Six Reasons Why Face-to-Face Trumps Mass Marketing

By Alan Bayham

Turn on the TV or radio, surf the Internet, open your mail (or e-mail) – what do you notice? You probably have a high volume of advertisements and marketing campaigns targeting you, begging for your attention and your business. But do you open every sales envelope or listen to every commercial? No. Then, why would you think your customers would be any different?

Spam e-mail, blogging, instant messaging, television, canned phone messages, and other electronic methods of mass marketing have desensitized the American buyer to these tactics of selling. Despite all the surveys and studies into what buyers think, people don’t make purchases rationally. They make buying decisions based upon emotion. A product or service is either going to make the buyer “feel” better, or rid him of  “pain.” Sometimes, buyers aren’t even aware of the need that is causing this pain, and this is when face-to-face selling comes into play.

The necessity of “closing the deal” or “making the sale” is equally important to various sales professionals, pharmaceutical manufacturer representatives, bankers and small businesses owners. Regardless of who is doing the selling or what the product and service is, face-to-face selling is more effective than the mass marketing.

Still a nonbeliever? Then, consider the following six things that only face-to-face communication can do:

Gain the buyer’s attention – Overcome “Marketing Noise”: When you are in front of a prospect or client, you have the enviable position of having his or her complete attention. However, just like TV commercials, you still must get the buyer’s attention immediately. Therefore, enthusiasm and energy are just as important as the conviction about the merits of your product or the advantages you have over your competition. Selling face-to-face and gaining the attention of a venture capitalist is much more powerful than being another envelope in a sea of letters.

Tailor product benefits to specific needs of the buyer – Sell Shoes to the Shoemaker: Your presentation to potential clients can vary based upon their specific and individual needs. For example, a surgeon may need different results from a particular drug than a primary care physician. And although the drug you’re promoting may work in both venues, face-to-face selling allows specific product features to be linked to specific buyer needs. The surgeon may like the fact that your sleeping pill causes “retrograde amnesia” patients to forget the preparation for surgery, but primary care physicians may find this undesirable in their patients. While ads can be customized to specific perceived needs and placed in print media targeted to a specific prospect, these ads may not be received the same by different buyer behavioral types.

Tailor a presentation to a specific buyer type: You would not sell a widget to Donald Trump in the same manner you would to Richard Simmons, as Mr. Simmons would not respond as favorably to direct selling approach as “The Donald.” While it is true that everyone is different and unique, it’s also true that people tend to fall into four basic behavioral types when it comes to buying a service or product. The success (or failure) of the sales call is dependent upon the sales representative distinguishing the correct behavioral type of the prospect, the sales message and also the appropriate communication style. The product is the same in all sales calls, but in order to close the sale effectively, the approach and the message should be different to each category. Therefore, effective salespeople can tailor their face-to-face presentation styles to their clients’ specific personality in order to gain their trust and acceptance.

Allow the seller to view the non-verbal communications of the buyer – The Original Instant Messaging: It’s been said that 75 percent of communication is non-verbal. Selling face-to-face allows you to better gauge how your client is accepting your presentation and if additional probing is necessary. Facial expressions, body posture and vocal tone and pitch, as well as other non-verbal communications, can serve as instant feedback about the effectiveness and relevancy of your presentation. This essential ability is non-existent in mass marketing techniques; it’s like paying a basketball game with the scoreboard covered.

Provide instant answers to buyer questions: While buyers can always call an 800-number or log on to a FAQ Web page, the time to answer questions is never more opportune than during the presentation. This way, salespeople cannot only overcome objections, but they can also determine if their assumptions about the buyer’s needs are correct. Then, the seller can instantaneously adjust the presentation to address the buyer’s unique needs.

Close the deal instead of waiting for buyer to make the move – Real-Time Selling: Face-to-face selling allows you to control the buying process instead of allowing the prospect to control the process. This allows you to control the speed and direction of the product pitch. Also, the more time that passes after the presentation, the less likely the sale will be made. The best time to make the sale is when the buyer is ready and sitting in front of you – not after the buying impulse has passed.

While mass marketing is an excellent tool to create awareness about your product or service, it cannot compare to face-to-face communication when it comes to making the sale or closing the deal. After all, do your profits depend more upon “circulation,” “calls,” “exposures,” and “hits” or upon “units sold”?

Alan Bayham is a sought-after business consultant and trainer with a master’s degree in organizational management, combined with more than 30 years of experience in leadership, management, sales, and marketing training.  As the president of Bayham Consulting, LLC, he has consulted with and developed customized training programs for companies ranging from small- and mid-sized businesses to Fortune 500 corporations. For more information, contact Alan at 504-259-8682 or visit www.bayhamconsulting.com.

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