Often, a company buys from a salesperson because that salesperson had a great pitch. It is not always because the product is better than others on the market. “You could have a great offering, but if you don’t know how to sell it and pitch it, it doesn’t matter what your offering is,” says Justin Cohen, who tells us how to pitch to win in this video interview, hosted by John Golden.
In this sales expert interview, learn about:
- How to use storytelling as a tactic for selling
- Using your positive testimonials in storytelling
- The visuals created in the brain when telling stories
- Problem-focused selling
- Salesperson Story Teller
The secret source to “pitch to win” is storytelling. When applying storytelling to sales and marketing, you create a memorable experience for the buyer, build trust, and show your personality. In a speech, 60% of people will remember the story, while only 5% of people will remember the facts. During a sales pitch, a person will take in what you say because they will remember the story that was told with it. Stories are so compelling that they create connections in the brain. You create an empathic reaction in your consumer that will create a connection, build rapport, and make it easier to close a sale.
Testimonials as Stories
When telling a story focused on success or positive testimonials, you’re saying to the client, “this worked for everyone else, so it will work for you too.” The consumer makes the extrapolation between the previous results and the kind of results that they should expect. These testimonials provide credibility and encourage trust building.
Problem Focused Selling
The testimonials are often real-life examples of how the product or service has benefited someone, or how not having the product has lead to some pain. One of the biggest pitfalls in a sales call is that there is too much focus on the solution and the positives, but not the problem. People are twice as motivated to rid themselves of pain as they are to seek pleasure. “We are in the problem-solving business. Sell to the pain. When you highlight that pain and then show how you have solved it or will solve it, or how not having the product will cause them more pain, you’re telling them they need to buy your product or service,” said Cohen.
For more on how to pitch to win, and how to integrate storytelling into your sales pitch, watch this expert sales interview.
About our Host:
John is the Amazon bestselling author of Winning the Battle for Sales: Lessons on Closing Every Deal from the World’s Greatest Military Victories and Social Upheaval: How to Win at Social Selling. A globally acknowledged Sales & Marketing thought leader, speaker, and strategist. He is CSMO at Pipeliner CRM. In his spare time, John is an avid Martial Artist.
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