Sell More Effectively: How to Use the New Science of Neuromarketing

By Selling Power Editors

The commonly accepted axiom that sales is as much an art as a science is about to change, thanks to the new science of human decision making. Research in this field has led directly to the hot new field of neuromarketing. Hundreds of papers have been published, 30 or so books have been written, and the Neuromarketing Science and Business Association (NMSBA) was created three years ago.

According to Patrick Renvoise, chief neuromarketing officer and cofounder of SalesBrain, “Traditional marketing doesn’t work because it is based on the assumption that people know what they want. About 15 years ago, researchers started to use physiological measurements to provide better insight into what people really want.”

By using functional magnetic resonance imagery (fMRI), electroencephalogram (EEG), voice layering, facial coding, biometrics, and more, researchers have been able to produce a large body of published work in this field. If salespeople want to increase their closing ratios and sell more to existing customers, paying attention to this science makes sense. During the Sales 2.0 Conference in San Francisco this past May, Renvoise presented his scientific model.

Based on the latest brain and psychology research, including the findings of Daniel Kahneman (2002 Economic Sciences Nobel Prize winner), SalesBrain states that our reptilian brain, the most ancient part of the brain, plays a leading role when customers make decisions. Drawing from the working principles of that primitive, instinctual, and subconscious brain, SalesBrain reverse-engineered the decision-making process and developed a four-step process intended to provide a specific, predictable response from the customer’s brain.

This model was published in an award-winning book coauthored by Renvoise and Christophe Morin, SalesBrain’s CEO. Through research, consulting, and training, today SalesBrain helps companies of all sizes and industries improve their sales and marketing strategies by scientifically communicating with the customer’s reptilian brain.

Skeptics may ask, “But does it really work?” Renvoise says that, after training more than 70,000 executives, including more than 10,000 CEOs, and helping more than 600 companies, “[SalesBrain has] passed the stage of proof of concept.”

During the Sales 2.0 Conference in San Francisco, Bill Clendenen, CEO of HSI (Health & Safety Institute, a training company based in Eugene, OR), presented with Renvoise. “Before working with SalesBrain,” he shared, “our customer growth had been flat for four years. After creating a neuromessaging strategy that appeals to the reptilian brain, we have grown our core customer base 29 percent in less than eighteen months.”

Glenn Horton, CEO of The Horton Group, a commercial insurance broker in Chicago, also stated, “The sales reps who have been trained in the SalesBrain model close 50 percent more than the ones who haven’t.”

Renvoise concludes, “The reptilian-brain model bridges the gap between marketing and sales, and if the goal of marketing is to understand your customers, neuromarketing is making sure that your customers’ brain understands you.”

With the promise to help salespeople scientifically build rapport, demonstrate the value proposition, and close, neuromarketing and SalesBrain might be the breakthrough that many have been waiting for!

 

The Scientific Terms Explained

fMRI: By measuring oxygen consumption, functional magnetic resonance imagery shows what part of the brain is activated by a stimulus.

EEG: Electroencephalogram measures the small currents created at the surface of the skull by the neuronal activity of the brain.
Voice Layering: This detects the state of the interviewees, not based on what they say, but based on tone of voice or how their voice is modulated.

Facial Coding: This coding reveals facial expression based on how the 43 muscles of a human face contract.

Biometrics: Formerly known as lie detection, biometrics measures biological responses, such as breathing rates, heart rate, skin conductance, pupil dilation, and more.