Wednesday, September 4, 2019

Welcomed Thoughts from a Fellow (Jeff Valles): Good Salespeople Do Know More, Now Use That Power Carefully

This is a fact: the average luxury showroom salesperson knows more about their products than 99% of their clients do. A design or construction professional or internet-educated homeowner can come in flinging industry product terms around, but the simple truth is that a knowledgeable salesperson simply knows more. Do not forget this, but never flaunt it. You are the best in your world and a successful salesperson always works with their client on the client’s level. Never intimidate because it always is truly all about the client. A slip-up here with any client can lose not only the job, but a good client.

Never one-up your clients. If they make an error, let it go. There is no reason to correct them. Do note the error so you can correct it later, but your focus should remain on your client and their experience. If you consistently make them look good and feel confident, it will pay off handsomely.

Finally, and most importantly, when communicating via email and text regarding quotes, be over-descriptive. Now is the time to flaunt your knowledge. Write as much information as necessary so that all parties involved understand the product, its application and the timelines. That’s a lot of information, but it will help everyone stay on the same page and save you time.

Think like your customer. If they are reading your communication and it does not contain the specific information they want and need, they will first get frustrated, blame you and then email you with many long-winded questions. Having a frustrated client is not a good step in your effort to win the bid and build a long-term relationship. It’s better to have clients comment that there is too much information on your quote. Even your best, old-time clients need volumes of information. One never knows what questions their Internet research will create. If your quote has the answer, all is good. It never hurts to be thorough - the devil is in the details. You do know that.

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