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The man who sells must study the thing he wants to sell. A complete and comprehensive survey must be made of in- dustry. A careful analysis of the product and what it means to the prospect must be conducted. Ask yourself: Where does this thing fit in? How can the prospect make use of it? 34 WHY THE PROSPECT BUYS What need will it satisfy? What chief reason will convince the prospect to own it? You must anticipate these questions in creating a Sales Plan that will convince the prospect that this particular thing will satisfy a particular want or desire. After all, what makes people do anything? They have per- suaded themselves, or they have been persuaded by someone else. In selling, you want to know the particular reason that persuades the prospect to buy. The prospect buys for many reasons, but the major reason is that he is sold. A sale is made because the salesman is able to put his finger on a particular reason that a particular thing will satisfy a particular need for a particular prospect at a particular time. In this chapter we will discuss five scientific reasons why the prospect buys. However, you must understand that the prospect is like yourself. You exercise your reason for buy- ing—so does he. This must be so, or the prospect would find himself buying the same thing most of the time. He does not buy a tube of tooth paste for the same reason that he buys a ton of coal, and neither does he buy a house for the same reason that buys a life insurance policy. He has a reason for what he buys, and this reason varies according to the prod- uct and according to the satisfaction he derives from owning it. When you realize this, you sense the reason that the pros- pect exercises in buying any particular thing. You know the particular appeal to make in order to get him to act. You conserve his time and increase your sales efficiency. You do not grope around in the dark. It is not necessary to spend half an hour with the prospect before he discovers what you are trying to do for him. |
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