What Will Motivate Buyers to Do Business With You?

Top Secrets of Marketing & Sales

When you’re able to deliver what you say you’re going to deliver, that will start to motivate buyers to want to do business with you. And particularly for repeat orders. Because the first time they’re buying from you, they don’t really know exactly what you can do. They’re basing it on what you’re telling them, the conversations you’re having.

But then after they have that first experience with you, and they know what you’re like, and they’ve liked that experience, then they are going to be motivated to buy again. Because at that point, they know those things. And it’s not just based on what you’re saying.

David: Hello and welcome back. In today’s episode, co host Jay McFarland and I will be discussing what motivates buyers. Welcome back, Jay.

Jay: Yeah. Hey, it’s good to be here, David. I kind of think, why would you need to know or have a discussion about what motivates buyers?

I think it’s because we assume everybody’s like us. And that assumption, can be completely wrongheaded, right?

David: Yeah. I know Tony Robbins, in some of his material, talked about the fact that he’s not motivational. His goal isn’t to motivate people. And I thought that was a really interesting takeaway because you look at somebody like Tony Robbins and you’re like, well, that’s what he does.

He’s motivational. He motivates people. But his goal is to educate people and to encourage people and nurture them and provide services that are going to help them in their lives. Like the rest of us, most of us in business, that’s what we’re supposed to do. We’re supposed to provide products and services that help our customers.

So when we talk about motivating a customer, there are a couple of different aspects to it, because one aspect of it is motivating them to buy, right?

Once they have all the information, sometimes it’s difficult to get people off the fence. So there’s that aspect of motivation, but even in the earlier stages, what will motivate a customer to want to even have a conversation with you?

What will motivate a customer to even go to your website to investigate what you have to offer? So my feeling is that motivation, at lots of different levels, is pretty much critical in business and in sales.

Jay: Yeah, I agree. And also a recognition that people are different, right? I remember walking into one of my program director’s offices and he had a cardboard cutout and it was divided up and all the things that he felt the listeners wanted and I looked at it and this was not based on research.

This was just, you know, what he felt. And I looked at it and I’m like, I don’t think that’s accurate at all. It’s nice that you have this cardboard cutout, but I think you need to put a little bit more thought into it.

David: Yeah, that’s a great point. And a lot of us go into every situation with our own preconceived notions about situations.

And so it’s the same thing in sales. If we think that a customer is looking for X, Y, and Z, then that’s all we’re going to be talking about. But that’s why I think the whole consultative aspect of selling is so important.

Asking questions, diagnosing, finding out what the actual need is. And when it comes to motivation, you’re going to be a lot more likely to motivate people based on what they want than what you think they want.

Jay: Yeah, I think about people who create the product from the product side instead of from the customer side, right? And we just assume I like it, right? See it on Shark Tank all the time, right? These people are just so invested and they mortgage their homes and they do all these things and they don’t have any sales, but they’re just so convinced that this product is going to be something that everyone will love and they’re shocked to find out that nobody does.

David: Yeah. It’s like the old adage, when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. He was like, look at this. This is the greatest thing in the world. Like, I don’t want that. That’s not what I’m looking for. Right. So yes, when you take an approach that is product centered instead of client or customer centered, that’s not likely to motivate people.

So if you’re thinking about how am I going to motivate a buyer to action? I think it really has to start with the diagnostic and understanding and determining what they really want.

Jay: Yeah. And I also think, once you’ve done that, taking pride in what you have to offer. And this is something I see people struggle with and I’ve struggled with it.

You know, I have people oftentimes will ask me for a discount now and I understand the ask, but I’ve really come to a place where I believe that we’re offering a great product. for a fair price. And I feel very confident in that. So I just tell them, look, we’re gonna do this and this and this, and our competitors are not.

You can reach out to them. We encourage you to research. But I know when you’re done with us, that you’re gonna feel like you underpaid, right? I just put it that way, you know, up front. And it really sends a message to them.

David: Yes, and that is very motivational when we’re able to transfer our own enthusiasm for our products and services to the buyer.

And I think I’ve heard sales described as something like that in the past. It’s a transfer of enthusiasm from the salesperson to the prospect or client. And I think there’s definitely an element of that that has to go into it because if we don’t have the courage of our own convictions, if we’re like, ” yeah, yeah, it’s okay. I mean, I think you’ll like it,” that’s not going to motivate anyone. It’s not very likely at all to get them to take action. So in terms of the motivational aspect, yeah, we kind of have to sell ourselves on whatever it is that we’re offering before we can ever sell anyone else.

Jay: Yeah. And again, get customer feedback and make sure that you are fulfilling promises and those types of things we went into in depth in the last podcast.

