Sell your benefits, not your features
In all my years in field-level beer sales, I witnessed some really bad sales pitches. I’m including myself in this, as I am not going to pretend that I magically woke up one day and created some magic, high converting sales pitch. I think back to some of my first buyer encounters over a decade ago, and frankly, I’m pretty embarrassed. But did that stop me from hitting the streets? No. The perseverance of any salesperson is vital, but that’s another blog post.
What I learned from all this is how to sell my benefits, and not my features. Want to acquire new accounts or expand your distribution footprint? Learn how to sell your benefits. Want double digit growth for your brewery? Learn how to sell your benefits. (read on to find out more about this unicorn-like double digit growth that I speak of)
But here’s a brief example to get you started.
You have just made the world’s best IPA (yeah, you and everyone else) and you want to get it on tap in a handful of your neighborhood bars/restaurants within a close radius of your brewery.
Exhibit A: your sales pitch full of features
Hey (buyer), we just brewed up a new batch of Earth Shattering IPA that is amazing! Seriously, it’s 8% ABV and features a mix of Galaxy, Mosaic and Amarillo hops. It’s the most delicious, unique beer we’ve made thus far, and who doesn’t love an IPA?
Exhibit B: your sales pitch full of benefits
Hey (insert name of buyer), I know that you love new items and your customers expect your beer menu to reflect the most current offerings from nearby local breweries, so I wanted to make sure that you knew about our newest IPA that will satisfy the palate of all those hopheads that make up your regular customer base. Since our last IPA sold really well here, I feel like this would be a similar success. I will also make sure to swing by as soon as you put it on tap to help introduce folks to the beer, give them some insight about the brewery and even let them try it out by handing out some complimentary samples. Having a current IPA release from your closest local brewery is a huge bonus, too
Can you see the difference? In exhibit A, you talked about the tangible features, like listing the features of a car, but what value is that bringing to your buyer?
Ask yourself this when you go to sell anything - so what? It’s 8% ABV - so what? Does something being 8% ABV make it more appealing to that establishment’s customers...if so, then how does it deliver value?
It’s got ____ hops or ____malt - so what? Do they serve specific people that continuously request specific variants of hops or malts…if so, then how does this beer deliver that value proposition?
Versus in exhibit B, you gave that buyer educated reasons why this beer solves their problem - how do we entice more people to come through the doors and drink more beer. You have offered true value to that buyer’s place of business, and thrown in some elevated brand support to boot - and that, my friend, is how you close sales by benefit.
Something to mull over during your Friday happy hour beers. Have a great weekend. Happy selling. More to come on Monday.
Cheers,
Julie
PS - Did you miss out on enrollment for Beer Sales 101? Not to worry, another opportunity is coming at you soon…
but in the meantime, curious about that double digit growth I mentioned earlier? A brand new mini-course is headed your way next week: How to Achieve 30% Growth for Your Craft Beer Business.
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