Miracle Selling! How I Ended Up Buying 9 Knives
Fall has arrived in Dallas with sunny days, cool nights, and gorgeous weather. My husband, Jim, and I made our annual pilgrimage to the State Fair of Texas to soak in the exhibits, test our luck on the Midway, and …ok…. eat our way through the turkey legs, corny dogs, and ice cream sticks.
And then the guy selling Miracle Blades in the Home and Textile Exhibit Hall hooked me. After listening to his spiel I found myself forking over $39.95 for a magnificent set of knives and don’t forget – that pair of scissors.
What did he do? How come I bought all of this stuff? What can you learn about selling from this expert?
1. Establish credibility. Make sure your listener knows the quality of your product, your service, and YOU. My State Fair expert seller gave me a lifetime guarantee complete with a warranty. He showed this certificate in the first 10 seconds of his presentation.
2. Keep it short. Understand that the attention span of your prospect is the size of a peanut. The entire sales presentation took 3 minutes.
3. Use props carefully. Show your listeners the benefit of your service and product. I was mesmerized by all the slicing and dicing. But once he sliced the orange, he threw the orange slices away to make sure our eyes and ears stayed with him.
4. Give your prospect something for FREE. Give something away to enhance your chances for a sale. The four steak knives and the scissors were the add-ons. I felt like I was getting a gift despite the fact I spent money!
5. Sell EMOTION. You want your client to feel wonderful after they’ve worked with you or bought your product. The Miracle Blade guy wasn’t just selling knives, he was promoting good health! He chopped tomatoes and onions, not chocolate, while getting us to agree that if we ate home more often we’d lose weight and be happier.
6. Have fun. Have passion for what you do. This vendor sells these knives every day and gives this demonstration over and over. He’s probably sick and tired of onion vapors, but his demeanor, delivery, and smile made me think he was actually having a great time. Perception is reality.
7. Exceed expectations. Provide added value that your customer can see. These knives were a great price and this miracle seller kept reminding us of this value.
Follow these strategies and you’ll become miracle sellers promoting your own miracle products and services.
