People Buy Emotionally and Defend it with "Logic"

Introducing "Sales Techniques" Section

Last year I wrote about listening to motivational and sales tapes¹ as a kid. I want to share with you the basic sales techniques I learned, and have been ingrained in my psyche. I’m not writing this because I want anyone to master the art of selling. ² I’m writing this because there are some nefarious people who use these techniques to manipulate others.

Knowledge is power. Being aware that someone is pulling a sales technique on you to get you to buy into whatever it is they are selling, can help you decide if you really want the item, or idea, or whatever.

If you don’t read anything else from this section, please absorb this:

Getty Images, from Inc Magazine

That’s the basis for all the sales techniques. Get your prospect to buy into it emotionally. The sales person will intentionally create emotional scenarios for you to do or imagine. The sales person might get you to volunteer information about when a friend or someone you love had the same thing.

A good sales person will use various emotional triggers, like fear, love, comparison to others “keeping up with the Jones’” to get you there emotionally.³ I’ve seen insurance sales guys use the fear of leaving your family desolate, so you buy life insurance. I’ve watched car sales guys compare your solid, well running, car to the cool neighbor’s Mercedes or Tesla.

For this post, I’m not going to highlight all the emotional tricks sales people use to get you there. Please just know: people buy emotionally and justify it with logic.

Simply be aware. Tune in with yourself. You can always take a break.⁴ It’s okay to buy things, or make decisions philosophically, even about voting, cars, new purchases. Just be aware of what YOU really want.

Remember the cardinal rule of sales:

People buy emotionally and defend it with logic.

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1.

2. There’s a famous book entitled, “How to Master the Art of Sales” by Tommy Hopkins. That almost every sales person I’ve even known has read.

3. https://www.inc.com/logan-chierotti/harvard-professor-says-95-of-purchasing-decisions-are-subconscious.html

4. Most sales people do not want you to take a break. Pausing and breaks generally mean lost sales. UNLESS, they are doing the “puppy dog close” which lets you have a trial run with the product. Think “test drives” or “free trials.” That usually helps seal the deal.