Inbound Sales or Why Pushy Salesmen Are Obsolete

• Thursday, December 22nd, 2016
• Blog
• 9 responses

Remember the iconic car salesman that managed to sell you a sports Corvette even though you wanted a mini-van? He used to sweet talk you and tell you what you really need. Well, his days are over. Due to the buyer empowerment driven by ease of access to information, it is now the customer who dictates the terms of a sale. And businesses large and small alike have no choice but to adapt. In other words, this is the era of inbound sales.

What Is the Inbound Sales Methodology?

An inbound salesman takes into account the buyer’s journey and supports him through every stage of it: awareness => consideration => decision. If you follow the inbound sales methodology, you will not be pushing your most pricey product or service. Instead, you will be offering the item that your prospect needs exactly when he needs it.

An inbound salesperson is more of an adviser that guides a prospect through his journey offering extra information and helping him evaluate his options. Inbound sales are customer-centric; they are focused primarily on making the buyer solve his point of pain, not on selling him as much as possible, even products or services he doesn’t really need.

Inbound Sales Create Excellent Customer Experiences

You may think that this approach is somewhat inefficient: why not sell as much as possible? Well, it’s quite simple: today’s buyer has access to information and a lot of it. Typically, when you reach him, he has already done some research (he is most likely in the consideration phase). And, if he hasn’t, he will do it before making a purchase, regardless of your sales pitch.

Today’s customers can filter ads and aggressive sales pitches from relevant information. Thus, even if you manage to sell something using the “old school” methodology, that buyer will never turn into a loyal customer or a brand ambassador who tells everyone about the excellent service you offered him.

On the other hand, the inbound sales methodology is designed to create state-of-the-art customer experiences that leave the buyer delighted and talking about your brand. You don’t shut the door as soon as the sale is made. You make sure your customer has everything he needs, including support, post-sale nurturing and, yes, the possibility to change his mind.

By eliminating the classical buyer’s remorse (a very common side effect to pushy sales techniques), you make sure that the customer stays happy even after making the purchase. You have not only gained extra revenue, you have built a relationship that can last for years.

Not sure how to create your inbound sales funnel? We can help.

Adriana Tica

Adriana Tica is an expert marketer and copywriter, with 10 years in the field, most of which were spent marketing tech companies. She is the Owner and Founder of Idunn. In October 2019, she also launched Copywritech, a digital marketing agency that provides copywriting, SEO content writing, and strategy services to companies in the tech industry.