Can you really sell anything to anyone? Or Am I just joking? Actually, you can, provided you have the right technique in selling. I’ve personally used this technique to sell my ebook before I even made it. And now I am sharing it with you. I guarantee that you will be able to sell just anything you want to sell and become more persuasive in asserting people to buy after reading this article.

Warning: What you’re about to learn is powerful but first you must promise me to only use this method for good and not for manipulation. Don’t continue reading if you don’t want to promise.

So what is this right technique that I am talking about? Its called the 4 Ps of Selling

The 4 Ps in Selling

  • Promise
  • Picture
  • Proof
  • Pitch

Promise

This is what’s called the “hook” – how are you going to attract customers attention. Book titles do this very well. The book “How to Win Friends and Influence” by Andrew Carnegie is a classic example of an attention-grabbing book title. Another one is the title of this article. Remember the title and the promise that I said?

“After reading this I guarantee that you will be able to sell just anything you want to sell and become more persuasive in asserting people to buy”

If you are reading this right now, you were hooked by my promise and you know it works because you are experiencing it firsthand.

Making the promise sets a tone on what you’re selling is all about. Giving your customers a rough idea of what’s about to come.  However, your promise must be deliverable to your customers, otherwise, you will be convicted of a scam.

Picture

When you sell something, you must paint a picture in your customer’s head. This will allow them to fantasize about what would it be like when they are using your product. Increasing the chance of them buying.

How Mike Rowe got a job using this technique

Mike Rowe, the host of Dirty Jobs (as shown on Discovery Channel) talks about how he got into television by implanting a picture into the interviewer’s mind.

One night, his friend Rick got an idea to audition to sell on QVC – you know the late-night infomercials at around 2 to 4 AM. Mike told his friend Rick that he also wanted to audition but his friend wasn’t convinced. So he bet $100 that Mike wouldn’t get hired, then Mike went to the audition the next day.

Mike sat down the chair and the interview started. They didn’t ask him what his background or experience was. They just rolled a pen across the desk and said “Pick up that pen and start talking about it. Make me want it.”

Mike’s Secret

Mike didn’t talk about the pen-like, “This pen has the latest ink technology and has a 0.1 tip on it that makes your writing thin”. He talked about the emotions of having that pen, instead and he said:

“Imagine that you closed a business deal – everything was planned. It took you a long time to have this moment and now they are ready to sign. You reach to your pocket and pulled out a chewed ballpen that costs 4 cents. What impression does that leave on the person you’re having a deal with? What does it say about who you are and how will it affect your business’ future deal? Now, I want you to picture on the other hand you have this pen that’s perfectly designed, german engineered and writes like a feather and you give that to them to seal the deal”

That answer got him the job. Mike didn’t go after the features of the pen, but instead, he talked about the emotions that painted a picture in their head of using that pen.

Remember that in selling, “Humans buy with emotion and justify it logically”. I know you bought something because you imagined how your life would be using it. “Hey dear, I bought these Gucci shoes because it was on sale it came with a lot of bonuses!”. Another example is this article right here. Earlier I said, “I guarantee you will be able to sell anything after reading this article”. I bet you pictured in your mind of what things you can sell when you read that.

Proof

Show, don’t tell! Promise and Pictures aren’t enough. You have to tell people that what you sell actually works. A proof can be a testimonial, reference, or word of mouth. Proof comes after you implanted a picture in someone’s mind.

At the beginning of this article, I told you that I personally used this technique to sell my ebook before I even made it. That was the proof that the 4 Ps actually worked. You can tell anyone about your product all day and not buy anything from you, but the moment that you show something to them, they will surely buy it.

The last P in the 4 Ps is

Pitch

This is presenting your offer and asking them to buy. The reason why most people fail to sell their products is that they focus on pitching their product before implementing the other 3 Ps. Now, don’t get me wrong but you will not be able to sell something when you directly present your offer to someone. So it is important to execute the 3 Ps first before giving the pitch.

Nonetheless, asking someone to buy from you isn’t enough, so you have to amplify your offer using these 3 psychological tactics.

1. Scarcity

People are most likely to buy when something is limited. This is because many people hate missing out on something that is available in a short period of time.

Ever went on a mall that says “75% Sale! For a limited time only”? Most likely you will be compelled to buy something from that mall.

2. Social Proof

Chances of buying increases when a person sees other people buying the product that they are intending to buy. Have you remembered the time when your friend suggested a place to eat and you ate there? That’s social proof.

TV advertisements use this heavily. Companies choose famous actors and actresses to endorse their product because they know the power of social proof. Let’s say you’re an Anne Curtis fan and you saw her commercial on TV using Pantene. Chances are, you will most likely use Pantene as well.

3. Choice

Don’t give your customers 9 choices of your offer when you present it to them. It will make their buying decision “which one to buy” instead of “to buy or not to buy” which will just confuse them and walk away not buying anything.

Like for example, let’s say you sell shoes. Don’t sell shoes and present them with 11 different varieties to choose from.

You want to make the buying process as easy as possible. Just give them one call-to-action so they can easily decide to buy or not.
Summary
Those were the 4 Ps of selling that you can use to sell anything to anyone. Let’s take a quick recap in reverse order.

The 4 Ps of Selling are:

  • Pitch – this is where you present your offer and ask someone to buy. Add scarcity, social proof and choice To increase the chance of them buying.
  • Proof – this is the evidence that your product actually worked. A proof can be presented through a testimonial, reference or word of mouth.
  • Picture – this is where you implant a picture into your customer’s mind about the product you are offering, making them emotional about it.
  • Promise – this is called the “hook” wherein you attract customers on what your offering is.

That’s it, guys. I hope you liked it and if you did please share this with your friends to help them learn how to sell.