No Pain, No Gain

While the title of the article may be grim, the reality is found therein. If you don't find a pain point or a challenge or a deeper motivation that moves your buyers, your chances of closing that person are slim to none.

An important distinction is to be made between a pain point and identifying a goal.

Let's use an example:

If your prospect says something like "I want XYZ," they're probably orienting around a goal or something they desire. In real estate, let's say, your buyer tells you they want a 3 bedroom 2 bathroom bungalow. That's great! But that's not a pain or a challenge.

On the flip side, if your buyer says something like "I drive 2.5 hours one way to work every day and I need to be closer to work because the commute is killing me. I waste 5 extra hours per day driving and I want to spend that time with my kids and my family."

I think the difference here is dramatic and poignant. Which one of these buyers do you think you would get to move faster? The answer is clear.

The difficulty many of my clients and many of the salespeople I've trained have is hearing the difference between the two, and more importantly, converting a goal into a pain or a challenge.

The pain lies somewhere between what they have and what they want to have.

Let's break this down.

Let's say your buyer says they want to close more sales. Okay great. That's a goal (and a good one!). That being said, we need to dig deeper on that goal.

1. Why do they want more sales? Yeah, more money is great. But why do they want more money? Get them to be specific.
2. What have they tried in the past to get more sales? What worked? Of the things that worked, what are they still doing? Why did they stop any of these things? What didn't work? Why not?
3. Of the things that DIDN'T work to get more sales, why didn't those things work?
4. The most important question you'll probably ask: "why don't they already have the number of sales they're looking to get?" Herein lies the pain; herein lies the true challenge. And therein lies the path to your sale.

Let's use another example. Let's say the buyer for the real estate agent above has said they want to move to Fake City. How do you find their true motivation? Try this line of questioning:

1. Why do you want to move there? Fake City is great. But why do you want to move there? Get them to be specific.
2. Have you lived anywhere like that in the past? If so, why did you leave? What did you like about it? Why did you leave in the first place?
3. Of the places you've lived that you DON'T like (perhaps where you are now), what didn't you like about them? How long have you wanted to move back to Fake City?
4. "Why don't you already live in Fake City now? You said you've wanted to move back to Fake City for X amount of time now. So why not already? And why NOW? Why not in 3 more years?" Herein lies the challenges they've faced or currently face; herein lies the true motivation. And therein lies the path to your sale.

Jordan Belfort famously told his sales team "every sale is the same." Take a look at the line of questioning above - do you believe him?

Find your buyer's pain. Find your buyer's true challenge. Be the solution.