Jeweller - April 2020

BUSINESS
Retail Strategy
REAL REASONS YOU CAN’T CLOSE THE SALE
– AND HOW TO OVERCOME THEM
To increase the effectiveness of your sales techniques, it is critical to understand your
customer’s behaviour and thinking, writes BRI WILLIAMS.
There was once a judge who, at the start
of every trial, would step out from behind
the bench, approach the defendant, and
shake their hand. “I have just shaken the
hand of an innocent person,” he would
proclaim. Why did he bother?
To customers, you are guilty until proven
innocent – they are predisposed not to buy
your product or service.
The upshot is you can often be at crosspurposes
with your customer during the
sales process.
The first step is to prove you understand
their objective. Don’t start your sales
process by talking about ‘yourself’.
Many salespeople open by discussing their
value proposition, using statements like,
“We do x, and we do y”.
As we know, the Western justice system is
predicated on the concept that a defendant
is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
However, jury members are prone to judge
the defendant before the facts are even
introduced, and throughout the trial, will
seek confirmatory evidence for their view.
For many, the defendant is ‘guilty until
proven innocent’.
By proclaiming the defendant innocent,
the judge used his authority to correct the
decision-making frame for jurors: start
from a point of innocence, not guilt.
So, how does this relate, and what does
this mean for, you as a retailer?
In business, you are the defendant and
your customers are like jurors, who arrive
at decision of purchasing decisions based
on expectations.
You think they will make a decision based
on factors that you consider important
– for example, how much time you have
put into designing or manufacturing your
product, or your credibility, experience and
expertise.
However, they are using their own frame
of reference, such as how the price of your
product compares to other options, the
opportunity cost of their time and money if
they spend it with you, and their deepseated
motivations for wanting to buy.
Once this is understood, you can use
behavioural science techniques in order to
change the customer’s frame of reference.
In essence, you become the judge that
shakes the defendant’s hand.
Changing behaviour
There are several simple ways to re-frame
your customer’s thinking.
Re-frame the
context for
a decision;
that means
moving the
customer away
from points of
comparison or
assumptions
about your
product
Instead, communicate that you understand
your customer’s needs or wants, and
describe how your product or service can
solve it.
Next, re-frame the context for a decision;
that means moving the customer away
from points of comparison or assumptions
about your product.
A famous example of re-framing is Red
Bull. The company did not market the
beverage within the hyper-competitive
soft-drink sector.
Instead, the marketing team re-framed its
category to ‘functional’ drinks. In doing so,
they added to the product’s perceived value
and were able to charge substantially more
per unit.
To change your customer’s behaviour,
you may also need to signify why you are
worthy of their trust.
42 | April 2020