Did you know that up to 60% of B2B buying decisions are made before the seller enters the picture? This statistic tells you at least one thing: today’s customers are better informed than ever. They are looking for solutions, not products or services. Knowing this fact, why do most sales fail?
The answer is simple, in many sales encounters people forget to focus on the customer’s real needs. How many times does it happen that the salesperson monologues and tries to sell their product or service instead of a solution. You can’t really know the solution if you don’t focus on understanding the customer. Two ears and one mouth is the best guide in the textbook of the savvy solution seller.
Customer insight is the heart of solution selling
85% of customers say that their customer experience is as important as the product or service itself. This reflects the important role that emotions play in the customer relationship. Customers want to feel that their needs are understood and that they are cared for.
Customer insight is the foundation of solution selling, as it enables a deeper connection to the customer’s business challenges and objectives. This understanding allows you to provide them with tailored solutions that not only solve problems, but also build trust and loyalty.
Listen, understand, act
1. Listen more than you speak
A mere product list or service catalogue does not convince the customer. Surveys show that customers prefer to be listened to. Emotions emerge when the customer feels heard and understood. Empathy is the secret weapon of solution selling.
2. Tailor your message to your customer's world
Customer insight allows you to move from product demonstration to problem solver. When customers see that you’re truly addressing their business challenges and providing solutions that improve their day-to-day operations, a stronger emotional bond is created.
3. Be part of the customer story
Customers want vendors who are more than just trading partners. They want trusted advisors who are willing to walk alongside them. Even when things don’t go as planned. A genuine commitment to customer success evokes emotion, and it is this emotion that creates long-lasting customer relationships.
The power of facts and the pull of emotions
The success of solution selling depends on how well you balance facts and emotions. According to a McKinsey study, companies that invest in strong customer insight see up to 60% better growth rates compared to competitors that don’t. This is not a coincidence, but the result of the fact that responding to customer needs and listening to their emotions makes sales more personal and effective.
Solution selling is not just a sales process, it’s about continuing and improving the customer story. By understanding your customer, you become a strategic partner who helps them, anticipating problems, providing solutions and reinforcing their sense that their success is your goal too.
Why customer insight is the winning strategy for the future?
Customer insight allows you to exceed expectations and create lasting customer relationships based on trust and mutual respect. It’s never just about business, it’s about people working together, where the role of the salesperson is to help the customer succeed.
Are you ready to grow your sales through genuine customer insight? Now is the time to take sales to a new level and build long-lasting relationships with your customers.
