In this section, two of the most important steps are covered: EDUCATING THE CUSTOMER ON YOU, YOUR COMPANY, and YOUR PRODUCTS and SERVICES; plus, DEMONSTRATING WHY YOU AND YOUR COMPANY ARE BEST SUITED TO MEET THEIR WANTS AND NEEDS.
SECTION THREE: EDUCATE THE CUSTOMER
This section is designed to educate the customer on two primary topics, our company and the product category(s) the customer is looking at.
First, one of the most common objections is that your customer wants to “look around” because they are convinced that they should shop two or three competitors to determine who has the best product, price, and customer service. It is our responsibility to educate every single customer as to why they should buy from us over anyone else.
You should discuss things such as:
- We have pricing integrity unlike many of our competitors
- We treat every customer like family and we are not happy if they are not happy
- We have the best value products on the market
- We have professional sales associates to help you determine what products will suit your needs
- We are part of the community
- No one works harder to make sure that you are happy with your purchase
PAUL’S NOTE – If people only knew how hard we worked on their behalf; they would never shop anywhere else.
Top-Down Selling: Customers need to be informed so they can make the best decisions possible. Many sales associates will place their own financial limitations on their customers. They assume that they might not be able to afford the “top of the line” products, neither will their customers, which may not be the case; either way, it is not up to the sales associate to make that judgement. Every customer should be aware of the options that exist and that means that they should at least hear about the best products available in the marketplace. Remember that your goal is not necessarily to sell every customer the best product we carry, your job is to help customers make informed decisions. It is always easier to move down in price points than it is to start at the middle or bottom and move up.
For example, with bedding, it is important to determine what “feel” is best for the customer, by starting with the best beds that we carry not only can you determine the best level of support, it is a very natural way to introduce customers to the best products we carry.
PAUL’S NOTE – Many customers do not purchase mattress sets regularly and may not have a good understanding of price points relative to other home purchases.
In your role of educator, do not be afraid to discuss things that they may not understand about our services and products as well as our competitive advantages relative to our competition, without slamming them.
PAUL’S NOTE – As a professional sales associate, you need to know about your competition; fortunately, this is easy to do – read website, flyers, and social media. Many of the sales associates you will compete against, barely know their ads much less yours – take advantage of that.
SECTION 4: DEMONSTRATION:
Feature, advantage, and Benefit (FAB): If the purpose of qualification is to establish the customers needs and wants; education helps establish our store as the best place to shop; then demonstration, ties down particular products to their wants and needs.
- FEATURE – A specific thing that a product will do for a customer
- ADVANTAGE – What it does or how it works
- BENEFIT – What it does to help the customer
Tie-Downs: A tie-down is by definition “a question following a statement that seeks agreement”, for example:
- “As you can see, this product is going to suit your needs?”
- “You said earlier that a goodnight’s sleep was important to you, so this pillow-top style mattress will allow you to get the proper sleep you need, won’t it?”
The big upside of using tie-downs is that they re-affirm the positives throughout the sale for your customer. It will be much easier for the customer to relate to owning this product at the end of the sale, when they have agreed to the benefits throughout your presentation. The benefit to the sales associate is that they know they are going in the right direction for the customer. It is critical the you allow your customer to respond to your tie-downs. A lot of small yes’s throughout the sale will lead to a big YES at the end.
In any sale the product demonstration plays an integral role in the sale. The deficiencies that exist among sales associates are no different than in other sales arenas, poor sales associates focus on “features” rather than “benefits” and talk in technical terms or “buzzwords” and as a result do not connect with their customers wants and needs. A poor sales associate inevitably shows their customer 7 or 8 features on 3 or 4 different products and spends no time talking about the benefits, advantages, or tie-downs to what the customer is looking for. A confused customer who is frustrated by our process does not buy or buys from the competition.
In order to convey to the customer how the recommended product will suit them best, it is imperative to have some kind of LINKING PHRASE, tying the product benefits to the customers needs. When introducing each feature and benefit of the product, start by relating the product to their needs with the following choices:
- “earlier you mentioned … “or “remember when you told me …”
This will reinforce for your customer that you have been listening and that you have recommended a good choice for them.
Selling the Brand: The keys to a solid demonstration are in selling not only the product and brand, but also you and our company. Selling the brand means knowing key information about our vendor partners. We sell quality products and selling the quality of the brand will give your customer a feeling of support. Selling yourself means spending time building a relationship, qualifying properly, and then using this information during your demonstration. When you say to a customer “remember when you said …”, you will have taken a huge positive step in your relationship with your customer.
A good demonstration depends on:
- Focusing on 3 or 4 customer keys and relating these to the product benefits so you can highlight the advantages of this particular product and then using tie-downs to connect the product to their wants.
- Make sure all products on the floor are correctly assembled so you can demonstrate them
- Always use your customers name(s)
- Transfer ownership to your customer “That is really going to look great in your living room”
- Keep demonstrations concise and to the point
- Save the hottest customer key to the end
- Use “power” words – incredible, fantastic
- Always try to have the customer interact with the product – sitting on upholstery etc.
Positive Selling: A common trend among top sales associates is that they sell their products by focusing on the outstanding benefits of their products or services rather than denigrating the competition. Customers are smart enough to realize that a sales associate who relies on negative tactics is either afraid of the competition or is lying to them just to make a deal. If you feel that the competition is going to give the customer poor service or a less than quality product, then sell them on the benefits or our program.
It is important to keep this mind when trying to upsell a customer, especially from an entry-level product. If you genuinely fee that the step-up product is a better value for the customer, then promote it by pointing out the benefits and advantages to the customer.
Transition Phrase: When making the transition from Education to Demonstration, you will need to make a smooth transition that relates all of the customers needs to the product that you are about to show them; we suggest that you use this phrase
- “Based on what you’ve told me, I think we have the perfect product for you …”
Accessories or Package selling: One of the best ways to increase your sales is by presenting everything that your customer needs to complete their purchase. For example:
- When selling upholstery, remember coffee and end tables and/or lamps and rugs
- When selling mattress sets, remember mattress pads, pillows, bedframes, sheet sets
- When selling laundry sets, remember pedestals, extended service plans, hoses
- When selling bedroom groups, remember mattress sets
- When selling televisions, remember wall brackets, sound bars, extended service plans
PAUL NOTE: You can increase your sales without seeing any more customers and making sure that you “complete the room” for them, most retail sales associates are happy with the initial sale and most times never mention the other things.
Value added products (VAPS): You offer your customers the “piece of mind” protection to protect their investments in their new home furnishings. VAPS are a good investment for your customer, they dramatically increase your income, and they are very good for our store as well.
Tips for Selling VAPS
- Present to EVERY customer during your demonstration
- Plan good quality seeds prior to the presentation of the product
- Know the prices of every plan and the DAILY, MONTHLY, and YEARLY price breakdown
And relate the price to a cup of coffee.
- Present the features and benefits before the price
- Use visual aids (fabric cards)
- Relate to protecting their investment
- NEVER USE THE WORD WARRANTY – use fabric protection plan, leather care plan, extended service plan.
- Always present at the product, never at the front counter.
Many sales associates don’t pay enough attention to these key steps, if you do, it might just make all the difference. Next time we will discuss steps 5 and 6, CLOSING and AFTER SALE SERVICE.