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Why do people buy?
Graham Hawkes
/ Categories: Customer Service

Why do people buy?


Peter Rowe of Profitune, a USA based business coach and trainer states it quite clearly:  This is his unabridged list of what they buy – the comments under each heading are mine.

 

People don’t buy products or services: 


 • They buy benefits ... benefits ... benefits!


What’s in it for them?  That’s the question you have to answer when you are appealing to your market.  If you can’t answer that, then they look on you as no different to anyone else.

 

They buy solutions to their problems


It’s the old analogy of the guy buying a drill – but does he really need a drill just to hang a picture?  Take the time to find out your customer’s problem and show him how to solve it.

 


They buy other people’s opinions of you, your business and your products


Gets back to your testimonials, doesn’t it?  Whether it be the written word or word of mouth, testimonials are gold to your business.

 


They buy credibility and believability


The way you promote yourself, carry yourself, interact with others – all that has to be believable and make sense to them.


They buy your promises and guarantees (don’t ever let them down)


And if you don’t let them down, they will talk about it to others.  What does that mean?  More business for you.  The corollary isn’t worth thinking about because bad news travels fast.

 

They buy your business and product “reliability”


Gets back to quality, doesn’t it?  Quality of product, quality of service, quality of advice.  Can people rely on you to give them the best advice and service?

 


They buy “value” ... and, please, don’t confuse value with price


Quite simply, value is what it is worth to the buyer, not the price ticket.  So you need to quantify the value, even add some value to make your product or service stand out.

 

They buy certainty, honesty, convenience, and timeliness


No need to expand on these – it’s what any of us want from a supplier of any product or service.

 


They buy hope, comfort, success, wealth, security, love, and acceptance


Again, what we all strive for in life

 

They buy expectations of being pleased


A happy customer talks – and spreads your fame.

 

They buy product selection options


Give them some options if you can, and then lead them to the right option for them.

 

They buy freedom from making a wrong buying decision


Comes back to you helping them to buy.  That’s a lot different than selling to them at all cost.

 

 

 Whenever I see a new client I ask them this simple question:

 “Why should I buy your product or service?”

I also become devil’s advocate and challenge some of their answers.  That’s when they get very emotional and the real reason that people should buy from them comes out.  So my next challenge is to get them to promote it that way – and when they do, they sell more.
 
Can you tell me off the cuff why I should buy from you?

Tell me what’s in it for me, and if I'm in that market, I am more than half way to making a decision to buy.


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