But when I first started out in our current business model, I kind of was hesitant. I felt like, you know, are we overcharging? And I’ve come to learn over the past two years, we might even want to charge more. You know, that’s how confident we are in the product we’re offering.

David: Yeah, and that’s really about creating value, right? You’re creating enough value for your customers that it makes sense for them to make the investment. That’s also highly motivational too.

When you’re able to deliver what you say you’re going to deliver, that’s going to motivate people to want to do it. And particularly for repeat orders.

Because the first time they’re buying from you, they don’t really know exactly what you can do. They’re basing it on what you’re telling them, the conversations you’re having.

But then after they have that first experience with you, and they know what you’re like, and they’ve liked that experience, then they are going to be motivated to buy again.

Because at that point, they know those things. And it’s not just based on what you’re saying.

Jay: Yeah, it’s that example I gave about the car salesman, right? Or the mechanic. Once you find somebody you can trust, it’s like okay, I’m never going anywhere else. And I would say I’m motivated, right?

Instead of being hesitant, “oh, I’ve got to go find somebody and I’m not sure if they’re going to be fair to me.” I’m like, “call them up,” right? There’s no doubt in my mind whatsoever. I’m excited to call them. I know I’m going to get an honest shake and that’s really all I want.

David: Right, that’s all we’re looking for. And if you think about it, the idea of motivating buyers goes so well with what we were talking about in this most recent series of podcasts where last time we were talking about building trust in sales. Well, trust motivates buyers, right? If they have that level of trust, that’s going to motivate a buyer.

Prior to that, we were talking about crafting a customer experience, giving them an experience that is positive, that is memorable, that they’re going to remember in a good way. That also is extremely motivating.

When you don’t have those things, when you have a lack of trust, a lack of a good experience, a lack of enthusiasm from the salesperson, then it’s very unlikely that they’re going to be motivated to do much of anything, other than get away from you as soon as possible.

Jay: Yeah, and I’ll also add to this. You’ve mentioned this over and over again that you will tell potential customers like I don’t think that you’re a match That, I think is part of the motivation process.

Because if you’re in tune enough with your own products and services to where you can be very enthusiastic with the ones who are a match. And they talk to you and they know that you are a match together, right? It’s like, “Oh, I’m so excited. This person is going to solve my problems.”

David: Yeah, and in those situations, authenticity is so important. You never want to say to somebody, “I don’t think we’re a good fit” for the purpose of trying to convince them to convince you that they are a good fit. And then you say, “well, okay.”

Right? That’s just manipulative BS. And if I say to somebody, “listen, I don’t think we’re a good fit for this.” That means I’ve already determined that I’m not going to be able to help you to the extent that I’m going to need to be able to help you to get you the outcome you want, that I’m going to be happy with it, right?

So it’s not about the money at that point. It’s not about anything other than being really honest with people about who you can help and who you can’t. I think that’s also pretty motivating to people.

When I say to somebody, if I’m on a call with them and we talk about, okay, listen, I think this is going to be great. Here’s how I think we’re going to be able to work together. That’s how I honestly feel.

If I feel like I can’t, I’m going to tell you exactly the same thing. So for people who share that enthusiasm, you’re going to be able to work together.

Now, if I’m really excited about working with somebody and they’re not excited about working with me, it’s still not going anywhere, right? That’s not going to happen.

And at that point, if whatever it is that I’m saying doesn’t transfer that enthusiasm, then at that point, for that person, we don’t have a good fit. So we’re not going to work together.

I’ve always said over the years, and I learned this one the hard way, like you learn most things, but I’ve always said over the years that if two parties to an agreement want to put something together, they’ll figure out a way to do it. And if one of them doesn’t, they won’t. Right?

So if just one party to the agreement wants to do it and the other one doesn’t, it’s not happening. Both people have to want to engage in order for that business relationship or even a personal relationship to be successful.

And talking motivation, that’s also pretty motivating.

Jay: Yeah, both sides motivated to come to the same outcome. I mean, what better situation can you have in a business model? I mean, that’s the strike zone, right? That’s where you want to be. All right, how can people find out more, David?

David: Well, you can go to TopSecrets.com/call, schedule a call with myself or my team.

Love to have a conversation with you to see if we are a good fit to work together, if we can help you in any way, even on the call. If we don’t end up working together, a lot of people are just helped on the call.

We’ll talk to you for roughly 45 minutes or so, walk you through where you are now in your business and where you’d like to be in terms of visibility, sales and profits, the markets that you’re going after, where you’re successful with that, where you’re not.

We’ll talk you through some things that will help you to operate your business better on the other side, regardless of whether or not we ever work together. So if it makes sense to have that conversation, love to talk with you.

Jay: I love it, David. Once again, it’s a pleasure.

David: Thank you, Jay.

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