Pushing Their Hot Buttons 

Wouldn’t it be great to meet any new customer, either on the phone or in person, and within two minutes be able to determine what their personality type is?  What their “hot buttons” are and exactly how you can present your product to them so the customer says “yes.” 

Human beings perceive the world by using their five senses: touch, taste, smell, sight and hearing.  The main senses are touch, sight and hearing.  Let’s learn more about these three characteristics and how you can use this knowledge to determine exactly how to sell to your prospect. 

The key is observation.  Determine whether your client is more Visual, Auditory (hearing oriented) or Kinesthetic (feeling oriented) by listening to or observing their words or actions.   

1)      Visual - These people talk at a rapid pace. This is because they are thinking in pictures and their words are trying to keep up. Physically, they will often move fast as well and seem to be very animated. You will notice them using a lot of “visual” words and phrases:  “I see what you mean. This looks good to me.  Show me what you mean.  Let’s have a look at the paperwork.  I can picture it.  Draw me a picture so I’ll understand.” 

2)      Auditory - These people talk and move at a more medium pace. They will use a lot of “auditory” words and phrases:  “That sounds good to me. That really resonates with me. Tell me again. Explain that to me one more time. I hear what you’re saying. Listen, this is what I want.  Could you talk me through this?” 

3)      Kinesthetic - Feeling people speak and move slowly. They are often touching themselves; for example, standing with their arms crossed or their hands in their pockets; sitting with their hands on their legs or clasped on their laps. They tend to use feeling words and phrases: “That feels right to me. I’m comfortable with what you’re saying. I’m going to go with my gut on this one.  I need to try that on.  I’d like to sit on it for a while.” 

Obviously, we’ve all said some or all of these things at one point, but normally, one trait will be dominant over the others. By determining which characteristic your prospect falls into, you can use those senses to guide your prospect to the close. With a little practice, you’ll be on your way to knowing what their hot buttons are. Once you’ve determined their dominant characteristic, use that as it relates to your product.  

For example, if your product is candles and your customer is visual.  You’ll want to use terms like; see how beautiful these candles will look in your home, notice how the wax melts completely, let me show you how you can make money by owning your own candle company. 

If your customer is auditory; you’ll want to explain how great these candles will look in their home, they’ll want to hear ingredients that make the wax melt completely, you’ll want to walk them through how they can make money by owning their own candle company. 

If your customer is kinesthetic (feeling) you’ll want them to hold the product, feel how smooth the product is, ask if they feel comfortable learning how they can make extra income by owning their own candle company. 

Now you can see how incredibly valuable it will be to take those two minutes and listen to or observe which category your customers fall into before selling to them and turn that “no thank you” into “yes please!” 

^©2006,
Karen Reddick, Owner of The Red Pen Editor and V-And-E-Services, provides virtual assistance and editorial services for authors, writers and small businesses. Contact
Karen at 720-870-6435 or karen@TheRedPenEditor.com.  Visit her web site at www.TheRedPenEditor.com.