Do you sell something “new” and “exciting”.

“This product/service is a game changer. It's going to change the way you think about _____________.”

Having something new and different is great. It's going to save your customers lots of time and money. It's all good.

Yet customers still hesitate and resist moving forward. Why would anyone want to stay with old, inefficient and more expensive when there's a much better solution at a lower cost?

One of the main reasons people don’t move forward in sales is a fear of making a decision, fear of making a mistake, fear of doing something new.

During your presentation you take steps to show the customer how your product/service will save them time and money, or lead to increased revenues. Then you demonstrate that it’s true – demonstrate physically, or with stories, or with a series of leading questions.

So once you have established that your product/service will save them time and/or money – why would any rational person not immediately move forward?

To overcome this fear of moving forward, let’s explore one of the most interesting fields of psychological study: Habit Theory.

Research says that a full 60% of our daily activity is habit driven. Habits are important because they allow our minds to focus on the more important things and leave the mundane, repeating tasks to habit.

Our morning routines are entirely unconscious habit. I put on my left sock, then my right sock, then my left shoe, then my right shoe. Try changing the sequence and immediately something doesn’t feel right.

We’ve all had the experience of “knowing” that we are forgetting something – we can’t figure out what it is but we “KNOW” we are forgetting something. Sure enough, a few minutes later we remember what it is. If you feel like you’re forgetting something, it’s a very good bet that you probably are forgetting something.

Our morning commute is done almost completely unconsciously – by habit. 70% of automobile accidents happen within 10 miles of home. It’s safe to say that the vast majority of these accidents happen during the commute to or from work. Accidents are much more likely to happen when you break your routine. For example, if one morning you have to stop by the bank on your way to work, you are off your routine and things just don’t feel right.

Now let’s circle back to the idea that customers have a fear of making a decision, or making a mistake, or doing something new.

Habit Theory explains why people hesitate to move forward with a great new product or solution – even though it is clear it will be to their benefit.

When it comes to customer psychology, the main reason people hesitate is because they are comfortable in their existing habits. They are uncomfortable even thinking about doing something new. Even if it is more expensive or more time consuming to do it the old way, they prefer doing it the old way. Habits are deeply ingrained in their unconscious mind.

They will give you all kinds of reasons for not moving forward - price, timing, need to think about it, etc. But in many cases the real reason is an unconscious psychological discomfort with habit change.

The more you remind them how new and exciting it is, the deeper their unconscious resistance to changing their current habits.

So we counteract this tendency during our presentation by tying our “new” product or service to their “old” way of doing things.

During your presentation, find comparisons and analogies that tie the new way of doing things to something they are familiar with.

"It's as easy as brushing your teeth - you just take this one pill every morning then forget all about it"

"You will use this system exactly the way you do now. In fact, all the user names and passwords will be exactly the same"

"This is just like going to your doctor once a year for your checkup"

Rather than creating a whole new way of thinking, tie it to something they already do, or tie it to a habit they already have - it will greatly reduce their unconscious resistance. They will see your product or solution as the "same", not something "different" and unconsciously, they will be more receptive to moving forward.