© Golden Sikorka | Adobe Stock

Your sales and promotional messages must link to where your customers are in their decision-making process. There are five stages of buying behavior that a consumer will go through: awareness, interest, evaluation, trial and finally the adoption stage. Each stage requires a different decision by your prospect. By matching your sales and promotional strategies to their decision focus at each stage in the buying process, you can more effectively shift them closer to their final decision.

Awareness stage

In this stage, your prospect perceives they have a problem or need to be addressed. They often have limited insight about their options for dealing with their issue. The objective is to provide your prospect with basic information. Consider the information you need to tee up to establish the framework for their thinking. Don’t overwhelm them at this stage by giving them every single bit of information you have available. Think about what they need to understand by providing your prospects with high-level information about your products and services. Shape how you want them to think about getting their needs met. Help them gain confidence in their basic understanding.

Your call to action should be engaging your prospect in a next step such as signing up for your mailing list, calling you directly or setting up a meeting with you for lunch, coffee or Zoom meeting. If they’re at a point where they are aware of you, they are ready for you to establish the basis of their understanding of the information and why they should look at you further.

Interest stage

By now, your prospect is curious about what you can offer to meet their needs. They have a basic level of understanding about their overall options for addressing their issue. Provide them with more details on the specific options or choices you offer. Your prospects will be evaluating how your products and services will meet their needs. Consider the objections they might have at this state which prevent you from closing the sale. Shape your messaging to frame their thinking about these key objections. Help them gain confidence in understanding your pricing, quality, value and other benefits or features. Match the value of your offerings to showcase where you fit relative to your competitive alternatives.

Your call to action is to build trust with your prospect so they will provide you with more detail about their specific situation to enable you to address their unique concerns. Make sure your promotional messages at this stage give them confidence to continue considering you as an option. If they are interested, you have a prime opportunity to establish the framework for how your prospect should evaluate the information they receive from your competitors.

Evaluation stage

In this stage, your prospect has more insight about their options for addressing their issue. Provide them with detailed information on your features and benefits. Be specific in establishing your uniqueness in meeting your prospect’s need in their top decision factors. Your prospect is seriously considering your products and services. They have likely narrowed it down to two or three options and are going back and forth from you to your competition. Help them gain confidence in their choice by matching their decision criteria to your options.

Your call to action is to get your prospect to move forward and engage in a deeper sales dynamic. Now you can focus on making a major ask — such as giving a presentation to their decision team or asking to submit a customized proposal to respond to their specific concerns. If they are at a point where they are evaluating you, they are very close to making a decision. Clearly establish how you can meet their need within their budget in their time frame. If they are evaluating you, your prospect has narrowed their options and is looking for ways to eliminate other vendors from consideration.

Trial stage

Your prospect now has narrowed down their options and is testing to see if you are actually able to meet their need. Your objective should be to provide them with the final insight they need to have the confidence to select you. By now your prospect has eliminated most or all of the competitive alternatives and they are nearly ready to buy. Address any unique questions holding them back from approving the sale. You must now prove that what you said in your promotional materials matches the experience they will have with you.

Your call to action is to ask for the final sales confirmation or the signed contract. You have fully engaged with your prospect and they are now confirming that you are their best choice. In the Trial Stage, you are at the make or break point. Help them confirm that you are their best choice by ensuring you manage their customer experience. Make sure your team is ready to produce service delivery and the prospect experience matches the expectations you established. Showcasing your ability to deliver what they need or want is essential to closing the sale.

Adoption stage

Now your customer finally has chosen you and you should be ready to fully deliver on all of your promises and successfully integrate your prospect into your satisfied customer base. Your prospect is now a paying customer. Identify any additional issues they have that you may be able to address going forward.

Your call to action is to ensure you and your team provide a high level of satisfaction with the sale. Build deeper ties with your customers and make sure you consistently deliver a superior experience. Manage the customer on-boarding process by delivering what you promised so they become your advocates.

