decisions today to survive.
In fact, three seconds is generous. Within that brief time frame, entire economies can shift.
Let me teach you what else you need to do in that time frame to get the maximum possible price for your products.
Make “YES” their default option
Customer objections are the most frequent stumbling block in a business. These issues may deter prospects from buying from you.
If so, how do you go about dealing with them?
To overcome objections, one must first understand them on a deep level. Simply said, objections are any reasons a potential customer gives for not purchasing from you. These excuses may be reasonable or illogical.
A potential client insists that your product is perfect for them. But only until the point where they have to commit. They change into a new person and make excuses for not pushing through.
The prospect might understand you’re talking about change, which excites them. It’s because the idea is still abstract to them. On the other hand, when it’s time to part with their money, their animalistic, survivalist brain steps in and says, “Hey, wait. We’re okay with our current vendor. We trust them.”
And that’s because change sounds like a good idea, but only in theory.
Our instinctual, survival-oriented minds see change as dangerous because it is unfamiliar. As a result, maintaining the status quo is its primary goal.
There is more than one method to answer customer objections. Consider these:
- Listen carefully and make customers feel heard. But try explaining their situation in terms they couldn’t have thought of on their own.
- Affirm the validity of the prospect’s experience. Then guide them through the path of logically processing it. Design your message so your audience cannot question your abilities to help them.
- Be confident without being brash. Don’t make them feel attacked.
Make a bold proposition even the stingiest shopper can’t refuse
“If you’re not satisfied for any reason, we’ll take it back without a receipt – no questions asked.”
With this advertising message, Nordstrom destroyed the competition without lowering their prices. There are many other department stores where you can get a cheaper suit. However, Nordstrom offers a 100% satisfaction guarantee. They offer risk-free ROI: they’ll provide high-quality goods and accept returns if they don’t meet your needs.
The “without a receipt” element differentiates them from the competition. It appears too outrageous to be true. However, it’s a welcome change from the typical ordeal of returning a product. And it worked.
Providing more value to your customer in an unexpected way will reduce their resistance to your offer. It should be a standard element of your messaging.
Consider what extras you could throw in to make the offer more enticing. Make sure what you’re giving out is of actual worth. However, be careful not to make any promises you cannot keep.
FOMO creates a frenzy
Scarcity value is an idea that has persisted for thousands of years. We place a higher value on goods that seem scarce because we don’t know if or when we’ll have another chance to buy them. Scarcity was a daily reality for our forebears but does not affect our lives now. But this heuristic is still operational. Thus, scarcity signals elevate an item’s worth.
We stockpile when we run out of something or don’t know when we’ll get access to it again. UK officials warned motorists in the spring of 2012 to “fill off their tanks” in anticipation of a potential fuel tanker drivers’ strike.
Gas stations quickly became swamped by long lines of motorists and ran dry of gasoline. The government failed to grasp that it activated the scarcity effect. Once drivers observed others queuing for gasoline, others followed suit.
Inducing a feeling of shortage plays on our herd instincts and FOMO.
As a marketer, you will benefit significantly from knowing why people buy high-priced items. Finding the underlying mechanisms of decision-making is a fundamental goal of the decision sciences. I hope you understand what influences purchasing behavior and how to use these findings in your marketing efforts.
