Social Networking Article: Increase your sales with this simple tip
Which style are you selling?
Closing more sales and creating great content for a website, landing page, blog or article can be a challenge. For me, I come from a strong sales and marketing background. I look at everything online and ask “How does this help the company’s sales and marketing strategy?” One of the most overlooked pieces of information when it comes to content is understanding how a person gets to a point where they want to buy.
Most of us have heard of the different styles of people. There is the DISC program; there is Myers Brigg and a whole number of other pieces. The one I learned was based on 4 styles: Driver, Expressive, Amiable, and Analytic. The style has to do with what they need to hear to make a decision to buy. If you can identify the style and present to them that way, your chances of helping them buy will greatly increase.
What does all of this mean? Okay….let’s look at styles. By the way, if you were to take all the CEOs of the top companies in the world, they would fall into each one of the categories. (Drivers have a tendency to think they are the most dominant style and, of course, the smartest so they tend to think top CEOs are in the Driver category – if you are laughing….you are a probably a driver or married to one.)
Drivers – Like to control the situation at all times. They like choices. They don’t want to be told what to do. The biggest question they want answered is “What is it?” Good rules to follow: Come with an agenda that you got approved by them before the meeting. Stick to the agenda. Get straight to the point. Talk about business first and personal matters later. Ask them questions. Give them choices. Do NOT give them your opinion…ask them what they think.
A driver’s desk will have a ton of files on it – it may seem a little messy. There will be very little family or personal pictures or items in the office.
Expressive – Appearance is everything to an expressive. Style matters. Status is very important to an expressive. The biggest question they want answered is “Who has it?” Good rules to follow: Come with an impressive portfolio that is beautifully presented. Show lots of testimonials and talk about who works with you. The more recognized the name, the better. Yes, name dropping works with this style. Talk about social events first and then ease into business.
You can tell an expressive from a mile away. They are all about bling. They will be incredibly dressed, drive flashy cars, and wear expensive jewelry. Their desk will be messy and organized at the same time. You will see pictures of people, probably famous, articles about them in the paper, awards they received, their diplomas in beautiful frames.
Amiable – People are everything to this style. They are very in touch with their emotions. The biggest question they want answered is “How it feels?” Good rules to follow: Be soft and gentle. Take your time. Speak slower. Bring pictures of your family. Bring stories of your clients and talk about how what you are doing is affecting their lives on a personal level. Tell them what you think. They want your opinion.
An amiable’s office will be filled with family pictures, drawings from their kids and grandkids. They will have eco friendly items (careful…sometimes an expressive will go there too….as this is a cool status thing right now). They will be very quiet. Don’t ask them what they think, tell them what you think. Be careful not to be to abrasive with them. They won’t tell you. They will be very quiet and then just go away. Be sure to relate how what you are doing to how it will affect their family and make a positive impact on the world.
Analytical – They really aren’t interested in being social. The biggest question they want answered is “How does it work?” They want details and lots of them. They want step by step information on how something works. They like the technical details. Good rules: Take your time. Don’t rush through your appointment. Talk business, leave out the personal stuff. Share diagrams and flowcharts. You may want to bring a technical specialist with you depending on the topic and level of knowledge. Use the words, “here is how it works…..”
An analytical’s office will be very sterile. It may have some technical drawings. There will be no real design or design flare. Everything will be organized….maybe a little too organized. There will be tons of files stuffed with every detail.
The more you can talk the talk of each style the easier it will be for them to get to a buying decision. This is not about manipulation or head games. This is about presenting in a way that a person can truly hear what you have to offer. TRY THIS: As you write your content for websites, blogs, landing pages and status updates for your social networking sites, think of each style and see if you can write to each style. As you meet new people try and figure out what their style is. You can look for clues and listen for language.
What have you found to be an effective way to learn people’s styles and relate to them in a more powerful way?
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Tags: blogs, close more sales, content, landing pages, marketing, sabrina gibson, Social Networking, Social Networking Articles, websites
December 17th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
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June 9th, 2010 at 2:30 pm
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June 17th, 2010 at 6:11 pm
What I’ve found is that it’s hard to relate to people who are way outside my style. I wonder if I’m limiting myself, but I don’t track down the drivers. What I offer is more suited to another amiable or expressive. I don’t think my content appeals to the drivers and analytical people, and that’s OK with me.
July 12th, 2010 at 6:34 pm
There is also another part to this and that is a line of flexibility…it means how flexible you are to working with the other styles. If you score high then you can morph into other styles relatively easily. Try this on….make it a game to try and figure out what style people are. Then try and speak to their style. Practice makes perfect. I have found it to be easier and easier to work with other styles by simply understanding them.