Seven years ago, I was managing a cafe and our retail shelves were absolutely jam packed…every, single, inch, of our retail shelves were filled to the brim of coffees, merch, and art. I thought, “The fuller the shelves, the more we would sell” but there was no way for a guest to really SEE what was on the shelves because they were so full. I needed Marie Kondo to have her way with the shelves, but I didn’t know what added value to me or our customers. This belief was supported by the fact that we did in fact, sell more merch once I filled the shelves, but that was only because there was no merch on the shelves prior to when I took over the cafe.

A few months later, I hired an assistant manager who had worked in retail for years and she suggested that we create some space between the items so that our guests could see the items better and thus make their buying decisions easier. She said this was the approach that the national brand’s she worked for used. So, reluctantly, I agreed to give it a try and what do you bet happened? We sold more retail items…a lot more.

Now to the big question, why did this happen? Really, it flows out of human nature. As people, our brains automatically seek to create patterns when we are receiving new information or data. Even if all the options are laid out in front of a person, if the shelves are cluttered, if they aren’t able to see the differences, compare the similarities and be able to imagine themselves owning that bag, bottle, or whatever it is that you are selling.

However, if the shelves are organized, easy to see each of the individual products, the buyers are more likely to see themselves needing that thing on the shelf. This principle holds true in ecommerce, retail, cafes and really in any sales activity. It’s human nature to want to create patterns, compare this to that to ultimately to make an informed buying decision. 

If we distill this down to it’s first principle, when a business doesn’t allow people to digest information and data, they are actually denying the human instinct to create patterns to aid in their decision making. I.e. they can’t see the items even if they are right in front of them. Our job as business owners and brand managers is to make sure that your people can see what you have to sell.

So if people only buy what they see, how can you make sure that your buyers SEE, what you are selling? Truthfully, you are likely too close / it’s too personal for you to be able to improve this process on your own…at least at the beginning.

Start here: Serve, Don't Sell.

What do we mean by serve, don’t sell? We are all selling something, and if you take the same approach as everyone else, you know the, “Hey, buy my thing…it's better cuz I sell it”... it’s going to be a race to the bottom.

How about another approach? How about serving your buyer’s, instead of trying to sell to them? Your audience and even prospects already know that you are selling something. However, when you serve them, what you are doing is inviting them into benefiting from your expertise and participating in what you do as well as gaining their trust. That’s a win, win, win because trust is the currency of the modern buyer.

In a retail space this can easily be practiced by curating your space in such a way that it serves the needs of your buyer’s. Perhaps the most purchased items are closest to the door and maybe they are at eye level so they can be easily found, the prices are clearly marked, and the register is easy to find. If you offer services or some other more nuanced product, this can be accomplished through how you share information with your buyer’s, how cumbersome the buying process is, or even how easy it is to be connected to your customer service. The key to the Serve, Don’t Sell approach is that you are seeing their needs as opportunities to solve problems instead of seeing needs as opportunities to make money.

By taking this approach, you are showcasing your work, the value you offer and your values as an organization without emitting the air of “we are the best”, hard sales, or putting your competition down. Why? Because it's simply about serving your target audience vs seeing them as dollar signs.

So you’ve got the Serve, Don’t Sell down pat…what’s next in ensuring your buyers are able to SEE what you are selling? It’s time to evaluate every place that your buyers might interact with your brand, content and products. The main places that you’ll want to focus on are your website, branding, social media, any sort of printed material that you give your buyers, and obviously your retail space if you have one.

3 Steps To Help Your Buyer’s SEE What You Sell

1. Audit Your Brand

You know what they say about editing your own work…”Don't do it!” You can't see the imperfections that are apparent to others because you are too close to the work itself. You built it, made it, designed it, dreamed it up. It’s yours, and you love it which makes you the least qualified to see the defects, imperfections, and problems that are apparent to others. So find someone you trust, perhaps they are in the same industry or perhaps they are an agency like us. Ask them to do an audit of your brand, content and buying experience  such as your:

• Website 

• Social Media Channels

• Print Collateral (i.e. pamphlets, business cards, etc.)

• Buying Process

The goal is not for them to tear you or your work down, but for you to receive an outsider's perspective of how others understand the work you do based on the experience of your brand. Before they begin, share your big vision for your business and the 2-3 key activities that your business does. By sharing this, it will give context to the auditor what pieces may be missing or needing to be further flushed out. Remember the goal here is to make sure buyers can SEE what you are trying to sell.

The key questions to ask your auditor are:

• What makes sense about our products and or services?

• Is there something that we failed to communicate in our retail location, website, or social media?

• What questions about us were not answered along the way?

• What was the easiest product for you to purchase?

• If you could only make one change to anything that my business does, what would you do?

The folks who don’t have a horse in the race of your business will be able to offer better insights that only they could see. Once they offer these insights, seek to receive the feedback as if you were not personally connected to your brand. This will help you receive it well and be more objective in the next steps.

2. Review your buying process.

A huge mistake I often find folks making is that it’s been too long since they actually bought their own products or services. Seems simple, but you’ve got to go through this process at least quarterly. This will remind you of your customer’s experience, how your content and products look during the buying process, and if there are areas of opportunity to better showcase who and what you offer. Remember, people only buy what they see, so you need to be sure they SEE what you want them to. It should be easy to SEE your products and easy to buy them.

By going through the buying process quarterly, you may learn that there are inefficiencies, bugs in your system, or simple changes that can improve the process and better share the who, what and why of your work.

A few questions to ask while reviewing your buying process are:

• Are all of your products clearly shown?

• Are the highest value products easiest to find?

• Is there a way to shorten this process?

• Are there any steps that are repetitive / can we get rid of any steps?

• How is important information communicated? Are there pieces that could be clearer?

• If you were your customer, what else would you want out of your buying experience?

• Is it clear why you do the work you do?

• Are the products or services on offer hard to find?

3. Ask your customers.

Finally, ask the folks who already buy your products / services. Your customers obviously already trust you enough to give you their business and they might be able to provide some helpful insight. Send them a questionnaire or a survey. There are lots of free ways that you can do this and the results can be super helpful to your brand. If you do this, don’t forget to thank them for sharing their experience and context.

Some of the questions to ask your customers are:

• What products do you buy primarily and why?

• Do we clearly communicate about new products? How would you like to hear about new products?

• Are you ever surprised when we release new products?

The key behind helping your buyers SEE what you have to sell, comes down to their experience of your brand and understanding that people only buy what they see. How will they know that they can buy the hottest new thing you offer, if you don’t show it to them? And it doesn’t mean you have to spam them but rather to seek opportunities to communicate about your products and services in a way that serves them. If you are serving, you are actually selling.

Are you finding that your buyers aren’t SEEING your offerings? Or maybe you need help figuring out how to serve instead of “selling”?

We’d love to help! If you’d like to set up a free 30 minute call, you can reach us at thelevco@gmail.com.

Be well!

Luke