A buddy of mine called me up yesterday and asked how NLP and hypnotic language could help him in his career as a salesman. Specifically, he asked what kinds of language patterns he could use. It’s a common question.
Ideal State
The things is that a lot of therapeutic work has to do with helping a client get into the best emotional/mental state for a particular context and link the state to that context. As an example, someone who has a fear of public speaking might benefit from feeling confidence or calmness in the public speaking context. Someone who smokes in order to relax could use that feeling of relaxation in those situations in which they used to smoke–without the cigarette. So, in therapy, you figure out what emotional state might benefit the client and you link it, hypnotically, to the context in which the client needs it.
Well, in sales or influence of any kind, you can use the same technique. There’s a caveat though. If you don’t use the technique in a win-win manner it will come back to bite you in the butt! Here’s how it goes…
The Sales Boosting Process
1) Figure out what state would most likely result in the potential customer buying your product.
2) Get that state running in them and anchor it.
3) Fire off that anchor while having them consider buying whatever you have to offer.
For step #1, ask the customer when was the last time they bought something similar that worked out well for them. If you ask them about an experience that worked out well for them, you have a better chance of helping them make a better decision–not just the one that (temporarily) benefits you.
When you fire off the anchor that triggers the ideal buying state, you’ll greatly increase the chances they’ll buy it. Remember though, you’re triggering a resourceful state that helps them make good decisions too! If what you have to offer doesn’t fit for them, they’ll likely reject it.
To me, that’s a win/win. You boost the chances of selling and also quickly disqualify folks who are not a good fit for what you have to offer.
