70% of employees are disengaged from their work. The cost to the US economy: between $450 – 550 billion.*
Today’s buyers believe they can find on the internet most, if not all, of the information they need to make informed purchase decisions. Once they feel informed, they feel less inclined to engage in dialogue with sales professionals, seeing this as unnecessary and wasted extra work.
At the same time, most buyers are overworked, busy and sometimes demotivated. They (like many corporate professionals) are increasingly disengaged from their work – simply not motivated to go the extra mile to do the best possible job for their companies.
How can you motivate disinterested buyers who want to take the path of least resistance as they work with suppliers?
Engaging dialogue, that’s how. Instead of falling back on scripted selling, adopt a selling approach built around high-powered, insight-provoking questions, and share Nuggets of Value that provide the customer with new information to help them do their job more effectively.
What is a Nugget of Value?
A Nugget of Value is a piece of information that will pique the buyer’s interest while opening a channel of communication, enabling dialogue and ensuring mutual respect. Sharing new information, insights, and statistics shows that you have strong industry knowledge, that you have your finger on the pulse of buyer needs and goals, and that you, as a seller, add value in your B2B dealings.
Top sales people know how to plan and ask questions that force the buyer to re-examine their “I know it all” stance, but they also know how to offer information strategically to inform their buyers, pique their interest, and offer viewpoints that expand thinking and enable innovative solutions to be jointly developed.
These Nuggets of Value often focus on the buyer’s industry, marketplace, industry, competition, changes in legislation, or cost-saving ideas. They ignite a spark of interest, often re-engage an overworked buyer, and remind them that every interaction with a top sales person should offer value.
Create Your Nuggets of Value Goldmine
The only way to share Nuggets of Value is to have them. Research not just the company you’re trying to sell to but its industry, too.
- Follow Twitter feeds
- Join relevant LinkedIn or Xing groups to follow the conversations happening within the industry (LinkedIn is also a great place to find the right questions to ask)
- Read industry publications
- Know details about the main working practices found in the industry
- Use your marketing and research teams to provide data, then
Distil all that you learn into easy-to-digest-but-important pieces of knowledge your buyer will use to make the right business decision – your solution.
By creating your goldmine of Nuggets of Value, you can be the seller that really knows his/her stuff and brings the buyer back to the fold.
What Nuggets of Value have you used in your sales dialogues? What made them work so well?
