Hello, I'm wondering what you charge for a new mattress?
I'm guessing these questions are familiar? How many of these 'price shopping' phone calls do you take each day? Each week?
But the larger questions are: How many of those calls are converted to sales? How frequently do these 'price shoppers' actually walk into your business?
The Realities
After recording and scoring thousands of actual phone calls in every sector, ContactPoint has learned the facts: the majority of salesmen simply quote a price and don't make the sale or set up an appointment. In fact, most employees generally don't even ask for the sale or attempt to set up an appointment.
Not surprisingly, when you don't specifically try to get the sale you only get the sale just over10% of the time.
Your business just missed a huge opportunity. You just lost business.
What is the price shopper really asking?
Potential customers aren't going to call you unless they truly need what your business offers. No one just randomly prices windshields for the fun of it! If someone asks, "How much does a tire cost?" what they are really saying is, "I really want or need a bed, please sell me one!"
Pavlov's Dogs
The famous Russian scientist, Pavlov, conducted experiments in the 1890s that discovered dogs can be conditioned to respond a certain way. His studies showed that a dog salivated when it heard a bell because the dog had learned to associate food with the bell. Even when no food was present and a bell was rung, the dog still salivated because he expected food.
Pavlov's research shows that we can become conditioned to feel and to behave in a preconditioned (or programmed) manner. People that are, 'just checking on prices' are your 'bell.' Your staff should have a preconditioned reaction and response. So, how do your employees respond? When the bell rings, do they salivate? Each phone call should be a trigger that a potential customer is on the line.
But many employees view price shopper phone calls as worthless. The Pavlovian bell many businesses hear causes them to simply answer the 'price shopping' questions, with little or no effort to actually get the 'shopper' to walk through your doors. So…the 'shopper' usually doesn't end up walking through your doors.
Fix The Problem
What is the solution? What should the 'price shopper' phone call sound like?
1) Tone -Please don't see these calls as worthless. At ContactPoint we've recorded thousands of phone calls and transformed hundreds of companies. And we've discovered that tone of voice is the number one indicator of on-the-phone sales close rates. In fact, 86% of our on-the-phone communication is the tone of our voice.
2) Build a Bond- Strive to make the caller feel at ease. Ask for the caller's name and use it. Furthermore, re-state the caller's questions and concerns. Your job is to understand the caller; but, just as important: they need to know that you understand them.
3) Questions - Take the time to learn everything you can about the caller. Ask them questions. Why are they calling today? Why are they in town? What specifically are they looking for? Your whole goal is getting to know them, so you can assist them.
4) Build Value -This is your opportunity to ask them the right questions and figure out their actual needs. You are the expert. You know much more about what your business offers than the customer does. Use your expertise to build trust with the caller. Once you've built trust, you can make a recommendation about what type of product or service they need, what would be appropriate, what is a 'good deal,' and what will help them the most.
5) Get the Business - Your chances of closing the sale go up over 200% when you ask for the business right after you quote a price.
The key is this: if you view each price shopper as a customer you can close 10 out of 10 price shopping calls.
Make sure your team salivates when the customer bell rings. People are not calling for the heck of it. They have a need that your business can address. When consumers price shop, they are not looking for the cheapest price; they are looking for a business they can like. That's what the price shopping bell should signal to you and your employees.
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Mr. Wilson is the founder and president of ContactPoint. ContactPoint is the universal leader in sales and customer service optimitics. Their revolutionary technology records and scores actual phone calls so companies hear what their customers hear. ContactPoint provides transformativetraining to teach businesses how to triple sales. For more information visit http://www.contactpoint.com or http://www.contactpoint.com/about-you/sell-with-power
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