The Power of a Good Story

Many DPHA members, particularly our dealer members, complain about the Internet.  So why then do customers come to the showroom?  Have you and your staff ever considered that question?  Do you they patronize your business because they know when they walk in the door you will offer them a discount even without asking for one?  Do they come simply to see the products they are considering using, knowing they can find them cheaper on the Internet?  Do they come simply to browse because they have been considering replacing their 20-year-old water closet with one that features smart technology and can order toilet tissue through a personal digital assistant?  Most likely the answer is "no" to all of the above.  Most customers come to a decorative plumbing and hardware showroom because it is a destination.  They come, as Bernadette Jiwa points out in a recent blog (The Story of Telling), because it is an experience, not simply a trip to acquire products for a new bath or kitchen. 

Showroom owners and managers need to train their sales teams that their job isn't actually to sell "after-dinner chinaware".  It's not about selling faucets, tubs and shower systems either.  When someone walks into a showroom where there are $1,500 faucets, $8,000 tubs and $20,000 shower systems on display, they are not simply buying products made from solid brass, with thermostatic valves, ceramic cartridges and PVD lifetime finishes.  They are also buying the story.  Showroom sales professionals and their represented manufacturers connect the customer to the showroom's and the manufacturer's story.  If your sales team is not passionate about the story and excited to share it with customers, they are missing opportunities to create value, connect with customers and make sales more easily.

What's the point of looking for unique products, pioneering brands and differentiating your business from online etailers and discounting competitors if your team doesn't understand or share your brand story and explain what makes the products in your showroom deliver better experiences than customers could find elsewhere?  As Jiwa points out, "There's no point in setting the stage if actors don't understand the importance of the script.  A good story can't save a bad product, but it can make a good product great."