What were you thinking about right before you started to read this article? Maybe you were worried about how you were going to get everything done before the end of the day, or perhaps you were thinking about the argument you had with your spouse this morning as you were running out the door, or that your pants are feeling tighter than usual. We all have things on our mind every moment of the day. We are all emotionally preoccupied with our own wants, needs, hopes, fears, regrets, etc. This preoccupation is hard to penetrate with logical thinking because our hearts are so invested in how we feel about the situation not about facts.
Think about a family that came into your community looking for a place where Mom would be safe and cared for. You laid out all the features, reason and logic as to why they should choose your community and there was no way they could say no to your anytime dining, one bedroom, bay window, near the elevator, deluxe apartment on special. To do so would be impossible, you figured, because there was no other logical solution or answer.
And then, the daughter says they are not ready to make a decision just yet. They weren’t swayed by your logic. What? How can that be? What is wrong with this family?
Unfortunately, your chance of success is slim, because decision-making isn’t logical, it’s emotional, according to the latest findings in neuroscience. At the point of making the decision of where to move Mom, emotions play a very important role in making that choice. If you base your sales strategy on logic then you end up relying on assumptions, guesses, and opinions that you know what is best for their Mom. Instead, you need to help them discover for themselves what feels right and best and most advantageous to them. Their ultimate decision is based on self-interest. That’s emotional. I want this. This is good for me and my Mom.
How do you build that emotional connection? You ask questions about how it is going to impact them and how it makes them feel.
Here are some examples:
- How is this decision going to impact you? Your Mom?
- How will you feel knowing that Mom is not only surviving, but thriving in her new environment?
- How is taking care of Mom yourself impacting your relationship with her? With your family?
- What is your greatest concern at this time?
- What impact has this had on you/your loved one?
- How does Mom feel about making a move?
- What do you feel is going to be a deciding factor as to the community you will choose?
- How do you feel our community compares to the other options you have been looking at? Why is that?
If you can get them to reveal their problems, their pain, then you can help them build a vision for them of their problem with you and your community as the solution. They won’t make their decision based on what is logical. They’ll make their decision because you have helped them feel that it is to their advantage to do so. Now they can focus on what it is they want to see happen! You have created a win-win situation… How does that make you feel?
Written by Dee Bailey, Census & Sales Strategist at Bild & Company.
