When talking with clients or prospects, remember to engage their senses. To varying degrees everyone uses all 5 senses, with seeing, hearing, and touching usually being the top three ways one experiences things. People don’t choose their preferences, they are born that way, and that is how they respond to the world.
Visual people may use phrases such as “Let’s see what you have,” or “Let me take a gander.” When dealing with such people, you must make your presentation visual, or at least appeal to their visual predisposition by painting pictures with words.
Other people ‘view’ the world with their ears. These people may say “That sounds right,” or “I hear what you are saying”. They may even be prone to talk to themselves. You must appeal to their sense of hearing by playing off of it with words describing laughter, or the audio sounds they would experience with your product.
People who use feel will often use such sayings as “Touch base with me next week,” or This feels right.” These clues will direct your approach. Having the prospect touch the product, or having a firm handshake may help your chances.
A smaller population connects through smell, “I smell a rat,” or “Something is fishy”, can be indicators. People who connect via taste may similarly use sayings such as “I relish the opportunity”, or “That ought to spice things up.” Again, play to their senses,. In selling a dining room set, talk about the smell of Thanksgiving dinner, or the sweet taste of that homemade apple pie being served.
Listen for the clues your client is giving you, and paint your presentation using the senses, starting with his or her favorite, and you’ll have a much more powerful delivery in your prospects mind.