To really win them over, you must become their consultant -- learning their driving needs and desires and then leading them to their own conclusion about what product or service is right for them, says Steve Howard, author of the new book Boomer Selling.

"Boomers often come to the sales situation feeling they know more than they really do," Howard tells STS. "If you start telling us about all the features and benefits before you know what we’re looking for, we’ll walk away."

In his book, he adds, "Don’t try to talk us into buying; you’ll run out of words. Instead, ask the right questions -- the right way, at the right time -- then stand back and let us sell ourselves."

Howard offers a step-by-step process for what he calls "cracking the boomer code." It includes:

Create confidence: First, you have to build trust. That means listening, caring, showing enthusiasm, being transparent and discovering what your customers’ problems are. Boomers don’t have time to become experts in everything they want to purchase -- they want to find an expert who they can trust to help them filter through all the choices.

If you go out of your way to create confidence, boomers will be your greatest source of referrals, Howard says. In fact, he recommends that salespeople take their focus off of the immediate sale and onto referrals instead.

"When your concentration is on getting the referral instead of getting the order, your subconscious mind automatically adjusts your attitude, behavior and actions from making the sale to satisfying your customers," he says. "When you’re working to satisfy each buyer’s wants, needs and desires, you come across as a caring person we’d love to tell our friends about."

Determine desires: More than other generations, boomers are emotional buyers, Howard argues. "Their most important motive is not facts, but feelings," he says. They’re not as interested in the technological features of a new TV as much as in how they’ll feel while they’re watching it, and how their neighbors, friends, and family will feel, too.

"Generation X and Y grew up with computers, and they do a lot of research so they know all the facts," Howard says. "As salespeople, they want me, the boomer consumer, to understand all the facts, too."

But before they start talking, salespeople need to do a whole lot of listening to get inside boomers’ minds and determine exactly what emotion is driving them to this purchase.

Customize solutions: Boomers think they’re special and unique, and they expect to be treated that way. They don’t want a one-size-fits-all solution. They want one just for them.

"Once boomers understand that you are giving us the information and understanding we need to collaborate with you in creating a solution that’s unique to us, we’ll never comparison shop again," Howard writes.

Reduce risk: Boomers are risk-averse. Most believe they’ll experience lower risk with a trusted person or brand, premium products and guaranteed warranties. Ways boomers try to reduce risk is by searching the Internet, reading product information and warranties, asking about return policies, reading testimonials, calling people on your referral list and watching demonstrations. "Unresolved risk invites comparison shopping," Howard states.

Elevate emotions: "Boomers don’t get emotional about products; we get emotional about the benefits the products provide," Howard says. Show how your product or service leads to an emotionally positive experience.

It’s also important for salespeople to be enthusiastic and excited about what they’re selling. Sales staff can do this by telling stories of past clients, giving customers a visual sense of the product in use, using effective words and offering more information based on the customer’s feedback.

Validate value: Howard defines value as emotional satisfaction plus a product or service that says something desirable about us plus a practical justification plus the sense that we’re getting more than we paid for. He recommends doing things your competition won’t or can’t. "Reliability and consistency are the most neglected sources of value," Howard writes.

Attain agreement: Over 90% of all boomer objections can be put into four categories, Howard contends -- price, affordability, hesitation and comparison. When going through the final offer line by line with the boomer consumer, "every time you review the benefits, value gets bigger and the price gets smaller."

The bottom line is that "boomers trust people more than products or things," Howard says. That’s why building a relationship with them is so important.

Info: Howard, 928/632-9777