- Original Poster
- #1
I do not claim to have come up with this theory, but I found it very useful for my meetings with clients, and a quick search on this forum suggests nobody has posted it up here before.
The 4 personality traits, and how to sell to them
People's personalities can typically be split into four categories:
Amiable
How to sell to an amiable - they do business with people they like rather than necessarily those offering the best deal. Send them a Christmas card, ask them about their personal lives (nothing too intrusive!) and they'll be putty in your hands.
Analytical
How to sell to an analytical - persuaded to buy based on facts and statistics. They don't want to be your friend so chatty phone calls will annoy them. On the other hand, they are more likely to read lengthy e-mails showing how buying your product/service saves X% of businesses Y hours of their time and £Z in the first year.
Driver
How to sell to a driver - don't waste their time. Whatever you're offering, get to the point quickly. Succinctly explain what your product/service can do for them. They'll make a quick decision so you'll either get an easy sale, or be immediately tell you where to go.
Expressive
How to sell to an expressive - don't bore them with facts. Make sure you're excited about your product/service, because if you are, they will often follow suit. However, they can be the type to seem extremely interested but never actually sign on the dotted line!
As a rule, amiables and drivers are considered opposites so often don't get on, and the same for analyticals and expressives. Should be fairly obvious from the above why.
But...by being aware of the above, if you're able to spot which quadrant your customer is predominantly in (most people will typically show character traits from two quadrants, though often one more dominant), you can tailor your sales pitch to maximise your chance of success!
The 4 personality traits, and how to sell to them
People's personalities can typically be split into four categories:
Amiable
- Dependable, loyal, and easy going.
- Like things that are non-threatening and friendly
- Hate dealing with cold hard facts
- Can be a bit wishy-washy and avoid proper business discussions
How to sell to an amiable - they do business with people they like rather than necessarily those offering the best deal. Send them a Christmas card, ask them about their personal lives (nothing too intrusive!) and they'll be putty in your hands.
Analytical
- Systematic and well organised
- Appreciate facts and figures
- Enjoy completion of detailed tasks
- Can be over cautious and insist on doing things "by the book"
How to sell to an analytical - persuaded to buy based on facts and statistics. They don't want to be your friend so chatty phone calls will annoy them. On the other hand, they are more likely to read lengthy e-mails showing how buying your product/service saves X% of businesses Y hours of their time and £Z in the first year.
Driver
- Huge internal motivation to succeed
- Focussed on getting results
- Typically achieve a lot in a short space of time
- Can be considered aggressive
How to sell to a driver - don't waste their time. Whatever you're offering, get to the point quickly. Succinctly explain what your product/service can do for them. They'll make a quick decision so you'll either get an easy sale, or be immediately tell you where to go.
Expressive
- Very outgoing and enthusiastic
- High energy levels
- Creative people, good at coming up with ideas
- Not so good at seeing those ideas through to completion
How to sell to an expressive - don't bore them with facts. Make sure you're excited about your product/service, because if you are, they will often follow suit. However, they can be the type to seem extremely interested but never actually sign on the dotted line!
As a rule, amiables and drivers are considered opposites so often don't get on, and the same for analyticals and expressives. Should be fairly obvious from the above why.
But...by being aware of the above, if you're able to spot which quadrant your customer is predominantly in (most people will typically show character traits from two quadrants, though often one more dominant), you can tailor your sales pitch to maximise your chance of success!