Final thoughts

By using the five stages of buying behavior, as a sales framework you can maximize your opportunity to provide your prospect with exactly the type of information they need and minimize any wasted sales effort on your part. This focused approach will allow you to customize your sales and promotional strategies to offer your prospect exactly what they need so they become long-term customers.

About the author: Jill J. Johnson, MBA, is the president and founder of Johnson Consulting Services, a highly accomplished speaker, an award-winning management consultant, and author of the bestselling book “Compounding Your Confidence.” www.jcs-usa.com

I achieved a couple of milestones this year. First, my husband and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary. It was during the heart of the lockdown, so our silver anniversary was spent sitting in the driveway toasting with a couple of 12-ounce silver cans. I had planned (and longed for) a celebration in Banff, Alberta, Canada surrounded by the splendor of the Canadian Rockies. If you’ve been reading my columns over the years, you may recall that the mountains are where I’m most at peace. Instead, we were surrounded by the familiar sights of home. The 20-year-old Dodge pickup with more than 200,000 miles, the 20-year-old live oak tree we planted the first year in our rural home, the 14-year-old lab whose unconditional love has never failed us, and each other — two people who’ve shared a million laughs, some tears, a few arguments (okay, maybe more than “a few” — he married a stubborn person) and countless memories and moments in time.

It didn’t matter that we weren’t in Banff. All that mattered was that we were together and healthy, which was a major blessing in this time of COVID-19.

It reminded me of a Charles Dickens quote I have taped to the front of my filing cabinet: “Reflect upon your present blessings — of which every man has many — not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.”

I encourage you to remember and record your present blessings and share them with family and friends this season, whether if it’s in letter form, on a Zoom call or in person.

I celebrated another anniversary in December — 20 years of covering this wonderful industry. When I walked into the offices of Branch-Smith Publishing, I was the mother of a toddler and had most recently covered the commercial real estate business market and economic development. I was tackling a new subject and it was a bit overwhelming. But you all welcomed me at your nurseries and took the time to explain the lingo and the science.

As I’ve said a few times in this same space, I was in awe at how each of you shared business practices and lessons with your competitors. That never would have happened in the commercial real estate world. You were (and still are) champions for the entire industry. I’ve been able to see your kids grow up, watched your businesses grow, shared happy and sad times with some of you, celebrated some retirements, and said some goodbyes. And that toddler I referenced, he’s now 21 and in the Army. It’s been an absolute joy spending these past two decades with you.

Cheers to each of you and prayers for a healthy and blessed New Year!

There are few plants in my garden that deserve as many accolades as my Buddleia alternifolia. I know the genus Buddleia has, to quote the Eagles, “A nasty reputation as a cruel dude,” but think of B. alternifolia as a kinder, gentler cousin. I have been growing Buddleia alternifolia for many years and have never seen it become invasive, which is the chief complaint of its “Cousin David” (davidii). The graceful, arching habit of is branches have led to its common name, fountain butterfly bush. It is also commonly called alternate-leaved butterfly bush, as its scientific name implies, because it has an alternate leaf pattern as opposed to the opposite leaves of other Buddleia species. It puts on a breathtaking show from late May until early July when its pendulous branches are covered with lightly scented lilac-blue flowers that are a valuable source of nectar for butterflies and other pollinators. Unlike other Buddleia species, B. alternifolia blooms on old wood, and thus hard pruning of the plant will mean few or no flowers the following year. It can be trained into a single-trunked small tree or grown as a multi-stemmed shrub.

Buddleia alternifolia is a deciduous shrub native to Gansu Province in north-central China where it grows along riverbanks at surprisingly high elevations between 4,500 and 13,000 feet. In cultivation it grows well in full sun to partial shade in a variety of soils from sandy loam to clay. B. alternifolia needs moderate summer water but will not tolerate wet feet in the winter. It is easily propagated from softwood or semi-hardwood cuttings. Mature plants reach 10-12 feet tall and wide. It makes a bold statement in the landscape. B. alternifolia received the prestigious Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society in 1993. It is more common in gardens in the U.K than in North America. I seldom see specimens in gardens in the Pacific Northwest, which is a shame. It’s hardy in USDA Zones 5-9, so it would do well in most regions of the United States. This is definitely a plant that deserves greater attention in commercial horticulture and landscape design.

