Need identification is a crucial part of the sales process, where a seller works with a potential customer to identify their impulse to make an immediate purchase. It informs a successful sales pitch and is focused on providing the customer with the solution to their problem.
Need identification means working with a potential customer to identify an impulse to make an immediate purchase. It is part of a multi-step sales process that has been conceptualized by business analysts as the typical progression of a sale. Proper need identification forms the basis of an effective sales pitch that provides the customer with the solution to their problem.
The process of making a sale is usually divided into prospecting for new customers, communicating, identifying needs, presenting sales, solving problems, closing the deal, and following up. Need identification is the point at which a prospect is determined to be a legitimate prospect. Prior to this point in the process, the seller doesn’t know if they have a ready, willing, and able buyer on their hands or a window shopper.
A seller will conduct need identification in a manner appropriate to the transaction in question. In some cases, the process will involve first qualifying the customer and using written forms and questionnaires to complete the process. Many sales transactions are informal and a salesperson will need to rely on information that can be verified through a verbal investigation.
Theoretically, a salesperson who is adept at identifying needs could elicit the customer’s fulfilled and unfulfilled needs. A customer entering the sales cycle wants an item but doesn’t think they need it, they know exactly what they need, or they know they need something but aren’t sure what it is. In all three cases, the salesperson has a unique opportunity to educate the customer and define their needs, ultimately making the case for the customer to make an immediate purchase.
Need identification informs a successful sales pitch and is at the heart of the entire sales process. One of the fundamental problems addressed by studying the sales cycle is how to make the sale happen faster. Trying to sell a customer something they don’t really need or can’t qualify for is a guaranteed way to waste time and stretch the sales process beyond their credit limit. Someone might get credit for a sale based on a mismatched interaction, but it probably won’t be the current seller.
A sales pitch based on properly identifying needs is focused and useful for the customer. It provides just the right amount of information and education to allow the customer to determine value. Matching needs with solutions creates a sense of urgency that drives the customer’s decision-making process. Ultimately, need-to-launch correlation is the only reliable way to influence a sale.
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