Customers don't forget how you made them feel !

It was famously said by some noted observer that “People may forget what you said — but they will never forget how you made them feel.”

This statement is absolutely true.

People in this day and age are constantly bombarded by new information. Everywhere we go we are given messages that we are supposed to digest. There’s no way we could possibly retain all of the information we are exposed to on a daily basis.

However, if someone sends a message that makes us feel something, we remember it. We will associate the giver of the message with the emotion they made us feel. This is one reason praise is important to use in building relations with perspective clients as part of the sales process.

The great thing about praise is that it’s easy. Every prospect that you deal with will have something praiseworthy that you can capitalise on.

If they have a great idea or something you admire then why not tell them how good you think it is. If they seem to know a lot about the subject you’re speaking about try and compliment them on the fact that they obviously did their homework.

Here is one caveat: you have to be sincere. Please don’t try to woo your customer with insincere flattery. They will know what you are doing and you will lose all credibility. If you can’t find something to praise wait till you can.

When you give a sincere compliment, it will make your prospect feel good about the interaction. If you want to have influence, you need to make sure that those you would influence have positive feelings towards you.

Why not also try to make your clients feel Something (within reason! )

While you have to give your prospect a rational reason to take action, it’s their heart that is going to push them over the edge and make the commitment to a sale.

You need to connect with your prospect on an emotional level and engage with them and when attempting to move others, you must target the correct emotion.

Is it more appropriate to tap into the prospect’s fears? Talk about what they could potentially lose. What about altruism? Maybe you could discuss how what you’re proposing will help the greater good. In some cases, sadness works best.

People decide on a course of action largely by using logic but its emotion that gets them to move. If you try this you will be a great influencer.

One final thought on using emotions is that thanks or gratitude is great!

In the world of persuasion the benefits of gratitude are considerable and it remains an indispensable ally. People who have a grateful attitude enjoy more social capital than those who are not grateful.

When you embrace gratitude and make it a part of your everyday life, many will find it easier to influence others and there are two key ways as part of your sales tactics you can use gratitude to help them influence others.

By having a grateful attitude makes you happier and more pleasant to be around. This increases the chances that you will convince your prospect to take the desired action.

By expressing gratitude makes people feel appreciated and acknowledged. This will make them more open to hearing and accepting what you have to say.

We would encourage you to find sincere ways to show gratitude to your prospects as there are probably several things you can thank them for in order to show them that they are important to you. You can thank them for the time they’re giving you to talk and If you’re dealing with an existing customer you can thank them for being a loyal customer.

People buy on emotion and remember they may forget what you said but they will never forget how you made them feel.

If you have any thoughts as to how to use emotions within the sales arena we would love to hear them [email protected]  or @clientmarketyks