I visited the home of Dixie Cups with my salesman. The goal was to do a premium program or on pack offer. At that time, I was the associate publisher and VP of sales & marketing for the second largest map company in the U.S.A. (Whatever happened to maps and atlases?) We had some great ideas for Dixie. We had the capability of doing custom cookbooks, or we could draw from our huge library including Better Homes and Gardens, Southern Living, Pillsbury, etc.
Once we let the buyer know our thoughts, he said, “Come with me.” So we did, walking into a warehouse where my client stopped and pointed to numerous skids filled with books. “This is what I have from my last book promotion,” he said. His tone said... There is no way I am going to do a book promotion. We walked back to his office and our work began. The issue was, in no uncertain terms, “fear of buying.” The fear was based upon his personal experience and his real fear of failing. Like any buyer, the company wants results and, if they are not produced, he could be made redundant (trust the Brits to make getting fired more gentle). To get anywhere with this prospect, we had to dig deep and get to the core of his psychological “issue.” It is done with friendly probative questions. It really is similar to telling him to “lay down on the couch and tell me your problems.” When people get to “talk it out,” they understand the cause and effect of their “fear” and can often overcome it.
We asked him to tell us the story and he we discovered that he moved tens of thousands of premiums. In total, he moved about 85 percent of what he bought. Okay, I admit it now, 45 years later, I took over the conversation and stepped over my salesman… sorry, David (RIP). The prospect’s fear of failure was based upon his overbuy – his not knowing how many units to buy. It was a matter of forecasting and that is very difficult with premiums.
“So,” I said, “the program itself was successful, but because you had so many left over, the numbers did not work well for you and your budget.” He agreed. I went on a bit more and he began to nod more and more in agreement with my observations. Once I believed I had his confidence, I laid the cornerstone for our relationship. I was going to minimize the risk involved in his making a deal, making a purchase. Risk produces fear and anxiety. Two emotions nobody enjoys, particularly if it can cost you your job. We proposed a “non-commit” self-liquidator – a program he could run by printing the offer on his packaging and buy nothing until he had them “sold.” It was enough to conclude our first visit, making him comfortable with us as his promotional partner, and he agreed to a return visit where we could present the framework of our ideas for “The Dixie Summer Barbecue Cookbook.” A few weeks later the proposal was done and David returned to continue the process.
Buying is not without risk. When internet auctions began, I bought pad printers only to get junk in return. I never went back to auctions and I am even skeptical about eBay, although they rate the sellers. Buying certain things are “no brainers.” Generally, they are visible and not intangible. Generally, they are low cost. Obviously, if you have return privileges it takes away risk. When the price is higher the financial risk is higher. When the goods or services are intangible, the inability to touch and feel builds a certain degree of anxiety, which is a cornerstone of fear. Buying a pair of shoes, assuming you can try them on, does not cause much fear or anxiety. Perhaps spending $600 on shoes is more concerning, but still relatively safe. Buying a car, a boat, a house or any truly expensive item does cause everyone to have some anxiety, right? It is the same for business buyers.
The axiom... the higher the cost, the greater the risk, the greater the fear of buying. This is also applicable to complicated purchases. Putting together a motivation, safety, service award, wellness program, etc. has so many complications and variables the probability of “issues” is great. Questioning of the odds of success causes anxiety and fear.
“Trust me” does not work. The success of others (case histories) is no real comfort. The buyer does not need a sales bull, but rather an understanding, helpful and sincere partner in the transaction. I will forever wonder why the car dealers let the bull (sales manager) out of the stockade. I recently leased a car and told the salesman that “I did not want to see the manager.” I needed a level of comfort that this was the right car at the right price and we would be happy. That’s not done under pressure. It is done by probing the concerns of the buyer and identifying any core issues that affect decision making. Oh yes, he did ask my wife “what color?” When are they going to realize SHE controls the budget. By the way, the probing uncovered my fear that going to a sedan from an SUV would be a mistake. I would not be comfortable and the older you get, the harder it is to get in and out of a vehicle. Once he said it had memory foam seats, he hit a sore spot. Safety and comfort turned out to be my core issues and the anxiety of not knowing if I would get it with the vehicles I was considering.
So, you’re a consultant… I’ll tackle that in a future column. For now, we need you to be a para-psychologist. A person who probes, a person who builds a relationship by knowing the buyer, their fears, their anxieties and needs. A person who modifies their approach based upon the buyer. A person who takes the time in the initial meeting to get the prospect to talk about themselves and their history as opposed to hearing a “pitch” that may not be relevant. What has been your greatest success? Have any programs failed? What did you learn from the failure? Dig in. Once you have them talking, turn to an interactive process and try to get them involved it the creativity of whatever you are trying to do. A true partnership means all parties get an opportunity to build the project.
Joel D. Schaffer, MAS is CEO and Founder of Soundline, LLC, the pioneering supplier to the promotional products industry of audio products. Joel has 48 years of promotional product industry experience and proudly heralds "I was a distributor." He has been on the advisory panel of the business and marketing department of St. John’s University in New York and is frequent speaker at Rutgers Graduate School of Business. He is an industry Advocate and has appeared before the American Bankers Association, American Marketing Association, National Premium Sales Executives, American Booksellers Association and several other major groups. He has been a management consultant to organizations such as The College Board and helped many suppliers enter this industry. He is a frequent contributor to PPB and Counselor Magazines. He has facilitated over 200 classes sharing his industry knowledge nationwide. He is known for his cutting humor and enthusiasm in presenting provocative and motivating programs. He is the only person to have received both the Marvin Spike Industry Lifetime Achievement Award (2002) and PPAI’s Distinguished Service Award (2011). He is a past director of PPAI and has chaired several PPAI committees and task forces. He is a past Chair of the SAAGNY Foundation, Past President of SAAGNY and a SAAGNY Hall of Fame member. He was cited by ASI as one of the 50 most influential people in the industry.