I observed a mother looking at her child, who was so engrossed in his mobile phone that he walked straight into the dining table! With a mix of disbelief and amusement, the mother couldn’t resist saying, “Hey, little smartphone addict, mind putting down your gadget and joining us for dinner?

Turn mobile phone habits to your benefit.

The latest research shows that the average person looks at their mobile phone 110 times daily. That’s an average of seven times an hour, excluding sleeping. That is a lot! So, what does this tell us? On the one hand, we should be aware of our (bad) phone habits and maybe rethink if seven times per hour is really necessary. On the other hand, there is a time for everything, including having a proper family dinner.

What has this to do with selling? Well, in modern selling, we want the Customer to discover something about themselves. Our aim is to change their perspective about their current situation and the challenges they have as a business. We want to help them move forward in their buying process. Hence, we need to come up with relevant, new and thought-provoking information that will do just that. And ideally, you have data, research articles, and white papers to back your insight up. To create value at customer conversations, you need to be that insightful, Trusted Advisor.

To be insightful, you need to be resourceful.

Why is it, then, when I observe salespeople applying the new selling skills, they rely heavily and probably too much on intuitive information: The information they think they already know? Mind you, the Buyer is hungry for insights and is hoping you share something they have not been thinking about; they do not say this out loud, but that is what goes through their heads and is most likely the reason you got the appointment.

In these situations, I strongly recommend you to check with more sources than your so far obtained knowledge. What relevant article or study can you find? Is there a research document that backs your idea up? Hence, in these cases, you should use your mobile phone! Let me give you a few examples (and I literally looked these up on my mobile as I was writing this post!):

YOUR IDEA / INSIGHT	ARTICLE / INSIGHT / RESEARCH / WHITE PAPER
Focus on Customer Experience as a growth strategy	https://www.superoffice.com/blog/customer-experience-strategy/
Drive revenue by improving Consumer Loyalty	https://www.score.org/resource/blog-post/14-brand-loyalty-strategies-small-businesses
Apply creative SME growth strategies	https://www.ruby.com/blog/creative-growth-strategies-for-todays-small-businesses/
Innovative Profit Improvers	https://www.mindtools.com/as67pbm/doblins-10-types-of-innovation
South-East Asia as your next growth market	https://www.aseanbriefing.com/news/industries-to-watch-out-for-growth-in-southeast-asia-in-2023/

Become a Trusted Advisor

What is the key message? Basically, number one, decide what you use your mobile phone for. If you are currently checking your phone seven times per hour …

And number two, Trusted Advisors check less on TikTok and Instagram and more on website sources that may change their customers’ perspectives – as some examples shared above.

Note: TikTok and Instagram can also be great sources for business ideas! It just depends on what is relevant and insightful for your Customers, especially when they are in Why Change? of the buying clock. Just ensure the information you share is trustworthy.

Trusted Advisors are Resourceful. Happy browsing!