What makes your customers buy…

 

What Motivates A Prospect To Buy From You?

 

Most people who have been involved with sales & marketing for any length of time have heard the saying, ‘Sell them what they want… then sell them what they need’.

 

​​But what does that actually mean? It sounds a little odd, doesn’t it?

 

Does it mean that people are frivolous and go around making irrational purchases that don’t necessarily meet their needs?

 

No, that’s not it. What it is trying to say is that people buy for emotional reasons.

 

For example, does anybody buy a Mercedes Benz just because they just NEED to get from A to B? Do they buy it because they NEED all of the amazing gizmos, the heated leather seats & hand polished wood trim?

 

No, a person buys an expensive car that costs twice as much as another car because it makes them feel important.

 

​​You may be shocked when I say this, but luxury purchases are motivated by vanity, envy, pride, jealousy, narcissism, and even greed. And, there is nothing sinister or wrong with it.

 

​​That’s just the way we are as human beings. It’s what makes us tick. In fact, these emotions are behind all kinds of everyday purchases too.

 

Understanding how emotions motivate buying behavior is critical to successful selling.

 

Look at the following direct mail letter promoting the Wall Street Journal, written many years ago. It’s said to be one of the most successful advertisements in the history of business, responsible for over $1 billion in sales.

 

Look carefully, and see how skillfully it evokes one or more of these powerful emotions. Try to get a sense of how you feel when you read it.

 

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ‘TWO YOUNG MEN’ LETTER

 

On a beautiful late spring afternoon, twenty-five years ago, two young men graduated from the same college. They were very much alike, these two young men. Both had been better than average students, both were personable, and both – as young college graduates are – were filled with ambitious dreams for the future.

 

Recently, these men returned to their college for their 25th reunion. They were still very much alike. Both were happily married. Both had three children. And both, it turned out, had gone to work for the same Midwestern manufacturing company after graduation, and were still there.

 

But there was a difference. One of the men was manager of a small department of that company. The other was its president.

 

Have you ever wondered, as I have, what makes this kind of difference in people’s lives? It isn’t always a native intelligence or talent or dedication. It isn’t that one person wants success and the other doesn’t. The difference lies in what each person knows and how he or she makes use of that knowledge.

 

And that is why I am writing to you and to people like you about The Wall Street Journal. For that is the whole purpose of The Journal: To give its readers knowledge – knowledge that they can use in business.

 

The letter closes:

 

About those two college classmates I mention at the beginning of this letter: They were graduated from college together and together got started in the business world. So what made their lives in business different?

 

Knowledge. Useful knowledge. And its application.

 

I cannot promise you that success will be instantly yours if you start reading The Wall Street Journal. But I can guarantee that you will find The Journal always interesting, always reliable, and always useful.

 

Pretty powerful stuff!

 

In actual fact, esteem (to feel valued) is NOT a WANT at all. It is a basic human NEED almost as fundamental as food & water. Your prospects hunger and thirst for it. Their emotions are the expressions of that craving for recognition and feeling valued.

 

If you can trigger these emotions, and then associate satisfaction of the prospect’s ‘esteem needs’ with your product or service, you’ve got a winning campaign on your hands, whether that message is delivered via a letter, email, ad or web page!

 

P.S. Remember, the business definition of insanity is to carry on marketing the same way but expecting different results.

 

So why not call me now on 01692 538800, (or email me on richard@common-sense-marketing.com) and let’s have a chat about how to tap into the emotions of your prospects, and make your marketing campaigns more successful.

 

It won’t cost you a penny. And together, we may just throw some much-needed light on a route to dramatically improved results.