By: John Jantsch

Business owners often think they have to change the way their customers think in order to make sales. In reality, your customers want to participate in these behaviors; your job is to guide them.

Shared: From your friends TechAutoCareers.com® the online resource for the  Automotive Sales Consultant

Marketers and small business owners have long believed that it is critical to understand your customers in order to sell to them. You may approach your marketing problems with one key question: “How do we get our customers to behave the way we want them to behave?”

The biggest problem with this mindset, however, is that it focuses on how you can change their behavior. But, in reality, your customers know how to be good customers. In fact, they want to be good customers. But they’re looking for certain experiences during the buying process to make them sure they made the right choice in opting for your product or service. There are seven behaviors that every customer wants to experience during the buying process and beyond:

1. Know - This is the initial awareness phase when customers will often use online and mobile search to find your business. If they are aware of your business before the search, even better
2. Like - This is the stage where once you attracted them to your site or storefront you give them reasons to come back, reasons to relate, and even reasons to like your team.
3. Trust - In this stage, reviews, success stories, client testimonials and valuable content are your currency. Your customers want to trust you before they buy.
4. Try - Now that your customers are wondering how your solution might work for them, it’s time to shower them with chances to try your product. Trial versions, eBooks, webinars, and other low-cost options are great to offer them here.
5. Buy - For this stage, the focus is on keeping the experience high. Think about how you orient a new customer, exceed their expectation, and even surprise them.
6. Repeat - Perhaps the best way to get repeat business is to make sure your clients receive and understand the value of doing business with you. Here’s where you need to consider adding a results review process as well as a system for offering additional programs, promotions, and cross-selling opportunities.
7. Refer - Your customers want to tell their friends and family about a great product, service, or company. You can take advantage of this first and foremost by creating a great experience and by being referral worthy. But you also have to build processes and campaigns that make it easy for your champion clients to introduce and refer your business.

These seven behaviors all comprise what I call the Customer Journey. You must know that your job as a marketer or small business owner is not to change the way your customers think. You should focus on guiding them through these behaviors and giving them incentives to continue on. Once you realize this, creating a stellar customer journey is easy.

What do you think?

Now it's your turn. Is this something you can benefit from or do you have a few tricks up your sleeve that are just as powerful?

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About I.C. Collins

Author, Educator, Trainer and President: Has One Simple Goal:  I believe it is my mission and purpose to remind you, that you are meant to have the best life possible! You were created with intention and purpose and I am here to simply help guide you through your life’s journey.

He is the founder of TechAutoCareers.com®,  Author ~ How to Succeed in the Automotive Sales Industry since 1994 the online resource for the *Automotive Sales Fraternity™* a strategy consulting firm that helps the *Automotive Sales Fraternity™* gain and keep more customers through the smart intersection of technology, social media, and customer service.

A bottom-line guy, Collins doesn't shy away from telling the truth in ways that cut through the noise to deliver streetwise advice from someone who's been there and done that, many times over. 

I wanted to take a minute and THANK all the people that comment, like, and share my posts daily. I appreciate you all!