Why your potential customers say “NO”

If you are not actively building trust, your business will appear risky to your potential customers. Your potential customers don’t know if your product/service will work or if it will help them. They aren’t sure if you are the ‘real deal’ or if you are any better than the ‘other guy’.

Think about the last time you didn’t buy something. I would bet you’ve said no to something or someone this week. Whether it was a small or large decision, a new muesli bar, or the holiday package you’ve been dying to buy, plus a million other buying decisions - you decided to opt out and move on.

Let me ask you another question: do you think your potential customers do the same thing to your business offerings?

There are many different factors that influence your potential customers’ sales decisions. One of the primary factors is trust.

Have you heard below-mentioned statements about your business offering before?

• “My business isn’t ready for that.”
• “Too expensive.”
• “Will it work?”
• “I can do that myself.”
• “Don’t think I need it.”
• “I’ve tried that before and it didn’t work.”
• “It can’t be that good.”

So why do these potential customers prefer to opt out and walk away?

If you look at the underlying reason behind these comments, the chances are high that the real problem is that the potential customer doesn’t have any connection or trust with your business. In other words, your business seems risky.

Potential customers who feel this way will respond by:

• Using what they have always used.
• Deciding to simply go without.
• Trying to bring you down on price.
• Going to one of your competitors who do not feel risky. Ouch!

You must remember that if people are to do business with you they must either switch brands or purchase something for the first time. They are also required to commit time, money, effort and consideration to do so. If your potential customers consider your business risky, you shouldn’t be surprised when they find it easier to keep their money in their pockets.

It is a common misconception that if a business is to increase its sales, it needs to generate more awareness, have larger discounts or identify a greater number of leads to target. This is sometimes the case; however, some businesses need to: convert more leads into sales, generate more referrals and repeat business, and move people from being slightly interested in their business (for example, visiting their website or trade stand) into seeing their business as irresistible.

Just think about how much time and money you would save if those who came in contact with your business did not see your business as risky.

There are lots of very effective ways to reduce the perceived risk of your business to increase their sales conversions, referrals and credibility. Some of these tactics include: encouraging referrals from your existing customers; media coverage; testimonials; helpful advice via social media (including a regular blog); samples; webinars; case studies; seeing you/your business offering in action via video; awards; free trials; and strategic partners who refer your business to their customers.

When promoting the business and its products/services, most businesses focus on the logical elements of price, features, benefits and a desired result - while ignoring the needs and concerns that people have.

People don’t get emotional and passionate about ordinary products, a satisfactory result or a fair price. They talk about things that surprise them, convince them that their individual needs will have some resolution, leave little room for doubt or make them feel great about themselves - and, in effect, remove the feeling of risk they might have about doing business with that firm.

You must walk potential customers along the sales journey, addressing their needs and concerns along the way. The key is to get to know your ideal customers and work out how to best reach them and address their multiple needs, concerns and desires. Not only do they need to know that you exist, they need to:

• Trust you
• Feel comfortable or a connection with you
• Believe that you understand them
• Have a positive emotional reaction to you and your business
• Be confident that you can solve their problems through your service and business offering
• Have multiple sources of ‘proof’ that your business is as good as you say it is

The higher the cost and the greater the competition, the more your business needs to invest in providing easily accessible proof. Be transparent and approachable. You want people to feel comfortable enough to bring up their questions and concerns. Not everyone will want to pick up the phone to talk about their hesitations and queries, and an online contact form on a website is far from approachable or friendly. Depending on your business and the types of customers you are interested in attracting, you may want to consider being active and contactable via social media platforms where your ideal customers gather.

Allow people to learn about your business, hear opinions from independent sources, see examples of your product/service producing great results, read testimonials from previous/existing customers, and have a taste of your work.

Something incredible happens when you have fans and potential customers who trust your business or feel some level of connection with you. When they enter your store or make contact with you, they are already interested in your business and the barriers or scepticism and concern have already started to be worn down.

The claims that your sales and marketing make about your business will resonate with people and seem more believable when you do not seem risky and have addressed their needs and concerns. Your competition will seem far less attractive to your business when people trust you. Furthermore, you are more likely to receive repeat business from someone who trusts you.

People are constantly forming impressions of you and your business, regardless of what you say. This is because you are always communicating something in the way you behave, through your reputation and in the impressions you leave people with.

When you consider that you have just as many opportunities to create a fantastic image for your business as you have to create a poor image, you can see why it is so important to have a well-thought-out marketing plan that takes into account all of these opportunities in a logical way.

By creating extraordinary reasons for potential customers to trust you and see you as a credible business, potential customers will look at you in a very different light and your sales conversion and reputation will improve dramatically.

So take a step back from your business (sometimes you need to have an independent expert take an outsider’s perspective for you) and look for all the opportunities you have to reduce the risk for people to do business with you. It certainly pays off.

Good Business Consulting

www.goodbusinessconsulting.net.au