Emotional Sales: Discover the power of emotional intelligence to unlock success in sales

A variety of strategies are employed by sales organizations to attract, engage, and convert customers. It is essential for businesses and individuals to understand how to develop strategies that appeal to all types of customers, as each customer is unique.

Emotional selling may be an effective strategy for establishing a sales environment that emphasizes the uniqueness of each customer and how to serve them most effectively.

If these sound critical for you or your business, navigate below to clarify the importance of emotional sales, check the definition of the term and enjoy useful tips and techniques to utilize emotional intelligence in the sales field.

Why are emotions important in sales?

The sales process, especially the sales closing, is clearly a decision-making point. Logical and emotional thought processes compete to influence decision-making. Determining whether your decisions are based on logic or emotion can be crucial to ensure that you take the "best" actions.

According to many studies, the majority of decisions are influenced by emotions, even though most people believe they make decisions based on logic. It might interest you to check Yuval Noah Harari's book "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, 2015" for a detailed yet simple explanation on how the brain is programmed to make decisions.

Still not convinced of emotional decision making? Check the example

An example that we regularly use in our trainings for emotional sales in order to support the emotional decision making, is the "Titanic" case:

Imagine that you are on the Titanic and as it sinks you are given the opportunity to save either only your child, or another boat filled with ~30 children. Who would you save? Now, please continue reading before your logic kicks in and fills you with regret for the emotional decision you just made.

The knowledge of this decision making process makes it easier for you to recognize the importance of emotional intelligence in sales and find ways to develop emotional sales techniques.

What is emotional selling: Definition and core feelings involved

Emotional selling, as previously stated, is a sales strategy that emphasizes the emotional experience of the customer. Regardless of the approach, the customer is the focal point of this sales strategy, not the product.

Emotional sales rely on identifying a customer's purchasing motivation. This requires establishing genuine connections with customers regarding their emotions, needs, and desires. Delivering a positive experience is achieved by focusing on particular emotions.

Core emotions that influence purchasing choices are:
Altruism
Envy
Fear
Greed
Pride
Shame

Emotional selling requires a high degree of emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is the capacity to listen and comprehend the thoughts and emotions of others. This is essential for establishing relationships with others. If people in sales possess a high level of emotional intelligence, they can better comprehend the needs of their customers, identify their concerns, and make recommendations that appeal to their emotional values.

Emotional sales techniques: How to utilize emotional intelligence

Commonly, emotional selling employs either a positive or a negative strategy. You may come across the negative approach to emphasize a customer's challenges and offer their product as the answer, or the positive approach which implies that acquiring the product will result in future positive outcomes.

Although neither alternative is objectively superior, clients often have a preference for one over the other; thus, it is essential to ask questions to establish which strategy is more successful for them.

Here are some emotional sales techniques, depending on the most typical emotional triggers:

1. Consumers that are motivated by altruism are often interested in learning about the beneficial consequences or advantages of their purchase. Some corporations, for instance, contribute one item for every one purchased or a portion of their sales of a certain item to charity organizations.

2. To appeal to clients who are driven by envy, you must have a thorough awareness of your competitors. Validate your statements with industry studies, direct comparisons with other services/products offered, and customer-relevant information.

3. Consumers driven by fear react most positively when they are made aware of the possible negative consequences of not acquiring a product or service. Emphasize on what they stand to lose by not purchasing your product or service and provide real examples or hypothetical scenarios.

4. Often, customers driven by greed are more concerned with what's in it for them. Highlight the individual advantages of acquiring your goods. If feasible, substantiate your statements using facts and statistics, especially on the return on investment.

5. Those who align with the brand's identity and are prepared to promote it may respond positively to an appeal to pride. Share success stories, discussing how previous customers have won recognition or done remarkable accomplishments as a result of your services.

6. Clients who may be driven by shame, prefer a sensitive approach. Address mistakes they've made in the past (real or hypothetical) and highlight the road to avoid them in the future using your product/service.

Emo-sales dictionary

Since emotions speak louder than words, here is a table with some must use words to make your conversations with clients easier and focused on emotional sales:

Altruism: Benefit - Give - Help - Improve - Provide - Assist
Envy: Best in class - Competition - Edge out - Lagging - Leading - Special
Fear: Consequence - Cost - Degrade - Harm - Lose - Suffer
Greed: Valuable - Distinguishing - Exclusive - Gain - Profitable - Reward
Pride: Image - Influence - Powerful - Prestige - Respect - Reputation
Shame: Avoid - Disappoint - Fail - Mistake - Remorse - Regret

3 Essential Tips for Effective Emotional Selling

1. Concentrate on the advantages. Emphasize the benefits of the transaction. Rather than outlining the qualities of a product, for instance, it is preferable to discuss how buyers may benefit from them.

2. Listen more than you speak. Listening is vital for comprehending the customer's concerns. Ensure that you ask pertinent follow-up questions to demonstrate attentiveness and obtain further context.

3. Employ value-based language. When communicating with consumers, employ language that demonstrates an understanding of their beliefs. This builds your relationship with them and aids in gaining their confidence.

People respond to emotional sales

Emotional selling IS effective since people are, by definition, emotional creatures but it will not bring success on its own. The service or product being marketed must be of high quality, thorough market research must be undertaken, and the client must be in the proper position (mentally and physically) to connect with the approach.

Cold-calling and emotional selling may be mixed if an agent is emotionally savvy and can connect with the consumer. Emotional selling can place a business ahead of the competition by establishing feeling-based relationships.

Your rivals may have lower prices, but they will struggle to compete if they fail to build a feeling of community, pride, and loyalty. If you are eager to learn more on how to compete in the sales arena using soft skills as your weapons, check our sales training programs and solutions.