Take control of the sales process — 7 things a customer needs

What the customer needs before they can buy

You’re not too bad at sales. You know how to communicate and create fantastic conversations with prospects. You know how to ask great questions. But there’s a huge piece of the puzzle you don’t have any control of. The customer! Regardless of how well you lead the sales process, there are seven things the customer needs before they can buy from you.

Your success throughout the sales process will be influenced by these seven factors so it’s important to understand what’s happening in the customer’s mind.

1. Trust you

The customer needs to trust you as a person. Remember it’s easy to find out information about anyone via social media and search engines. There’s a good chance the customer had researched a bit about you.

New research has revealed that 90% of consumers regularly research products online prior to buying them. (Source: http://www.mycustomer.com) If you’re a small business, this could very well include researching you as the business owner.

Consider how you are presenting yourself as an individual. Even if your personal social profiles are private there is still information a customer can gather. What does your profile picture say about you? What does your private email address say about you? (eg. if you signed up with gmail when you were 15 and your email is hotstuff99@gmail… then you might want to change it!)

2. Trust your business

The customer needs to trust your business. Can people find your business? Do you have an online presence and is the content which can be found by the public representing your business in the right way? Are you active on social media? Is your signage in good condition and professional looking?

Many people search for reviews of a business before they will make contact. Do you have positive reviews? Are your current customers happy to talk to other people about your business in a positive light?

3. Trust your brand

This is the trifecta of trust — the customer needs to also trust your brand. Your brand is your promise to your customer. It makes sense the customer needs to trust your promise and trust you can deliver on what you say you are going to deliver. Your brand is therefore tied into your integrity.

4. Have a need

Every customer who buys from a business does so because they have a need. Buying solves a problem when the person cannot or does not want to find or create the solution for themselves. For a customer to be able to buy from you, you must uncover the need they are trying to solve by contacting you.

Related: 10 questions to ask your customer to find their need

5. Your business must have the solution

Every business provides a solution of one kind or another. Your solution must solve the customer’s need. It must be relevant, timely and the customer must see value in the solution at or above the price you’re charging. You must be able to help the customer understand the connection between their need and your solution and help them overcome any objections they have about the sale.

6. Be the decision maker

For the customer to be able to buy from you, they must be the decision maker. This is often why a purchase is not made at the time. The customer may simply be collecting information on behalf of the decision maker before they can buy. This is important to remember when we talk about giving the customer enough time. They may need time to seek approval or reassurance from the decision maker before the complete the sale.

7. Be ready

The last thing the customer needs before they can buy from you is to be ready. They are not always ready at the same time as they identify a need. It won’t matter how well you can solve the problem if they’re not ready to buy immediately. Patience is key.

Conclusion

You can greatly improve your conversions by taking control of the sales process and understanding what your customer needs before they can buy from you.

Grab your free printable: 7 things a customer needs before they can buy from you