How often have we looked back after we made the decision and questioned why it was so difficult? There is a good possibility that aspects of the decision were not clear at the time. There were unresolved issues, uncertainty and doubt. These are some of the elements that go into making a decision and cause a decision to be delayed or put off. For the most part, the person did not have a habit or ritual available to help make a decision. The decision process was new, with no history to rely upon.
The same is true in selling a product or service. Your customers may have the same concerns, especially if they have not previously purchased what you are selling. You can look back and determine without hesitation that moving, taking the new job, choosing your college and major was a good or bad decision. But at the time, it was a difficult choice because it may not have aligned with your habits or knowledge, also known as the technical term, schema.
The key in selling is to get the person on the other side of the desk comfortable and try something different if the customer is a frequent or moderate user of the type of product or service that you sell. If the customer is an occasional or first-time buyer, you are in a position to help craft the schema.
How the Customer Thinks
All of us have an autobiographical memory that we call upon when we make a decision. We think about the past to give us an indication of whether the decision we are about to make (in the future) will be a good choice. Will the decision, based on my current knowledge, be accurate and reflect well upon me, my work or my project? The customer fears making a wrong decision that would cause a setback or maybe even negatively affect his or her status.
Remembering this information about your customers provides insights into their personal histories and contributes to understanding how they arrive at decisions. This is especially pertinent if the customer is a frequent user of your product or service and can recall an in-depth history of experiences. The term “neuro association” has been given to this circumstance.
Many theories of decision making draw from cognitive psychology and stress the importance of psychological aspects of the decision-making process, namely, the importance of schemas. Schemas are mental frameworks that help individuals to organize knowledge and experiences, as well as provide a platform from which to interpret and process new information. Once the customer forms specific schemas, they are difficult to change. This may contribute to why salespeople experience difficulty getting customers to consider new and different purchases. Even with repeated visits and multiple communications about a new product or service, unless the salesperson can trigger a discussion that challenges the customer’s current schema and associated scripts for action, change in the selection or purchasing decisions is either unlikely or delayed.
As customers are exposed to new information, they may incorporate this new information into their schemas. This could lead to a modified or new decision-making process. When a request is made to a customer, it is important for the salesperson to assess (to the extent possible) what the customer’s current schemas are with regard to the request at hand. In addition, the salesperson should realize that the information presented needs to be novel enough that it challenges the customer’s current related schemas and is worth evaluating.
