Do You Interrupt When Your Customers Buy? 4 Mistakes That Ruin Sales

In theory, we all know that today the shopping process changed irreversibly due to:

universal access to the web 24/7,
the increase of consumer’s independence (they go through 90% of shopping process on their own, before reaching out to salespeople, researching and looking for the best options),
development of marketing technologies (that personalize marketing communication),
social media.

Many companies operate as if nothing happened. They sometimes even adapt new solutions like social media or Marketing Automation, but they use it as if they were still in 1990 and didn’t understand modern consumers’ behavior.

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1. Assuming that a salesperson controls the process

A great while ago, when the world was full of wonders and free from the Internet, information was hard to obtain. Customers didn’t know much about the product before the purchase, so they had to rely on salespeople as there was no other source of data available. The information gave salespeople power and control over the shopping process.

Today every consumer can easily find knowledge she needs in the blink of an eye: reviews, detailed descriptions, movies, and images are just a few mouse clicks away. Very often customers coming to the store know more that salespeople who just recite the script they know by heart.

Takeaway:
Remember that today salesperson is above all a consultant. Talk and interact. Listen about customer’s problems, challenges or needs, establish relationship, and give advice.
Before you call a lead, learn about her. Check a contact card in your Marketing Automation platform or CRM. See what has she read, viewed or downloaded. If that’s possible, check her profiles on social media. Such a quick research will help you find out what to talk about with that person: what she already knows and what she might need to know.
Nurture your leads. Thanks to that you will address the customers who have just started their research and need more info. You stay in touch with them, deliver what they want and don’t scare them off with too aggressive marketing.

2. Using social media as if the old paradigm still applied

Many marketers want to eat a cake and have a cake. They still cling to the old before-the-web paradigm, but have brand profiles on social media, because they know it’s a right thing to do. In the consequence, they use social media like traditional media: they put ads there and make sure that as many people as possible see them. Salespeople don’t hesitate to stalk people on Twitter or LinkedIn and induce them to buy. It doesn’t work that way!

Takeaway:

Social media are about interaction. Ask your audience questions, engage in dialogue. Remember that negative feedback is also valuable, because it gives you an opportunity to show brand’s human and caring side.
Also, interact with other brands and influencers. Recommend a good blog post or a video that might be useful to your customers. And don’t be afraid to polemize from time to time to exhibit your professionalism.
Social media aren’t only a communication tool. You can use it also for research! See what questions people ask about your brand and business, what they like, what they do, etc.

3. You take but don’t give

Take a closer look at your communication. Isn’t it all about you? Don’t you want something from your customers all the time?

You want email address, phone number, name, surname, company’s name and credit card number when someone downloads an ebook
You flood customers with surveys with questions that you could answer yourself if you just bother to look into the analytics. How many purchases have you made during the last year? Do you use the loyalty program? Such answers you could obtain from the resources you already have.
You shout “Buy!” to a person who has just arrived at your website. You scream “Buy” in social media, interrupting users who use that space to talk to each other. You cry “Buy” in all bulk, generic emails that are entirely irrelevant to person’s history.

Takeaway:
Give things for free: find a balance between gated content and free materials.
Use progressive profiling. Don’t require the full set of personal data from a person who has her first encounter with your company.
Be clear about the aims of your surveys. Each question costs your users their time! See how much you can get from analytics. Also, don’t forget about advantages of face to face discussion.

4. Lack of authenticity

We’re the best in our field.
Your phone call is important to us.
We care about your opinion!
The best quality, the lowest price.

You could probably add a lot to that list of marketing cliches. You don’t believe in it, do you? Your customers don’t either. So just stop mouthing platitudes! The audience can sense false.
An example: OPEN Cycle produces bike frames. Its directors both handle not only manage processes but also blog regularly and answer customers questions. One they’ve calculated that the best option for the company would be to stop selling components to the bikes and stick to the frames. They could’ve written a typical PR note, but Vroomem decided to write a personal post, explaining the reasons behind the decision.
He told openly how the company work and said that selling components consumed too much of their time while most of the customers prefer to buy components somewhere else anyway. He stressed that it didn’t mean a big change. What’s important is that he presents himself as a human being (who might be overwhelmed with tasks) and tries to be honest with users.
Takeaway: