The most compelling selling message you can deliver in any medium is not that you have something wonderful to sell. It is: "I understand what you need." The selling message "I have" is about you. The message "I understand" is about the only person involved in the sale who really matters: the buyer.
-Harry Beckwith, Selling the Invisible
Mr. Beckwith has an excellent point that wraps up all of the different skills that go into sales - rapport, solid, enticing descriptions, and communication. No matter how wonderful your descriptions are, how well you give insider tips, or how engaging you are when you talk, you are not being as compelling as possible unless you first understand the needs of your customer and then appeal to those needs. Keep in mind – the needs will range from basic (“you need food”) to more in depth (“you need faster communication from me”). Try the simple activity to work the phrase "I understand you need ______," or a variant of it, into each selling discussion for a week or more to see how it strongly focuses the discussion.