How will you make them feel?

A terrific quote I came across recently:

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

The source of the quote is a lady by the name of Maya Angelou.

This quote cuts through so many things in life, and many professional activities. If your job is to lead people, coach people or sell to people, then this quote is a reminder of the real challenge.

One of the very first books I read was “One Minute Salesperson”. It’s a typical Blanchard book which contains a related quote; “Selling is about helping people get the feelings they want.”

So often we get distracted by ROI, cost reduction, unique features and disruptive approaches. The reality is none of them matter unless they help the buyer feel better. More successful, relieved, accomplished, noticed, acknowledged or maybe just on-track.

If you don’t know how your buyers want to feel, how can you know if your service or solution will help them get what they’re really after?