Subtle Influence and Persuasion Skills
No matter what we do for a living we all exercise influence. Employees serving customers, colleagues promoting ideas, human beings interacting in relationship -- all seek to persuade or 'sell' products, services, or ideas. Too often that means high-pressure sales pitches or clumsy one-liners. Here you'll find several Influence with Ease® resources to enhance your influence at work and in your personal life.
Jeff Mowatt's Influence with Ease® Training Tip #8
The Rule of Three
When selling or proposing your ideas, keep in mind the "Rule-of-3." Movie theatres found that when they sold only "large" and "small" drinks, they sold equal amounts of each. To sell more of the "large" drinks, they offered a third "jumbo" size. The result: because people tend to avoid extremes they most often selected the safe middle ground, and bought "large" drinks. Translation, when you have an idea or something to sell, you'll often get better results by adding two surrounding alternatives.
This Influence with Ease® Training Tip is one of a series. For more information about the ordering the series, click Influence with Ease® Training Tips.
Jeff Mowatt's Influence with Ease® Training Tip #91
Your Thoughts?
Ever feel awkward with customers when the time comes for you to ask for the order? Here's a great approach that an employee used with me when I was the customer. The sales rep answered my questions about various pieces of home gym equipment. I thanked her and was about to leave the store when she asked a wonderfully phrased question, "Your thoughts on the bench?" It was gentle, non-demanding, and still got the feedback she needed. Next time you need the customer's decision, consider asking, "Your thoughts on . . . ?" It's simple, subtle, and it works.
This Influence with Ease® Training Tip is one of a series. For more information about the ordering the series, click Influence with Ease® Training Tips.
Influence with Ease® Article
Creating a Customer Feeding Frenzy
Four tools that make you simply irresistible
by Jeff Mowatt
Article at a glance: Customers hate to be sold to, but they love to buy. The problem is that most customer-contact employees focus their attention on trying to sell, when instead they should be stimulating the customer's natural urge to buy. "Creating a Customer Feeding Frenzy" provides four ethical ways to stimulate emotional buying behavior.
Click here to read Creating a Customer Feeding Frenzy.
Influence with Ease® Article
When Talking to Strangers
Discover three reasons potential customers may distrust you or your employees.Click here to read the full article.
Influence with Ease® Article
The Humility Advantage - How Less Ego Creates More Sales
Click here to read the full article.
Self-Study Training Kit
Influence with Ease® - The Total Training System
by Jeff Mowatt
This self-study kit shows you and your team how to create the first time purchase for a customer, and then move that new relationship to the next level. You'll discover how to build a long-term partnership with your customer that's substantially more rewarding for both parties. The keys are in needs analysis, follow-up, exceeding expectations, and most of all, enhancing the customer's perception of your value -- without having to work harder.
And that's only the beginning. Click here for information about ordering the Influence with Ease® - The Total Training System.
Live On-Site Training Programs
We'd be happy to bring a comprehensive training program on this topic to your organization. For details, click Executive/Manager of Corporate Training.
