CHAPTER 4
The Psychology of Selling: Why People Buy
LECTURE OUTLINE
I. THE GOLDEN RULE: BENEFITS
A. Customers want to trust you.
sale.”
II. WHY PEOPLE BUY – THE BLACK BOX APPROACH
A. Black Box – the internal mental processes that a person goes through when
B. Stimulus-Response Model – assumes that prospects will respond in some
1. People buy for both practical and psychological reasons.
3. We know many of the factors that buyers consider in purchase decisions.
III. PSYCHLOLGICAL INFLUENCES ON BUYING
A. Motivation to buy must exist.
1. Needs – result from a lack of something desirable.
2. Wants – needs learned by the person.
B. Economic needs – The best value for their money.
1. Economic needs – the buyer’s need to purchase the most satisfying
product for the money.
1. Three degrees (levels) of need awareness:
a. Conscious—fully known needs.
IV. A FABULOUS APPROACH TO BUYER NEED SATISFACTION
A. Benefit selling – relating a product’s benefits to a customer’s needs.
1. Advantages are performance characteristics.
E. The product’s Benefits – What’s in it for me?
1. Benefit selling – answers the question, “What’s in it for me?”
F. Order can be important
1. Emphasize benefits.
V. HOW TO DETERMINE IMPORTANT BUYING NEEDS – A KEY TO SUCCESS
A. To determine needs, LOCATE:
1. Listen.
2. Observe.
VI. TRIAL CLOSE – A GREAT WAY TO UNCOVER NEEDS AND SELL
A. Trial close – checks the pulse or attitude of your prospect toward the sales
presentation. The trial close is one of the best selling techniques to use in your
sales presentation and should be used at four important times:
1. After making a strong selling point.
2. After the presentation.
B. The trial close allows you to determine:
1. Whether the prospect likes your product’s feature, advantage or benefit.
2. Whether you have successfully answered the objection.
C. The trial close asks for the prospect’s opinion.
E. Examples:
1. “How does that sound to you?”
VII. SELL SEQUENCE
A. One way to incorporate the trial close into your presentation is the use of a SELL
sequence:
1. Show the feature.
2. Explain the advantage.
B. Selling involves determining needs and skillfully relating your product’s benefits
VIII. BUYER PERCEPTION, ATTITUDES, AND BELIEFS ARE LEARNED
A. The buyer’s perceptions are learned – Learning is acquiring knowledge or a
B. The buyer’s attitude about the product is important – Attitude is one’s learned
C. The buyer’s attitude must be converted into a belief – Belief is a state of mind in
D. The salesperson provides the buyer with product knowledge that allows him to
IX. YOU CAN CLASSIFY BUYING SITUATIONS
A. Some decisions are routine – Some products are purchased by habit.
B. Some decisions are limited – If customers are not familiar with a particular brand,
C. Some decisions are extensive – Most large purchase decisions are made after the
X. TECHNOLOGY PROVIDES INFORMATION – Salespeople are able to serve
XI. VIEW BUYERS AS DECISION MAKERS
A. Five basic steps of the buying decision:
1. Need arousal – Help the customer realize his needs.
2. Collection of information – The customer may choose to collect
3. Information evaluation.
a. The customer matches this information with his needs, attitudes
b. To provide the buyer with proper information, you need to know:
(1) What product attributes are important in buying decision –
(2) What are the most important attributes?
(3) What are the prospect’s attitudes toward:
(a) Your products?
c. You must be prepared to:
(1) Alter buyer’s beliefs about:
(2) Alter importance of attribute – quality and service are more
(4) Change person’s search for the “ideal” product into a search for
4. Purchase decision – A buyer’s decision to make a purchase can be altered
by four basic factors:
a. The attitude of others.
c. Uncontrollable factors (insufficient financing, failing of physical
exam, etc.).
5. Postpurchase.
a. After the purchase, the buyer may experience:
(1) Satisfaction – the difference between what was expected to be
(2) Dissonance – tension over whether the right decision was made
in buying the product.
(a) Show the buyer how to properly use the product.
exists.
XII. SATISFIED CUSTOMERS ARE EASIER TO SELL – Building relationships with
XIII. TO BUY OR NOT TO BUY – A CHOICE DECISION
A. A salesperson should consider the following questions before developing a sales
presentation:
1. What type of product is desired?
2. What type of buying situation is it?
3. How will the product be used?
B. People will buy if:
1. They perceive a need or problem.
4. They believe they should buy from you.