The Fear of Loss

What is the most effective way of engaging target prospects?  Do you find out what their needs are, and craft a compelling value proposition that fills their needs and shows them the benefits of your product of service?  One would logically come to that conclusion, but what if it doesn’t work?  What if your prospect is not motivated by growing their business, having more money, or feeling more secure?  It turns out that most people aren’t.  Most people aren’t compelled to act unless they are convinced that their worst fears will be realized if they don’t take action.

Over my ten year career in sales, it is a constant process of learning and re-learning.  I’ve always known about the power of the fear of loss, but I am just now understanding how powerful of a selling tool that “Loss” is compared to “Gain”.  Most executives in business have a fear of success, which makes “Gain” not very compelling.  They have a fear of being exposed as a fraud, and not being able to perform at levels of higher responsibility.  Because of this, your value propositions of “More sales, better morale, grow your business” are actually some of their biggest fears; however, the fear of success is usually not greater than the fear of losing everything.

Nobody will answer your e-mail about helping increase their bottom line.  But I’m sure they would answer your e-mail about them losing their biggest client.  Find creative ways to show them that they are making a big mistake by not working with you.

Niche Industries:  People like to talk in small industries where all the competitors know each other.  Prey on people’s vanity; nobody wants to be the Loser, or pariah of their profession.  If they don’t work with you, it may effect their reputation in the industry, and thusly, their business.

Missing out on a deal:  In a down economy, everyone is pinching pennies.  If you are in the fortunate position of selling a product that businesses absolutely have to invest in, dangle a discount as a carrot.  Show them the savings they are missing out on if they don’t work with you by a certain date.

Risk vs. Savings:  Some executives could give a rat’s ass about saving money, but most all executives are risk-averse.  If they are considering investing in a program that is going to cost them a lot of money and net them very little returns, don’t be shy about pointing it out.  Point out the risk in what they are doing versus what you are proposing.

Persistence Matters

In our world of instant gratification, persistence has become a rare trait in professionals.  When most people encounter extreme persistence, it is perceived as peskiness, desperation, or aggressiveness.  I am a very persistent person.  Understand that my persistence is not driven out of desperation.  Connecting with people is what I do for a living.  I will literally call, e-mail, text, tweet, or show up in person in order to fulfill my purpose.  If you were in my shoes, and you knew that I held the secret to achieving all your business goals, I would only hope that you would do the same thing for me.  Here a few thoughts on where persistence can really pay off.

“Public Shaming”:  Nobody wants to look like they’re the one dropping the ball.  If you are communicating via e-mail, CC their colleagues so more than one person is aware of your message, and the recipient feels a greater sense of urgency to reply.   Twitter is also an effective medium for letting the entire Twitterverse know that you are awaiting a callback.

“I Will Not Stop When Men No”:  Napoleon Hill never took No for an answer, and neither should you.  If for some reason your prospect is not resonating with your proposal, you can either isolate their objections then overcome them, or you can try approaching their business partners independently and curry favor with them.  Either way, a sale is being made.   Either they have to be so convincing in their arguments as to why they cannot do something, or you eliminate all possible objections in order to get to a Yes.

“Passion Matters”:  People respond to intense fervor and determination.  If you are succinct and confident, you may even inspire people to help you out.  People respond to emotions, not facts and figures.   If you sound excited, they will likely get excited to work with you.

The Transparency Generation: You Can’t Afford To Hide Offline

I will be the first to admit that in this age where Social Media is the dominant form of communication, it can seem like privacy is under attack.  It is easier than ever to access personal information from just about anyone that has a computer.  However, we have also reached a threshold where in order to be successful in business, you cannot afford to hide beneath the digital grid.  In order to generate opportunity, you need to be your own biggest advocate and self-promoter.

There seems to be a generation gap in terms of professionals harnessing social media for business use. On LinkedIn, you will be hard-pressed to find persons between the ages of 25 and 40 who do not have a complete LinkedIn profile with a profile picture and less than 200 contacts.  Conversely, if you are over the age of 40, there is a great chance that you may have not even heard of LinkedIn, let alone moderate a LinkedIn group with thousands of members.

It no longer pays to settle for anonymity.  The people that value privacy in the business world are scam artists living in Nigeria or India, or other unscrupulous businessmen that truly have something to hide.  People like seeing the face of the person that they are doing business with.  It makes them feel good.   It greatly increases the amount of confidence and trust in the business relationship.

If you are a marketing professional, you need to get your name out there.   You need to be connecting with new people, posting updates about your latest initiatives, and bragging about your successes to competitors in your respective field.  Those who do not do this will eventually fade into obsolescence.  I receive incoming inquiries on a daily basis from prospective clients interested in working with me based off of the content that I generate.   The return on that investment cannot be understated; I have spent zero dollars and generated close to $100,000 in the last four months just by spending time on LinkedIn.

There is a sea change occurring, and young professionals are taking advantage.   You can either be like George Costanza from Seinfeld hiding underneath your desk, or you can invest much-needed time in your online presence, and get your business collateral available for public consumption.  If you don’t, I guarantee your competitors will.