Thousands of companies regularly send their employees on training courses so they can learn the sneaky ways to sell you stuff you don’t really want and in a lot of cases the sales patter they learn actually works! How many times have you gone into a shop looking for something in particular and either come out with something totally different – because it was a bargain – or you’ve got what you went in for but you also managed to buy loads of related items that hadn’t even entered your mind until you saw them?

This is the magic of sales patter. Sometimes this patter comes from the sales assistants themselves and sometimes it is presented in a visual way…with big ‘sale’ tags and other interesting promotions. Well here are the top 4 sales patter methods to watch out for and hopefully avoid.

The Sandwich Method
The sandwich method works just like a sandwich…you go to a shop looking to buy the filling in the middle and a good sales assistant will attempt to sell you the bread to go with it. Take for example a home PC – you go to buy a PC but you also end up buying a printer, scanner, wireless modem, printer cartridges, paper, a speaker system etc. You see where I’m going with this. Often companies will offer a ‘great deal’ if you buy certain additional products i.e. the bread, even though you don’t want them or need them but because it is advertised as a ‘great deal’ you buy it anyway.

Negotiation
This is a sales patter often used in electrical stores and used car dealerships. These businesses know that the products they sell are significant purchases for most people and so they are ready for you’re attempts to negotiate. So you see what you like and you try to haggle – this may be in the form of a price reduction or an attempt to get something thrown in for free. Unfortunately the sales assistants are normally used to this and as mentioned they are probably waiting for it so they make a show of negotiating. They might umm and ahh for a bit, they may haggle back, they may even go and talk to their manager about your offer but in most cases they will come back with a deal – you can have the product for X amount if you buy it today! This last bit is the key – it stops you from going down the road and finding a better deal and because you think you’ve successfully negotiated you’ll probably agree on the spot.

Benefits and not Features
Good sales assistants don’t just point out the features of a particular product – they explain how the feature will benefit you and your life. So for example, say you’re looking for a new washing machine. The large drum is not just a large drum – it will enable you to wash more in one cycle so you save on electricity, water and soap powder. It will also mean you can wash large items like duvets and blankets so no more dry cleaning or washing them in the bath. This type of sales patter makes you wonder how you managed to live without the product until now.

‘SALE’ Tags
Sales can be misleading as the word ‘sale’ automatically makes you think you’re saving money. Unfortunately a lot of people fail to look at the starting price and are blinded by the big ‘25% off’ banners. A great example of this comes from banks and building societies when they say they are having a sale on home insurance or a similar financial product. You may get 25% off but if their product was 25% more expensive than their competitors in the first place then you aren’t really saving anything – even though you think you’re getting a great deal.

Of course there are other sales patter techniques out there and training providers are always coming up with new ones, just to confuse the consumer. Our advice is to keep your wits about you when you shop and try to concentrate solely on the items you want – not the items they want you to buy.