In the 1791 book “Travels” written by William Bartram, he described the Flame azalea (R. calendulaceum) as “This is the most gay and brilliant flowering shrub yet known.” Since the founding of Carolina Native, we use this quote, but it does not translate well. A few years ago, we welcomed a group of horticulturists and landscape architects from China. Thinking we would impress them, we used Google translate to produce an introduction and brief catalog in Chinese. As we handed it out, all our guests began to laugh. Humor usually starts things off well, and they all wanted to see the homosexual shrub. Of course, the word “gay” doesn’t translate properly. The joke was on us. But it did earn me two trips to China, a speaking engagement with the Chinese Association of Landscape Architects about North American native azaleas in Shanghai (intimidating), and a little business.

Indigenous azaleas are the gems of the native plant garden. And considering the rising awareness of all the ecological advantages of native plants in gardens and landscapes, it may be a good idea to gain some fundamental knowledge about these wonderful plants. I follow the lead of Clarence Towe in his book “American Azaleas” in terms of information and plant grouping.

There are 15 (do I hear 17?) American azaleas species, plus a few that have been added. And since these azaleas hybridize easily, some may say more. They are all deciduous, in the subgenus Pentanthera (five stamens) of the genus Rhododendron (being part of the Rhododendron genus confuses many). Like Mr. Towe, I will place these wonderful plants into five groups (plus one).

1) Western azalea (R. occidentale) is the only one from the West Coast. Found from southern Oregon down the coast of California to Mexico, this plant is stoloniferous. It can grow up to 30 feet with light pink flowers all the way to red in May to August. It’s reported that R. occidentale does not do well in the Eastern United States, but we have a few in production and will see for ourselves.

2) Rhodora (R. canadense) and Pinkshell (R. vaseyi) are non-fragrant pinks that are very different and found far away from one another. Rhodora is from the Northeast and is a stoloniferous low grower (3 feet). Easily identified by its small, some say grayish leaves, it blooms pink to purple in May at our nursery. Pinkshell is found above 4,000 feet in a few counties in Western North Carolina, usually blooms pink (sometimes white) from round and sticky buds before the leaves appear. It is easy to identify by its pointy leaves and bark that appears “shreddy.” Very open and airy but certainly doesn’t do well off the mountain.

3) Piedmont (R. canescens), Pinxter (R. periclymenoides formerly R. nudiflorum) and Roseshell (R. prinophyllum) are somewhat fragrant pink azaleas that cover the Eastern U.S. Piedmont, the southern one, grows up to 15 feet tall and is lightly fragrant. It’s very hardy, grows in many conditions and is found in USDA Zones 6-9. Also called hoary azalea, the blooms are light pink to sometimes white. Pinxter likes somewhat drier soils. It’s seen in all shades of pink with a particularly deeper pink in the throat in April to May. This azalea can be seen from the Deep South up to Cape Cod, and it’s hard in Zones 4-8. Roseshell doesn’t seem to like it hot, struggles and is slow in Western North Carolina. It can grow up to 8 feet tall and blooms in all shades of pink from May to June. The emerging leaves are coppery in color and covered with short hairs. It’s sometimes called downy or mountain pink. The fragrance in these plants pales in comparison to the plants in group 4.

