6 Hidden Reasons Why People Won't Buy

6 Hidden Reasons Why People Won't Buy

Making a decision to purchase may seem like a quick process but as many sales professionals know, in most cases that is simply not accurate. When you work as a sales professional, you understand that handling objections is the name of the game. However, what do you do with the potential buyer that simply won't say "Yes", even though you handled all their verbal objections! People can be complex and often times that will lead to hidden reasons why they won't make a purchase. These hidden reasons are often overlooked by sales professionals. Here is the good news: once you figure out what those hidden reasons are, you will start connecting better with your customers and boosting your overall sales. Let's have a look at 6 hidden reasons as to why your potential buyer might say "No".

1- Insecurities Making decisions takes confidence, however this is often overlooked by many companies and sales individuals. Even if the purchase seems to make sense to us as a salesperson, and the customer likes your product, due to a past purchase their insecurities might hold them back from saying "Yes". For example, if someone is hesitant to buy an item of clothing, they might simply not be saying yes yet because they don't feel confident in their appearance in these clothes (insecurity). To avoid this problem, make sure you take time to connect with your potential buyer, and assure them that they are making the right decision.

2- Lack of Trust I know that most sales people will pride themselves on connecting well with their customers. However, every person has had different purchasing experiences in the past and some o these may have resulted in unwanted outcomes. For this reason, some potential buyers may have difficulty trusting you as a salesperson. As we know, sales is about building relationships with others and a key to any relationship is trust. No matter how great you feel your pitch might have been, if there is no trust then there will be no sale. This could be due to the fact they feel the need to question the information you are sharing with them (such as the quality, price or reliability of the product) due to past experiences. Bottom line, always focus on connecting and building trust before you ask for the order.

3- Need for Acceptance This next point is another well overlooked reason why people might say "No". People like for their purchasing decisions to be approved by their loved ones, and often seek reassurance to confirm that they made the right choice. Hence, they may be hesitant to make a decision due to having experienced a lack of acceptance regarding a purchase they made in the past. Often times when we sell, we must sell the potential buyer on the fact that their purchase is in fact the right decision, and that the ones close to them will agree as well. Make sure you help them feel confident and excited about their purchase.

4- Pricing The price is often times what kills the sales pitch. However, it is not the asking price that is the problem, typically customers simply don't see enough value in your product to justify your price. For example, iPhones are an item of high value to many people as they attempt to keep up with the Joneses. This results in people not questioning the high cost of the cell phone and making financial arrangements to obtain it even if it is with great difficulty. When it comes to making a purchase it is not so much what your visa can handle, but rather what you feel holds enough value to justify the expense. As the old sales saying goes, it is not what you want to sell that matters, it is what they want to buy. Finding the hot buttons is up to you as a salesperson. Make sure you show them what is in it for them. Ask open ended questions because the more you know about your customer the easier you can offer a great solution in which they can see value. You have to establish enough value to exceed your asking price.

5- You Haven't Attempted to Close Enough We might say that life is short but when it comes to making decisions everyone loves to procrastinate. You hear potential buyers say things like "Let me sleep on it, I'll get back to you" or they might say "I don't make rash decisions". People love to procrastinate but don’t like to be rude, and therefore may stall and avoid having to say "No" on the spot. That is why it is up to you as the sales professional to help them see the value of saying "Yes". Remember, sales is about getting a "Yes" or a "No", the "maybes" are not helpful. Now ask yourself how often do you attempt to close the deal? Did you know that 80% of all sales aren't made until after the 5th attempt to close. Make sure you ask for the order because you never know how close a potential buyer might be to saying "Yes".

6- Negative Tension I have seen this happen with my own eyes, a sales professional focusing on down selling their competition so much, that they neglect to up sell their own product or service. Worst of all, this causes negative tension with the potential buyer. It is important to remember that everyone wants to be known as a smart shopper. However, if you keep telling someone that their last decision wasn’t a smart one then two bad things will happen. First, if you bring down your competition which was their previous purchase, you are playing on their insecurities and therefore they may not feel confident in making a decision today (see point #1). Second thing that will happen is that the potential buyer will try to defend their previous purchase which will lead into arguments, during which you will force them to remember all the positives about your competition. You can see why that would add negative tension to the experience, which will kill your sales pitch faster than you can see it coming. In order to avoid doing this, stay on point, ask questions to uncover the customers' wants, needs, problems and desires, and sell them a solution that offers great value to them.

Final Words Remember when potential buyers say "No" that it doesn't mean they won't buy, it simply means they are unsure that purchasing is the right decision based on your interactions up to that point. There are common objections that sales professionals handle well but these 5 hidden reason why people won't buy are easily overlooked. Make sure that you pay close attention to your buyers and help them find the perfect solution. Asking questions and listening with the intent to understand is the best way to figure out what is holding someone back from making the purchasing today and becoming a loyal customer to you.

Thanks for reading! Raphael Huwiler