7 Things Your Potential Customers Care About More than Price

It’s funny how often businesses get caught up in their head when it comes to developing a pricing strategy. Often times, price truly isn’t the deciding factor. In fact, there are 11 things that rank higher than price when customers are surveyed.

Are you addressing these issues when you’re prospecting or implementing your lead nurturing strategy?

7 Things Customers Care About

This post isn’t ground breaking but these are things people often forget about when it comes to “closing the sale”. This isn’t really about positioning, or sales tactics, this is about some simple things your customers and potential customers care about. Many of them care about these things more than they care about what the cost is.

That doesn’t mean you can price gouge them and expect great results, it just means you need to start addressing these concerns and needs before you ask for the sale.

So lets get started.

1.) They Want YOU To Be There When They Need You!

It’s a common concern. How many info products have you bought about marketing, SEO, make money online, and other courses that you go through but need support and don’t get it?

This is probably one of the reasons I’ve been able to generate so many good reviews of my “Ultimate Guide to Start a Web Agency“, because I’m there when people have issues and questions, along with the need for further clarification.

Your customers want the same. My customers wanted the same as well, when it came to web design, SEO and other services they paid for. This is essential not only to emphasize before you get the sale, but to actually be there afterwards so you continue have a high % of customer retention.

2.) Communication

This doesn’t mean you do well communicating pre-sale. That’s not really what your customers care about, they care about your communication after the sale. This kind of ties into “be there when they need you”.

Return calls quickly. Respond to emails as soon as you can. If you don’t know the answer to a question they ask, find out and get back to them.

Good communication will keep customers happy and they will also happily vouch for you, and bring you more referrals.

3.) Honesty!

Most sales people, and even most business owners will try to steer customers or potential customers towards the most expensive option, or continue pushing add ons just to make more money off the customer.

I don’t think it’s evil to want to maximize your profit, but doing so when you know the customer doesn’t need whatever it is you’re trying to push them to is probably not the best way.

I’ve had plenty of clients that could have been sold on a higher web design package, but I was honest with them and told them it would likely be overkill for what they need.

Being honest, even if it risks a lower sale amount will actually make  you more money in the long run because it builds trust, and increases your conversions. When you’re honest with them, they appreciate that.

Trust is often the biggest hurdle you have to jump.

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4.) Product, market and industry knowledge.

Obviously if you sell something you should know about it, right? This doesn’t mean you have to know more than everyone else in the world, you just need to be competent.

However, that’s just one small, tiny part of “knowledge”. Customers want to buy from someone that has knowledge about the product or service being offered, knowledge of the market you’re in, and knowledge of the industry the customer is in.

Perhaps it is more relevant in B2B sales than it is B2C. My experience comes from B2B, but it makes sense the same would apply with B2C.

5.) Consistent Performance

Performance, to me is one of the only things that matters, so I can see why this is also important to other people.

It’s not JUST about performance but consistent performance that matters. For example, one of the reasons I’ve been trying out new hosting companies is because HostGator’s performance and support used to be awesome but it definitely lacks consistently now.

This is often a complaint by people wanting SEO services…. the company was great…. until it wasn’t. LOL.

Consistent performance is a major concern to those you’re selling to, along with your current customer base.

6.) Show Long Term Interest

This is especially important in B2B sales. Your leads want to do business with someone that is going to be around for the long haul.

When I first started out, I lost sales because I didn’t show stability when I was trying to sell. You need to be willing to commit to a long term relationship.

Show your potential customers you have something to lose if you’re unable to deliver what you say you will. When you show that you’re in it not for the short term sale but for a long term relationship you will find that closing sales becomes much easier!

This leads nicely into #7:

7.) Show That You’re Invested In Their Success

I often would have people that were interested in SEO services, be a little cautious about buying. They’ve been burned before, they were skeptical but they knew they needed something and they didn’t know if they should trust me.

I explained, “I’m the one that has to deliver, one month of my fee is not what I want from you, I want your money for 12 months a year, for as many years as possible. It’s in MY best interest to make sure this is a success.”

Of course, I backed that up with a no contract, no term service. They pay as they go (auto pay) each month and all I ask is if they want to cancel, give me 15 days notice.

Doing this, showed that I’m not out to just make a quick buck, I’m invested in this as well. If I want to continue getting paid, I have to deliver.

Summary

There are a lot of things to compete on. Price isn’t always the most important. I hope this post helps you all close some more sales by focusing on issues your leads actually care about… before price is even in the equation.

Do you have some tips you would like to add? Let me know in the comments below!

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