You Are Not Your Prospect

A common mistake salespeople, business owners and professionals make is believing our prospects are just like us. Nothing could be further from the truth.

In fact, odds are good you have little or nothing in common with any given prospect. And it’s critical to understand this. Because if you treat your prospects as if they were you, you’ll miss out on a lot of sales.

Among the potential differences between you and your prospect:
• Likes
• Dislikes
• Values
• Priorities
• Concerns
• Experiences
• Biases
• Income
• Risk tolerance
• Impulsiveness
• Need for details
• Communication style
• Decisiveness
• Sense of humor

Which means:
• An approach that makes you comfortable could be a turn-off for them.
• What you think is overpriced they may think is a bargain.
• A color you can’t stand could be their favorite.
• Knowledge you take for granted they may have never heard before.
• Issues that aren’t a concern for you can be deal-breakers for them.

Above all, it means you have to sell your prospects what they like, not what you like. And you need to sell to them the way they like to buy, not the way you like to buy.

So get out of your own head and into theirs. Rather than assume your prospect is anything like you, find out about them. Ask questions to discover their likes, dislikes, experiences, etc.

And respect the answers you hear. Your prospect’s values, priorities, concerns and so on may be very different from yours, but they’re just as valid. In fact, if you want to increase your sales, they’re even more important.