“Without a sense of urgency, desire loses its value.” – Jim Rohn.

Procrastination is a common barrier in the B2B sales process. Deliberately, it occurs when your customer believes they have plenty of time to decide and a delay is harmless. Think about sales and how many are stalled in your pipeline simply due to procrastination.

Think About Sales and the Fear of Missing Out

What would be a strong enough prompt to get your customer to move? Scarcity is one; exclusivity another. However, if your product is one of “want” and not “need”, building urgency may be out of your control. Counting on a psychological trigger to motivate your customer is pure faith.

Many sellers push limited time offers, the aura of exclusivity or the reality of limited stock. As these fears of missing out (FOMO) tactics can be legitimate, they also have a steep downside. Regrettably, these efforts can sometimes be interpreted as pushy and instill distrust.

The customer-​facing team at convin​.ai know something about sales. In this article, they offer some tactics to drive clients to a decision without seeming pushy. Here are ways to properly communicate FOMO:

• Focus on the value of your offering regardless of time constraints.
• Highlight time-​sensitive benefits or limited-​time offers by educating customers exactly WHY these restraints exist.
• Prioritize building trust and long-​term relationships over making quick sales.

Be patient and allow customers the time needed to make informed decisions.

• Listen actively to their concerns to assure you understand their needs and fears thoroughly.
• Ask open-​ended questions to determine their interest level and remind them of the pitfalls of a delay.
• Project the future and how a delay may have consequences: intended or unintended.

Discuss their Pain Points to Push Beyond a Strategy of Hope

Simply hoping your customer finds motivation will not work. However, a solid discovery approach can often shake loose the sale. You should be qualifying prospects in or out depending on the level and severity of the pain they have.

Further, you should accentuate their pain to push the initiative higher on their priority list. Sure, you could wait for them to have a compelling event, but it’s best to seize the moment. Position your argument and convince them that "this is a much bigger problem than you thought it was."

Furthermore, tailoring your message to address a customer’s personal aspirations can be powerful. Use what you know about sales and their deepest desires as a lever. By helping them achieve their longings you will win the sale, build trust and further your relationship.

Appeal to Your Customer’s Key Emotions

Your B2B customers justify their buying decisions with logic. And logical reasons will extend far and wide.

Conversely, though they may justify a purchase with logic, they buy based on emotion. B2B customers buy to solve a problem or to serve their customers better. But WHY they buy is the key to understanding their true motivation.

Sales Coach, Ryann Dowdy, writing for Forbes​.com shares her thoughts on the emotions behind purchasing. She explains what it is about sales that triggers these emotions and how you can harness it. Consider these emotional drivers:

• Trust and credibility – The majority of B2B buyers must trust an organization before buying from it.
• Emotional connection – Brands that evoke pride, confidence or perceived value resonate with buyers.
• Security and protection – Products that offer a sense of safety or risk reduction are attractive to B2B buyers.

While your customers may believe their decisions are logic-​based, emotions play a significant role in the process. Also, remember that the human brain is hardwired to resist change. This keeps us anchored to the status quo, even if it’s not working.

The thing about sales is that customers may find more excuses NOT to buy than to proceed. However, if you show them the larger problems created from inaction and appeal to hidden emotions you will succeed.

Photo by Thirdman on Pexels​.com