|
The 'So What' Strategy:
Finding Your Customer's Emotional Hot Button
 We all know the first rule of selling is turning your products' or services' features into benefits. The goal is to tell not what it does, but how it will make your customers' lives' better. So a feature of a pencil is a yellow exterior. But the benefit is that the bright yellow color makes it easier to spot on a crowded desk.
Did you ever wonder if you are selling just the right benefit? The strongest one, the most meaningful one to your customer? The one that hits their core buying emotions? If you remember that people make the decision to buy for emotional reasons first, then need to justify their decision with logic, you're on the right track with your selling piece.
But how do we reach those core emotions, the ones that will trigger a sale? One way is to use what I call the "So What" Strategy. What's that?
Let's take a product as an example, a car. Say, the Volvo. We can start with a feature, and go from there:
-
The Volvo has side airbags, traction control, and rear head restraints.
So what?
Well, your tires won't slip in wet weather and your head is more protected.
So what?
You'll have peace of mind knowing your five-year-old in the back seat is safe when you are rear-ended by that driver who was distracted on his cell phone.
Now we're getting somewhere. Whether you are giving your customer peace of mind, or feelings of safety, or more quality time with their family, or the admiration of their spouse, it is these core emotions you should be uncovering.
You can do this with anything you are selling- from accounting services and graphic design to business coaching, physical therapy, real estate and insurance. The deeper you dig, the closer you get to the core buying emotion.
Try this exercise. Write down what you do and what you provide to your customers. Ask yourself, "So what?" Repeat with another answer and continue with the "so what's" until you get to that core benefit, the one that strikes right at your customer's heart. You'll end up with a much stronger sales piece.
|
