In sales we know that prospects and customers make decisions emotionally and then justify them afterwards intellectually. This is why strong salespeople have the ability to build rapport and then engage the prospect’s emotions during the qualifying stage.
This truth appears to have been validated in a new book titled Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior as noted in this Inc.com blog. The pull quote:
Newsflash: People, even when given a choice of thinking logically and getting beneficial results, will often act emotionally despite the consequences. The effects of this irrational behavior on businesses can be far reaching.
There is an intriguing case study referenced in the post that is worth the read. The outcome of that section is valuable advice:
The authors point out one final take-away that struck close to home with me. “The researchers concluded that business owners place too great importance on margins and outcomes. They recommended that all managers — regardless of industry — put greater “effort, energy, investment, and patience” into nurturing the relationship. In the end, “the fairness of the procedure has as much to do with our satisfaction as the ultimate outcome.”