MBA2678 Q&A Wednesday: Why Do My Customers Seem Very Interested But Don't Buy?

17 Sep 2025 · 12 min

Ask about this episode

Ask anything about it. ChatGPT or Claude reads this page and answers with the times it was said.

Connect VO and ask about every podcast you hear, including the moments you saved. Add to ChatGPT · Add to Claude

In short

The $100 MBA Show: Episode MBA2678 Summary

Episode Overview Title: MBA2678 Q&A Wednesday: Why Do My Customers Seem Very Interested But Don't Buy? Host: Omar Zenhom Description: In this episode, Omar addresses a common frustration for entrepreneurs—customers who express interest but do not make purchases. He provides insights into the reasons for this behavior and offers actionable strategies for converting interest into sales.

---

Key Concepts

Understanding Customer Behavior

  • Interest vs. Intent:
  • Interest: Customers may express interest (e.g., saying "that looks cool"), but this does not equate to an intention to purchase.
  • Intent: A commitment to buying, which often involves trust, risk, and emotional considerations.

Reasons for Non-Purchase

  1. Lack of Urgency:
  2. Customers do not perceive a reason to buy now.
  3. Solutions:
  4. Introduce time-sensitive offers or bonuses.
  5. Highlight consequences for delaying their purchase.
  1. Lack of Clarity:
  2. Confused customers will not buy.
  3. Solutions:
  4. Simplify messaging.
  5. Clearly outline the benefits and results of the product or service.
  1. Lack of Trust:
  2. Customers are uncertain if the product will deliver on promises.
  3. Solutions:
  4. Provide testimonials, case studies, and evidence of effectiveness.
  5. Leverage personal character references when starting out.
  1. Wrong Offer for the Wrong Moment:
  2. The product may not resonate with the customer’s current needs or stage.
  3. Solutions:
  4. Assess audience needs and tailor offers accordingly.
  5. Provide educational content and simpler products to build confidence before presenting more complex offers.

---

Actionable Strategies

Immediate Steps to Convert Interest into Sales

  1. Follow Up with Purpose:
  2. Craft personalized follow-ups that encourage dialogue rather than generic check-ins.
  3. Example: “I’m opening up five spots this week for product X and wanted to give you first dibs.”
  1. Record Personal Videos:
  2. Use video messages to establish a personal connection and demonstrate understanding of the customer’s needs.
  3. This approach helps build trust and distinguishes you from competitors.
  1. Audit Your Sales Message:
  2. Get feedback from people unfamiliar with your product.
  3. Adjust messaging based on their understanding to ensure clarity and appeal.

---

Closing Thoughts

  • Omar emphasizes that an "I'm interested" response often indicates uncertainty.
  • It is the business owner's responsibility to facilitate decision-making by providing clear information and reducing perceived risks.
  • A “no” is a valid outcome and can serve as a stepping stone for future interactions, enabling business owners to continue nurturing leads.

---

Call to Action

  • Submit questions for future episodes at [100mba.net/q](https://100mba.net/q).
  • Subscribe to the podcast for more actionable business lessons.

---

By implementing these insights and strategies, business owners can effectively address customer hesitance and increase their conversion rates, ultimately turning interest into sales.

Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.

Hear the part that matters, and keep it.Open this episode in VO. Double tap your headphones to save a moment as you listen.
Get VO free

Transcript

Automatic transcript. May contain errors.

0:00Ever have a customer say, I'm super interested, only they never buy. It's frustrating, right? Today, I'm going to be answering Brenda's question here on Q &A Wednesday. That question is, why do my customers seem very interested but don't buy? Today, we're going to unpack why this happens and what you can do about it. We're going to make sure you have a game plan so that you convert more interested buyers into customers. Let's get into it.

0:31welcome back to the hundred dollar MBA show I'm your host Omar Zinhome where I deliver practical business lessons three times a week Monday Wednesday and Friday to help you start grow and scale your business before we jump in can I get 30 seconds of your time we love guiding you on your business journey and we want to help even more people build their dream businesses and lives. So if you could hit the follow button on this podcast app, it would be greatly appreciated. It's completely free and it helps us out more than you know. Thanks. First, let's define what's happening. Brenda, people, when they say they're interested, it's not the same of having the intent to buy.

