How To Think Visually (And Improve Sales)

100% of humans respond to visuals in a way that is extremely powerful.

Zight | April 24, 2017 | 3 min read time

Article Last Updated: September 15, 2023

How To Think Visually (And Improve Sales)

100% of humans respond to visuals in a way that is extremely powerful.

From Cialdini’s visual salience to 3M’s study proving visuals are 43% more persuasive, sales psychology pros have been studying this stuff for years.

So if you’re looking to dominate your sales targets and earn yourself some serious commission, training your brain to love (and use!) visuals is well worth the effort.

Start here.

Know Your Brain

Know how your brain works if you want to build some pro-level persuasive habits.

When it comes to rewiring your noggin’, the most important concept is neuroplasticity.

There’s a lot to it, but at its core, it basically means your brain is seriously flexible.

Here’s a simple definition:

“Plasticity, or neuroplasticity, describes how experiences reorganize neural pathways in the brain. Long lasting functional changes in the brain occur when we learn new things or memorize new information. These changes in neural connections are what we call neuroplasticity.”

Want to develop a new habit of using amazing visuals to impress prospects?

Your brain’s up to it, but first you need to get in the mood!

Get In The Mood

Debbie Hampton, author of Sex, Suicide and Serotonin (what a title!) has some seriously fascinating things to say on the topic of brain change. We love the first of her Ten Fundamentals for Rewiring Your Brain:

“Change is mostly limited to those situations in which the brain is in the mood for it. – If you are alert, on the ball, engaged, motivated, ready for action, the brain releases the neurochemicals necessary to enable brain change. When disengaged, inattentive, distracted, or doing something without thinking that requires no real effort, your neuroplastic switches are “off.””

In other words, mindlessly copy pasting sales templates isn’t going to get you anywhere new, brain wise or profit wise.

So do what you gotta do to get your brain in the mood. Whether it’s jumping jacks or a brisk 5-minute walk, your brain needs a warm up before working out.

Once you’re jazzed up and ready to go…

Celebrate Your New Habit

The thing about neuroplasticity is it can work both ways.

Good or bad, all initial changes are temporary until your brain has evidence that it’s ‘important’ enough to be a permanent part of its hardwiring.

Our advice? Start using visuals all the time

  • Did you use a screen recorder to create the perfect video to demo that fancy new feature?
  • Warmed up a cold prospect with a hilarious GIF?
  • Answered an objection with an annotated screenshot showing what worked for a current client?

No matter how small, make it a big deal. Drive home the message that this stuff is awesomely important and your brain will make it second nature.

Remember, this cuts both ways so wherever possible, try not to sweat it when things don’t go to plan.

Get back out there. Use visuals. Have fun.

Are you already using visuals to facilitate sales? Drop us a comment and let us know how they play into your pitch.

Create & share screenshots, screen recordings, and GIFs with Zight