When you're speaking to clients, it's difficult to determine exactly how much information to give them on your product.
If you ask the average person how much information to give a client, they’ll probably say, “Don't give them too little but don't give them too much.” That’s useless advice.
How much information you give clients is an important factor in the overall sales process. Unfortunately the quantity of information given isn’t something considered by many salespeople.
A good rule of thumb to use for giving information to clients is that the more experienced a buyer is, the more information you can throw at them.
Knowledgeable Buyer
When dealing with a knowledgeable buyer, you can feel free to talk about more of the features of the object.
Feature: A fact about the product or service you are offering.
Most people will say, “Don't ever talk about features. You should only discuss the benefits.” I agree that in most cases, using benefits are more productive, but not always. If someone already knows the benefits a product can offer them and their company, there’s no use going over them again.
Benefit: The end result of what you get from the product. Usually refers to being wealthier, having more time, being better looking, or more successful.
An experienced buyer will compare the information you give them to their existing mental knowledge base. This means you need to show a little more expertise when describing the product and its specifications. Generally, the more experienced a buyer is, the less they want to hear benefit language like, “This will give more time to spend with your family.” It would be much more productive to list any new or improved features instead.
I know telling you to talk about features instead of benefits goes against common “Sales Wisdom”, but try it and see how it works for you.
New Buyer
On the other hand if someone is newer to the buying process or unskilled in whatever you're selling, there is the opportunity to take talk with them about the benefits. Here’s where you follow all the sales books and give them a benefit laden presentation.
The key is knowing when to cut off the information flow. Don’t fall into the trap of giving to much information or you may talk yourself out of a sale.
Giving too much extra information to an uninformed buyer makes it harder for them to come to a decision. They will probably start to consider too many possibilities.
Summary
By keeping the amount of information in line with the buyers expertise, you should find your close rate increasing. Also, don’t be scared to use features in your presentation if your client also knows what you’re talking about.
Kevin,
Great write up. I just lost a sale who told me at the end he had bought the product in his mind before the he got on the sales call with him and after I over saturated him with information I actually talked him out of it. Found your article right after and realized I may have lost a few more because of this in the past. Condensing my pitch and making everything more concise. Thanks for your help.
Hi Matthew. Thanks for leaving your story. It definitely takes practice to monitor the amount of info you’re sharing. Don’t stress out too much about it. I guarantee it won’t be the last time you lose a sale based on the amount of info you provide to a client. I still need to watch myself as I get really passionate about my products, and I find myself going overboard with the info I provide.
I’m not sure where you’re at in your sales career, but I might also suggest looking into Trial Closes (I don’t have anything on this, but you can google it). They’re not always appropriate, but you can slide them in during a sales conversation to see if someone is ready to buy and/or if they have any objections. I will say that trial closes can come across as clunky if they’re not done well.