As a salesperson, you shouldn't ignore the reptilian brain

First, awaken your customer's reptilian brain!

Thereptilian brain is the most instinctive part of our brain. It regulates primary instincts such as survival, stress, and fear, and is the first to make judgments—it also forms an important part of your subconscious thought patterns. And failing to acknowledge this reptilian brain can get you into trouble.

Influenced by changing technology, social media platforms, and the constant stimuli around us, we humans are changing.

We're becoming more impatient and want to be rewarded quickly.

If we want to sell something, we need to take that into account.

How?

By appealing to our customers' reptilian brain.

The reptilian brain is super fast

We've all been there.

Whether you're using a social media platform like Facebook, LinkedIn, or Instagram, or you're in a WhatsApp group with your family, everything moves quickly.

You post a photo and get a "like"; you post a comment and get a reply; you send a message and get an immediate response.

That immediate feedback, those constant stimuli—they have an effect on our brains.

We want that reward faster and faster, and we're becoming more and more impatient.

And digital sales is a trend that forces us to find ways to make a better impression in less time.

The reptilian brain cannot think

The reptilian brain cannot think, but it reacts.

You can see that reflected in sales situations as well.

People have less patience and want to think as little as possible.

If you want to sell something, you need to make sure that your message requires minimal effort on the part of the recipient—your potential customer.

He or she wants to be rewarded quickly. So an ultra-short 10-minute pitch would be ideal.

The era when we listened patiently to one another, took the time to get to know each other, and carefully considered what we could do for one another—that era is over.

You have to show your value right away.

Triple Brain

Very often, we think we’re underestimating our target audience by keeping things simple. But the opposite is true.

To understand this, it’s important to know how our brains work. Our brains consist of the reptilian brain, the social (or limbic) brain, and the cognitive brain.

A message first travels from the sender's cognitive brain to the receiver's reptilian brain.

The primitive reptilian brain filters the information and determines whether it makes sense to listen to your message—whether it's worth passing it on to the cognitive brain.

Wake up the reptilian brain

The reptilian brain is actually afraid of everything and would rather not listen to anything.

Think of a crocodile, which can lie in wait for hours and only springs into action when prey appears. Only then does it become alert.

Basically, that's how our brains work, too.

The reptilian brain wants to protect our cognitive brain—our "smart" brain—from the overwhelming amount of information all around us.

If we let all that information in, it would be a danger to us. It would simply take more energy than we have.

Minimize the risk

So our client's "reptilian brain" isn't interested in details.

The primitive brain is easily “framed” (pigeonholed).

It just wants to know, in general terms, whether the story adds up.

Above all, don't try to appeal directly to the cognitive brain by showing how smart you are.

Tell your story in a way that is concrete and positive, and that offers something new.

This keeps the reptilian brain alert and gives you access to your customer's cognitive brain.

In short: minimize every "risk," or else everything will come to a standstill.

Gaining Attention in the Digital Age

In the digital age, attention is the new currency. Digital sales are 50% about capturing and retaining attention. People’s attention spans have gotten shorter, which means your message must not only be compelling but also easy to understand— think of the power of video marketing

Trust also plays a crucial role. The reptilian brain is sensitive to signals that either build or undermine trust. Make sure your message is consistent and back up your claims with evidence such as customer reviews, certifications, or statistics. These elements help the reptilian brain quickly decide that it’s safe to listen to you and proceed with the information.

Would you like to learn more about this and discover how to effectively apply these techniques in your digital sales strategy? Then check out our video training on prospecting. Here, you’ll learn not only how to appeal to your customers’ reptilian brain, but also how to hold their attention and turn it into action.