We receive permission first, then we proceed to ask questions of the buyer. We want to gain a sense of whether what we have said makes sense for them to use us or not. If there is not a match, then we should hightail it out of there and go find a buyer who is a match. Having understood that we have a solution for their problem, we now need to present that solution. In the face to face world, this is much easier, because we are sitting a mere meter away from the buyer and we have 100% access to their total body language. Every “tell” gives us information about their degree of interest or hesitancy. Online, this is more opaque and so more difficult to digest. As a consequence, we need a higher level of engagement with the online buyer.
Most salespeople in Japan just skip the needs analysis part and go straight into their solution pitch. Because we are not doing that, we are better armed to have a relevant conversation that interests the buyer. Consequently, we will have a better access to their concentration. We finish asking and receiving answers to need questions and then we tell them if we have a solution that is a fit.
If we do, we proceed to the next stage. Once we start rolling out the facts and nuts and bolts of both what our solution is and how it works, we have to be very careful to control the conversation. Too much time spent on the finer points, sacrifices time for expounding the benefits of the product or service. Many Japanese buyers are very detail oriented, so they will just keep going with the detail of the detail of the detail. Their risk averse natures drives them for the nitty gritty, so they can ascertain the degree of risk attached to this deal. We have to remember, they have all been trained by dud salespeople to get the pitch and then spend the rest of the meeting time, tearing it to shreds to check for any danger flags about this purchase.
We don’t need to go into super detail and instead we should segue into what this data point does for their company. The solution must meet their needs and we now draw on our memory of what they told us was their company’s need and what was their personal need. We wrap the detail inside the relevant benefits now. For example, “the software allows the buyer to agree electronically in the document and the result is stored in a blockchain file”. This is the fact, now we bring forth the benefit, “this action can be taken anywhere, there is no need for someone be in the office”.
The next stage is to attach some evidence to the benefit. Before we do that, we have to reflect on just who is sitting in front of us. Are they the CEO looking at longer term strategic issues, the CFO worrying about cash flow, the technical buyer concerned about the spec match or the user buyer worried about post purchase service guarantees, if something goes wrong? Based on their interest we choose the “evidence buyer story” to suit.
An example of the benefit and the evidence would sound like this: “XYZ company had a very analogue system of paper files, which all needed to be maintained and stored somewhere taking up a lot of physical space. Only one person could work on a file, at a time, because it was a linear work flow”. We now elevate the benefit through the client example to show how this benefit worked in application inside the firm. We highlight what was the difference that it made. “They noticed a couple of things immediately. Because it was an electronic document, multiple people could work on it at once, which substantially saved a lot of time and freed many people up for other more urgent work. Productivity was substantially increased.
They could have the document approved online, so there was no need to travel on crowded trains risking infection with Covid-19, just to attach an old style hanko to the document. Staff were very relieved about that and very thankful for the innovation. This improved the engagement and morale of the team, making for a happier, more productive working environment.
The proof of the agreement was stored in the blockchain, so it could not be tampered with nor forged and was kept secure”.
In a face to face meeting, where we can read copious amounts of body language, we would move straight into a trial close, such as “how does that sound so far?”. At this point, we are looking for some feedback to gauge interest.
In the online world, we need to keep engaging the client as much as possible. As the seller, we have been speaking for quite a while, with the buyer just sitting there silent onscreen. We need to get them engaged and talking.
We can say, “You mentioned working from home was popular with many staff who were worried about mixing with strangers on trains. You also mentioned that productivity had suffered at the same time with people working from home, so solutions which would improve that situation would be helpful. How would improving productivity and staff engagement impact your business?”. This is a very low key approach, highly suitable for Japan. We are asking for an opinion, not a decision at this point. We are collaborating with the buyer, to mentally place them in the position of seeing this operating in their company. Their reaction will tell us if they are rejecting or supporting this solution. If there was interest we would move straight into a close, “shall we go ahead and get this started?”.
The key point is to wrap the benefit into a bundle, that captures the needs they mentioned and the evidence of where that same situation worked somewhere else already. Japanese buyers don’t like being guinea pigs, they like others to do the experimenting and therefore they love precedent.
Finally, remember that what we say needs to be supported by how we say it, so we need BIGLUC. B, for body movement, showing energy during the call. I, for increased energy. The video decreases our voice strength by 20%, so we have to ramp up our voice tone. G, for gestures. Even when seated, we should be using gestures, when making our points. If using a green screen background, use the gestures in front of you own body, rather than to the sides, where your hand will suddenly disappear. L, for leaning forward. Get on the edge of your seat and lean into the camera. U, for using facial expressions to back up your arguments. Lastly, C, for camera. It is diabolically difficult to do, but when you speak, talk to the buyer directly, by looking at the camera lens, rather than at their face on the screen.
So BIGLUC will bring you better luck with your online sales efforts.
