Adam Hankinson, Managing Director at Furniture Sales Solutions, talks about how most customers tell salespeople exactly how to sell to them within the first few minutes.
The problem is, hardly anybody notices. The clues are usually hidden inside ordinary conversation: “We bought cheap last time and regretted it.” “I’m roasting every night.” “My back’s been in bits lately.” “The grandchildren stay over all the time.”
Most salespeople hear those comments… then completely move past them. Straight into spring counts, fabrics, mechanisms and product features. But those throwaway comments are often the real reason the customer is buying.
And very often, they’re buying signals too. Because customers rarely walk into a furniture store talking like retailers. They don’t describe “pressure relief.” They describe waking up sore. They don’t ask for “temperature regulation.” They tell you they’re too hot to sleep.
That difference matters more than most people realise. One of the most powerful communication skills in selling is paraphrasing. Not in a scripted or manipulative way.
Simply feeding back the customer’s concerns, frustrations or priorities using their own language. Psychologically, it works because people naturally trust people who understand them. And the brain responds positively to familiarity. When customers hear their own words reflected back naturally, it creates recognition. Recognition creates comfort. Comfort creates trust.
You can see the difference immediately. A customer says: “We bought cheap last time and regretted it.” An average salesperson replies: “This model has a 15-year guarantee.”
A skilled salesperson slows down and says: “So really this time you just want to get it right?”
That feels completely different to the customer. Because now they feel understood emotionally, not just sold to technically. And once customers feel understood, they usually open up further. They relax. They explain more. They trust more. That’s when better sales conversations happen.
The best salespeople I’ve worked with over the years all do this naturally. They mentally underline key phrases customers use. Then later in the conversation they bring those phrases back naturally and conversationally.
“You mentioned overheating earlier — that’s why this mattress could make such a difference.” Or: “Because the grandchildren stay over so often, this mechanism will probably really matter to you.”
That doesn’t feel like a pitch. It feels personal. Because it is personal. Furniture retail has become obsessed in places with techniques, scripts and “perfect closes.”
But customers are still human beings making emotional decisions. And most of them simply want to feel listened to properly.
The best salespeople in furniture retail are rarely the ones doing all the talking. You’ll often find the opposite. They listen better than everybody else.
