“To build a long-term, successful enterprise, when you don’t close a sale, open a relationship.” – Patricia Fripp
It is said that passion and commitment is what would drive business, and this is true to a very large extent. However, this is not enough to build and sustain a business – there are a number of other aspects too, which go into building a business that would last. A business requires a plan, rules, budget, employees, facilities, networking, and marketing through persuasive pitches to customers. There is no business without customers – and it would not be possible to get the attention and retain customers without being persistent and persuasive. With so many competitors, it has become critical for a company to do things constantly to stand out from the crowd, and it would make sense to do so right at the start – with the perfect pitch.
Using persuasive techniques to communicate is a great way to connect and engage with the target audience, as a wider section of people as well. Persuasive pitches to customers is a way to send a compelling message that resonates, and gets the attention a company desires to gain and benefit from. The fact is that even though it may be possible to place customers into groups / segments, each customer has something unique. They would have their own expectations, business goals, experiences, beliefs, and other such distinctions, which would naturally be a part of every conversation they have with a company. When interacting with such customers, it would be necessary to ensure that the pitch is as persuasive as possible – ensuring that it addresses the uniqueness and distinctiveness of each customer. Persuasive pitches to customers would be those that convey the company’s essence in a way that would align with the goals and aspirations of the particular customer.
Persuasive pitches to customers are not just about facts, data, and statistics. They would weave the core, culture, values, and essence of the company – the story around what the company can do for its customers. It would be about drawing people close enough to become customers by showing them what benefits they would gain from the company, which pain areas the company could alleviate, and most importantly be instrumental in building an emotional appeal. Persuasive pitches to customers should make a humane connection – building a bond with the prospective customers such that recall would be easy, and people would be more inclined to seek the company when they do need its products and or services.
In order to sound even more appealing and grab attention, pitches to prospective customers should have testimonials from existing customers, talking about the benefits they received from your company. This is a great way to get prospective customers interested, without apprehensions – since they would know that they would have someone to check with, regarding the claims of the company. This would make them more inclined to start an association – since gaining reassurance would appeal to their emotions and allay their fears. The most persuasive pitches to customers are the ones that empower a company to connect instantly on an emotional level with customers. There are certain aspects that must be kept in mind when preparing pitches for prospective customers.
Customers want to know that a company is focused on them – their needs, aspirations, emotions, expectations, and demands. To make sure that your pitch would be persuasive and convincing, ensure that it speaks to the prospective customers from their point of view. This means preparing the pitch by viewing the company from the customer’s perspective. In order to ensure persuasive pitches to customers, the most important thing would be to understand the target audience, get to know as much as possible about their expectations, goals, and desires. An in-depth research into the lives and businesses of target customers, will enable a company to craft highly persuasive and engaging pitches, which in turn would attract more customers and repeat business. Knowing who your prospective customers are would help a company create pitches that would connect instantly because they would contain everything that customers would want to hear.
The other thing about persuasive pitches to customers is that they would show the humane side of a company. Avoid jargon, too much data, and statistics – keep it simple and real. Tell it like the story of the company – add pictures and audio, which add to the retention and recall value of the pitch. People are more easily engaged and convinced when they can perceive transparency and honesty through whatever the company may be trying to convey through the pitch. The entire pitch must resonate with truthfulness, and strive to create experiences that would be unique for each customer, such that it would remain at the fore of the customer’s mind long after the pitch ended, and the customer goes back to the routine of business and competition.
Persuasive pitches to customers are those that build and enhance trust. We know that gaining the trust of customers is a hard and long process, which is why companies must start at the beginning, even before an association is formed. To gain the trust of prospective customers, it would be important to show them through the pitch that your company can relate to their issues, understands their goals and aspirations, would do whatever it takes to alleviate their pain, and would be able to address the emotional needs as well of the customers. Rather than enlisting the company’s offerings, it would be better for the company to show how their existing customers were able to benefit through the offerings, and how much success and growth the company’s existing customers may have had since the association. Show the prospective customer that they are special and valued, and whatever would be important to them, would be something that the company would strive to achieve.
As mentioned, gaining as much information about the prospective customer before making the pitch would be beneficial. Doing so will ensure that the pitch begins by identifying the key concerns and needs of the prospect. The first few seconds are usually the most critical – it is here that a company can either build interest or lose the focus of the prospects. By ‘reaching out’ to the most important focus areas of the prospective customers, your company would be able to get their attention and keep them engaged till the very end of the pitch. Persuasive pitches to customers are those that focus on the opportunity a prospective customer is able to see rather than the sale that the company may be attempting to make. The more focus a company can draw on what the prospect could need and want, the higher the chances of a conversion, and may be even long-term business.
The basis of persuasive pitches to customers is that they should convey trust. Prospective customers must be able to see the conviction and confidence of the company in whatever claims it makes. Every piece of content that goes into the pitch must resound with honesty – no lies and no half-truths. This will ensure that when the prospective customer does have questions, the company would be able to answer them swiftly, accurately, and with a high dose of sincerity. Customers are quick to perceive truth, as also lies. Ensure that the message in the pitch is clear, precise, and directly addresses the audience. It is not hard to make persuasive pitches to customers when a company is convinced of its passion and dedication towards making it customers happy and successful.