4) Alabama (R. alabamense), Coastal (R. atlanticum), Sweet (R. arborescens) and Swamp (R. viscosum) have the whites that remind you what fragrant plants are all about. All of these are incredibly fragrant. Many times, you smell them before you see them and start searching for the source, then wonder where you can get one for your garden. One whiff and sold! Alabama azalea blooms white to white with yellow blotches in April through June. The large leaves can be semi glossy. Found in the deep south and hardy from Zones 6-8. Coastal is usually identified by its bluish leaves. Found along the Mid-Atlantic coast from Delaware to Georgia, it’s hardy in Zones 5-8. Flowers range from white to completely yellow from April to May. Sweet azaleas are named for their awesome fragrance. Fantastic white blooms, sometimes with yellow blotches, with very distinctive red pistils and filaments from April to May. Usually the glossy, deep-green leaves are a giveaway. Swamp azaleas can be found all over the Eastern U.S. It has smaller leaves, smaller white flowers, but still nicely fragrant with individual plants blooming all summer. Also called catch-fly and clammy azalea because the sticky, glandular hair can catch insects. We find all the whites to be hardy and easiest to grow in the nursery and landscape.

5) For a wide group of orange, yellow, and red blooming plants, look to Florida (R. austrinum), Oconee (R. flammeum), Flame (R. calendulaceum), Cumberland (R. cumberlandense), and Plumleaf (R. prunifolium). Florida likes it hot but has proven hardy even in the cold of the Midwest as seen at the planting at Taylor University in Indiana. Grows up to 15 feet tall and blooms fragrant yellow to pale orange early in March to April. Oconee is found in the area along the Oconee River in Georgia. It can be 6-8 feet tall and blooms from yellow to red in April. Being in western North Carolina, our favorite is the Flame azalea. Grown from seed, it can be yellow to bright orange in big trusses from April to July depending on your altitude. Sometimes it can be finicky when planted in the wrong spot. Flames can grow up to 12 feet tall and they are beautiful. Highly sought after in the Appalachian region and beyond. Performs in Zones 5 to 8. Cumberland (from the Cumberland Plateau) is usually confused with the Flame but has smaller flowers. The orange-to-red blooms are smaller in stature to the Flame. Plumleaf is sought after for its late bloom time. The blooms are beautifully dark orange to red and seen in August and September. Found in a small region on the Alabama-Georgia border and a prize in the garden. Beautiful purple leaves in the fall, it can be a big plant growing up to 20 feet tall.

6) Not new but recently recognized species are the Red Hill (R. colemanii) and May White azalea (R. eastmanii). Red Hill was recognized in 2008, found in Alabama, and was thought to be R. alabama. But it was found to bloom earlier (early May), has different colors, and has other distinctive traits leading to recognition. May Hill, found in South Carolina, was also thought to be an R. alabama but through the same type of scientific work, was named in 1999. Blooms with a yellow blotched white, fragrant blossom in mid-May and is found in a more neutral soil.

One of the wonderful elements of these plants can also present problems as a grower — they hybridize easily. It can lead to amazing natural collections as found on Gregory Bald and Hooper Bald in western North Carolina. But also leads azalea enthusiasts and collectors to travel far and wide on the hunt. The azalea garden on the Biltmore Estate is named after Chauncey Beadle. Beadle, appointed by Frederick Law Olmsted in 1890 to oversee the Biltmore Estate Nursery, eventually became estate manager until his death in 1950. He and his botanist friends Frank Crayton and William Knight, plus their driver Sylvester Owens, started searching in 1930. Calling themselves “the azalea hunters,” the four of them spent countless hours, weekends, and holidays searching the southeast for native azaleas, species and natural hybrids. Some of those plants can be seen on the Biltmore Estate today.

Those traditions are alive today. Azalea hunting is a regular feature of chapters of the Azalea Society of America. Earl Sommerville and Kelly Strickland hybrids, Ernest Koone of Lazy K Farms, Vivien Abney of East Fork Nursery, and others keep the tradition of searching for and cultivating native hybrids alive and well. Callaway Gardens, the Azalea collection at Taylor University, the National Azalea Repository at the N.C. Arboretum, as well as The Biltmore Estate, are among the gardens to see many of these plants in bloom.

Native azaleas are all over the eastern U.S., as are many hybrids, both man-made and found in nature. They are all true gems and can be the centerpiece of any garden, in particular native landscapes. The popularity of these plants by the home gardener, as well as landscape architects and designers, increases dramatically every season.