Written by: Vickie Sullivan | May 28, 2020
Sales: How to Use Pain Points in a Positive Way
Many sales experts tell you to drill down on buyers’ pain points. But if you have an aspirational platform, how does that work? When you are a positive thinker (like many of us are), does focusing on the problem go too much against your motivational brand?
A conversation I had with a prospective client brought up this interesting question: How do you approach the dark side in a positive way? Do you hammer on the pain points or do you ignore them and be … well, aspirational? My vote: Use the pain to support your positive message. Two reasons why this works in sales conversations:
• A path to empathy. Acknowledging the dark side, allows you to empathize with the person. You can connect with them by sharing similar stories. This is a great way to showcase a client story or case study. The message you are sending to the prospect: You are not alone. And you are not wrong because you are in this situation. This approach is the best of both worlds: It shows you are aware but also certain in solutions.
• Context to an innovative solution. Drilling down on certain aspects of the problem can lay the groundwork for a solution that goes against the status quo. Framing pain points by highlighting certain details can show discernment and an on-the-ground perspective.
Listen: Two Kinds of Pain Points that Introduce New Ideas
Pain and problems are all around us. And that’s a good thing; if there weren’t any, no one would need our help. But we can approach these challenges in a way that showcases our positive role and contributions. We can be aspirational and problem solvers.
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