Converting prospects into clients is one of the most misunderstood processes by small business. People buy based on emotion, not logic.  Here’s a great post by Maria Tabaka from Inc. explaining how to use emotional intelligence to improve your conversion rate.

6 Ways to Convert Prospects into Clients with Emotional Intelligence

People may believe that decisions are based on logic only, but the brain doesn’t work that way. Here’s how to make your prospect’s decision easy with emotionally intelligent marketing.

 

 

@MarlaTabaka

A few weeks ago I attended an event as a guest expert with my radio co-host Kevin Harrington, one of the original Sharks from Shark Tank. During the two-day event we helped over fifty inventors with their marketing direction and to position themselves for an investor pitch.

Many of these inventors initially failed to express a compelling reason to buy their product during their presentation. This happens much of the time because of a widely spread illusion that our logical brain is in charge of everything we do, and that’s simply not true.

Indeed, up to 95% of human behavior happens at a subconscious level, leading to “gut decisions” which is the most natural way to make a decision. This is why you want to appeal to your prospect’s emotions, which are determined by the brain’s limbic system, not the logical, fact-finding cortex as many people believe. This emotional center is responsible for all human behavior including all decision-making.

When you understand what drives your audience’s decisions, your sales and marketing efforts will become highly effective . It’s the emotional connection, not the logical one,  that is the biggest factor in converting your ideal prospect to into your ideal client.

Here’s how to get your future customer’s attention and make the decision easy and natural for them.

1. Use visuals.

Some years ago, fast food chains showed only written lists of their menu offerings. The glossy images featuring over-sized combo’s did not even exist. Consumer’s made their selections based on familiarity and did not tend to add fries and a soft drink to their purchase, and they certainly ordered smaller sizes. When the industry switched to a visual representation of their food choices, bundling them as combo’s, sales soared.

Use images to support your facts. Processing imagery takes up about fifty percent of brain power and can make decision-making easy. Pictures speak volumes to the human brain.

2. Add emotion to your marketing and sales approach.

Do you remember what you had for lunch last Tuesday? Do you even remember if you had lunch last Tuesday? Probably not. That’s because it was not an emotional experience. The brain recalls emotional experiences at an amazingly rapid pace, the rest is usually forgotten.

You know the needs and desires of your perfect customers, so appeal to them. Use emotion to make you and your brand memorable and desirable.

3. Solidify the abstract.

My coaching services can be considered an abstract offering; people don’t necessarily understand what the experience will do for them. I use metaphors, emotional examples, and my personal passion to offer a more concrete visual for them. I help my prospects feel, rather than process. When they feel the synergy they will make the decision to invest in their future.

Avoid sticking with only the facts, help your prospects feel that they are making the right decision.

4. Balance your passion.

When I was at the inventors event, many of them went on and on about why their product will be a huge hit. Of course they did! They’re passionate about their creation. Passion is critical, but if you don’t express it in a concrete, succinct, and convincing way, it becomes your enemy. Rambling will agitate your audience’s brain; they will become distracted and confused.

Brainstorm all of the important pieces of your marketing and sales components on a whiteboard to create a visual for your own limbic system. Then, keeping these tips in mind, package them succinctly and convincingly for your audience. Use your passion to add the extra punch.

5. Appeal to their tribal instincts.

The amygdala, which is a part of the limbic system, cares only about safety and security. It can create a false sense of danger in a heartbeat. If you can’t imagine you or your product fitting into their life it stimulates discomfort. The commercial spots that create the most lasting, positive impressions are those that demonstrate the product within the framework of our lives. Apple commercials, for instance, hardly even mention the product; they show inviting family and friend interactions instead. Apple doesn’t sell the product, they sell a culture that we all want to fit into.

To do this best, listen to your prospects and clients. Show an emotional connection to their concerns (only if it’s genuine) and let them know that you understand–and that you have a solution.

6. Present a strong beginning and a memorable ending.

You have only seconds to grab your audience’s attention, avoid spilling facts into those precious beginning moments. Make a compelling statement; tell an engaging story.

Concluding your conversation with typical endings like, “So what do you think?” or, “What questions do you have for me?” creates discomfort and confusion. Sum it up for them in three powerful conclusions. “You can now see the impact it will have on your business when we, [list three powerful conclusions].

End the conversation with a strong question or suggestion. One of my favorite conclusions to a sales conversation is, “Now that you see what an impact that coaching with me will have on your life and business, let’s get on the schedule for your first session!”

Warning: Remember, through all of this, your prospect’s will sense insincerity. The amygdala is at work 24/7! Be authentic. If you have difficulty with authenticity it most likely means that you haven’t found your why and that you’re not passionate about what you do. Time for a life review!

The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

 

PUBLISHED ON: APR 11, 2016