Selling High-End, Feature-Rich Product

By Cy Corgan Selling has been part of the business cycle for thousands of years. You have something fantastic and now you believe everyone needs to have one too! Now the million-dollar question…. How do you get them to buy? The goal is to influence a consumer to buy something that they don’t have and may not yet even know they need but will, in the end, be pleased by their purchase. The best businesspeople and salespeople ultimately want to solve a problem for their customer. By asking the right questions, you can discover what it is your customer needs, then demonstrate how your product makes life easier. This process is the key to selling higher-end products. Your customer has a problem/need and your product has a feature to fix that! Consumers buy from people and businesses they trust. A buying decision is the result of both how well information is transferred from the business to the buyer and the believability of the information. The better job you do showing the customer how your product improves their life, the more likely they are to make a purchase and the more trust you build, the larger their investment. Sounds simple, right? Ask the right questions, present the right product, earn trust, and close the sale. No problem, anyone can do it…. with a little practice and some prior planning. Start with asking the questions that provide detail on a “day in the life” of the individual that will be using a product. The answers to these questions will allow you to design your product solution around the customer’s needs. Get to know your products, especially your higher-end items. Become fluent in the operation of the product and be able to provide a benefit to each of the products’ features. It is imperative that you know how your products improve your customer’s daily experience. Use this knowledge to build value for the consumer. A higher value for the consumer equals a bigger sale for you. Next, prepare a list of questions to ask your customers. The questions should be open-ended and designed to get the consumer talking. The more you learn, the better you can help. Finally, tie it all together for your customer. Help them see how your product fits into their lifestyle. When the idea of the product becomes personally meaningful to your customer, he or she will be ready to make the investment in you and your product and buy. Moving consumers through a sales process isn’t difficult. It is simply a matter of aligning the right message to the right customer. Getting the right products and services into the hands of your customer to help make their life easier is the right thing to do. Knowing your customer is ready to buy, has been well informed of the options, and will be completely satisfied with their purchase is a win for you and for your customer. In the end, isn’t that the ultimate goal? Great selling! Cy Corgan is the vice president of national accounts for Golden.