Posted by
Dr. K on Wednesday, July 29, 2009 10:29:29 AM
The Hard Sell
I don’t know how many times I encountered the “Hard Sell,” where the seller really wants the sale, for what ever reason, commission, profit, not take a loss, or too big of a loss. The seller pressures the buyer to buy. A few times in my purchasing career I fell for the hard sell. Usually, I was disappointed with the result. It turned out I had purchased something I really didn’t want, or it wasn’t of the quality I wanted, or I didn’t get anything for my money. I am reminded of the door-to-door magazine schemes. The hard sell is really all about the pressure placed upon the seller to sell and tranferring that pressure to the buyer, making him feel he is missing out on a bargain that may not be there tomorrow.
Now Americans are seeing the hard sell on this health care reform business.
The hard sell is all about transferring the pressure on the seller to the buyer. Thus, the buyer is made to feel obligated to buy, and even guilt ridden, for not buying. This is all about what the seller wants and not what is best for the buyer. The seller doesn’t even care if the buyer can afford what is being sold. The important thing is for the seller to make the sale.
Anymore, when I encounter the hard sell I step back, fold my arms in a defensive posture and really listen to what is being said by the seller and look at what is being sold. I ask myself: Do I really need this? Again and again I ask myself, do I really need this? Who is under pressure here? I am under no pressure to buy. All of the pressure is on the seller to sell his idea, product, service or whatever. I remind myself that I am under no pressure to buy. There is always tomorrow, and tomorrow and tomorrow to buy something.
So, the more the seller talks, the more I tighten my defensive posture. Why? To protect myself from buying something I don’t need, want, or can’t afford. Don’t write a check that you will later have to stop payment on. Don’t buy in the first place. There is always tomorrow. And the seller will still be there with his B.S. But there comes a point of diminishing returns for the seller to keep selling, repeating his spiel to make the sale, until finally, the target market gets bored, irritated, and finally disgusted with the never ending spiel. “Hi, I’m Billy Mays, and I’d like to share with you the most amazing HEALTHCARE REFORM EVER INVENTED BY POLITICIANS! IT SLICES, IT DICES, IT CURES EVERYTHING, UNLESS YOU’RE OLD AND THEN WE HAVE A CREMATION PLAN FOR YOU! AND, THIS IS THE BEST PART, IT DOESN'T COST YOU ANYTHING AND YOU GET TO KEEP WHAT YOU ALREADY HAVE!”
Really. Then why are you trying to sell it to me? And what do YOU get out of it? And why is there so much pressure placed upon me to buy something I already have? Or if I don't want it, why should I be forced to buy it?
Dr. K