1:11Interest and intent are not the same thing. We've all said to something or to someone, that looks cool, or I love this idea, but you never really pulled the trigger. Why? Because interest is cheap. It costs the buyer nothing to say nice things, but buying on the other hand, that costs money. It also costs you trust, commitment, change, maybe even an embarrassment or fear of judgment. If things don't go right, it's risky for them. So I'm interested might just be code for, I like the idea, or I don't hate you, or I'm being polite, or I might buy someday, or even I'm just not ready. So let's break down the four big reasons why this happens and why people don't become customers.

1:57By the way, this is just science. This is psychology. This is just how human beings behave. This is not a gut feeling. This is just statistically what happens in the buying process. Number one, lack of urgency. They don't see why they need to act now, why they need to buy now. If your offer is open forever or the transformation is vague, they're just going to wait forever, right? We will delay any decision that will allow us to just delay it, right? If we could just wait longer or just not make the decision now, we just won't make the decision now. This is why if you want to fix this, you have to add urgency and specificity.

2:36Why they need to buy now, right? time-sensitive bonuses, clear deadlines. What happens if they wait? What's the penalty for waiting? Whether it's the price goes up, whether they won't get the bonuses, whether they'll run out of spots and you don't know if we'll be available in the future. You need to highlight what they will lose by waiting. You got to make waiting the enemy. Number two, lack of clarity. There is a golden rule in business that I teach inside of our program, The$100 MBA, And that is a confused mind never buys. Anybody that is in the buying process and they're not 100 % clear about what they're getting, how they're going to implement that product, how they're going to benefit from them, how they're going to get the result.

3:18If it's not crystal clear and clear as day to them, they will not buy. Confusion is the enemy of conversion. So to fix this, your messaging needs to be dead simple. I'm talking about as simple language as possible. You want to make sure that it's clear what exactly they will get and what does it do for them, right? What results are they going to get and how they will feel after? What's the after picture of your product? So for example, if I was going to teach a course on journaling, how to pick up the habit of journaling five minutes a day, what's the after picture? The after picture is you will feel more at peace.

3:55You'll be more creative and you'll enjoy your mornings and start your day right. That's a good, clear picture of what their life will look like after they consume your product and implement. Number three, lack of trust. Big one. They're not sure if your product can deliver. They're not sure if this is for them or if you can actually do what you're saying. And the way to fix this is to add proof, add case studies, testimonials, screenshots, numbers, statistics, people voicing what their experience is like working with you. Now, a lot of people, when they're starting out, they say, Omar, I don't have any testimonials.

4:35I'm selling my first product. What do I do? Well, you have people that know you, that have worked with you, ex-colleagues, bosses. Even if they're giving you a testimonial based on your character, on how hardworking, the fact that you get results, the fact that you have attention to detail, Those are testimonials of your professionalism, and you can use those on your page. There's nothing wrong with asking for testimonials or a reference or whatever you want to call it from your ex-colleagues, friends, family, whatever it might be, and put it on your website. I highly recommend you get these testimonials from people that you worked with before because they're going to be able to give you a professional opinion of how effective you are.

5:18At the end of the day, they want to see someone like them who got a result that got something positive from you. Number four, wrong offer, wrong moment. Big one, you might have the wrong offer for the wrong person at the wrong time. So, for example, at the$100 MBA, our program is quite in depth and it helps people go from nothing to a million dollars in three separate programs inside. Now, a lot of people get kind of overwhelmed by that. Maybe they're like, I'm not even sure if I can even be an entrepreneur, if I can even take my ideas and package it into a product. And that's why that offer would not make sense to them.

6:01It's better for them to start consuming the podcast or our YouTube channel, which is absolutely free and they can consume as much as they want until they start shaping their ideas and start feeling confident about starting a business. We even have a step in between, which is a challenge. We give an automated challenge called Own Your Job. which allows them to cultivate their idea and package it into their first product. From there, then they're ready for the next offer, which is the program. And this is all by design because I understand my audience very well. And the more you know who you're serving, the more you're going to know what to serve them.

6:35So a good fix for this problem is to go back to your audience. Are you solving the pain they really feel right now? And your audience is going to have different stages, different milestones in their progress and how you can serve them. Are you speaking their language? Or are you using your own language, which is a little bit advanced for them? This is something I constantly, even till this day, after decades of business experience, I still have to go back and simplify my language because I'm still very much in the weeds as somebody who's been doing this for a very long time. I might use some words that are a little bit difficult for a beginner to understand.

7:11So I need to kind of explain those words or use different words to make sure that they understand what I'm saying as well as what they're getting. Now, let's get tactical. What are three things you can do immediately to convert those who are interested into sales? Number one, follow up with purpose. If someone said that they're interested, don't just say, hey, just checking in. That is just not useful and not helpful to the customer. Instead, say something like, hey, Gloria, I know you were interested in product X. I'm opening up five spots this week. Just wanted to give you first dibs before I send it to my list.

7:49Now, if you have any questions about this product, please reply. I'm happy to answer any questions while we have spots available. It's friendly. It's generous. It adds a gentle nudge, but also gives them a chance to ask questions and not say I'm ready to buy. The only option to reply is not yes, I'm in or ignore, right? There's another option. You can ask questions. You can say, okay, is it for me? This is my situation. This is my budget, whatever it might be. The second thing you could do to convert more customers is record a personal video. I can't tell you how impactful this is. This one really works.

8:23Send them a Loom video, any kind of screen capture video with your face as well as your screen if you want to do a little presentation. Say their name, show your face, and talk directly to them. If you want to get somebody over the hump where they say they're interested and you want to get them to buy, get personal. Show them that you know who they are and that you are willing to serve them. This makes it real. It separates you from everyone else that just sends blanket emails without even customizing it anyway or personalizing like this video. It builds trust very fast. And I highly recommend doing this, especially in the beginning when you have nothing but leverage of time, meaning that you don't have so many customers your way that you don't know how to handle it.

9:04You are just trying to get your first 5, 10, 15, 20 sales. You can do 20 videos and make an impact. Number three, audit your sales message. Huge. Ask three people who never seen your sales page or heard your pitch or seen your sales video and ask them, what do you think this is? What do you think it will do for you? Who's it for? Ask them these questions. If they can't easily answer these questions, it's back to the drawing board. Time to edit the copy. Time to edit that video. If they can't answer these clearly, it's not them. It's you. Simplify the message. Make the outcome irresistible. and clear.

9:42Brenda and everybody who's tuning in, I'm interested is often a polite, I'm not sure. Your job as the business owner, as a person who's making this sale, that wants to make this sale, is to make it easy and obvious and low risk to say yes. You don't want anybody on the fence. You need a yes or no. So your job is to help them make a decision, is to give them everything they need to make that decision. Interest is a spark, but closing the sale, that's your responsibility. You need to give them everything that they need, all the information that they need. You need to educate them so that they give you a yes or no.

10:20By the way, a no is a sale, right? This is actually from a line from a movie called Boiler Room, which is they're either going to sell you on why they're not going to do it, or you're going to sell them on why they're going to do it. And it's true, but it's okay for you to get a no. It's okay. And that no is often not now or maybe later or I can't afford it or all these reasons, which is valid, fine. And you're going to continue to serve them with your free content, with your blog, with your newsletter, whatever you got until they are ready and they are in the position to say yes. Thanks so much for tuning in.

10:54If you got a question you want answered here on the podcast, just go to 100mba.net slash Q, submit your question and we'll make sure to answer it right here on the show. If you found today's episode helpful and you want more practical business lessons to help you start grow and scale your business, the best thing you could do is subscribe to this podcast. Hit subscribe or follow on your favorite podcast app, the one that you're using right now, whether it's Apple or Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. By hitting subscribe, you get our next episode automatically, and it's the best way to support the show.

11:28It's absolutely free, and it's a way for you to commit to growing your business. And now that you've subscribed, I'll check you in the next episode.

From the publisher

Getting polite interest but no actual sales? It’s one of the most frustrating parts of running a business- when people seem genuinely curious, ask great questions, and then… vanish. If you’ve been stuck in that limbo, this episode is for you.

This week’s question comes from Brenda, who asked why customers often show interest but still don’t take the leap. Omar breaks down the real reasons behind this hesitation, from subtle messaging gaps to emotional friction points. You’ll learn how to build trust, follow up effectively, and create offers that move people from “maybe” to “yes”- without being pushy.

Ready to turn interest into action? Hit the play button at the top of this page and dive into a lesson that’ll help you close more sales and serve your audience with confidence.

To submit your questions, visit 100mba.net/q.

Watch the episodes on YouTube: https://lm.fm/GgRPPHi

SUBSCRIBE

YouTube | Apple Podcast | Spotify | Podcast Feed


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

More from The $100 MBA Show

All 560 episodes
MBA2678 Q&A Wednesday: Why Do My Customers Seem Very Interested But Don't Buy?The $100 MBA Show · 12 min
Listen in VO