new sales technique ill be trying

[huggytree]

this guys success is all about small subtle things....everything he does and every thing he says is just a tiny bit different. its meant to attract the type of customer he wants.

someone who wants the job done right and is not worried about price.

I have a stack of paper work from him. Im going to spend time studying it all and implimenting what i can. Im going to pick and choose what fits my company best. Some of his idea's cant be done by a 1 man shop.

[Spider]

It would be interesting if you were to share what you gather from his material, Dave. I'd cerainly like to learn what you pick up.

[vangogh]

Small and subtle works. It doesn't hammer you over the head, but it's very effective. People do notice even if they can't necessarily point to what it was that affected them.

[handprop]

The goal of a phone conversation is to establish trust. So the question is what is the best way to do that for a one man shop in a plumbing business.

The advice I would give is to try and say as little as possible. Instead think only of trying to get the person on the other end of the phone to talk about themselves and you just be a great listener. Practice makes perfect and if you can, keep working at it and you will become a master. For the most part people just want one thing in life....they want to feel good. People love to talk about them selves so put them in a position where they can do that.

If a person calls and you give them a price you have just violated that rule and lost the chance to build trust. If you can build trust you will be their plumber for life because the reality is people don't trust plumbers, electricians, etc. Ever heard the term "My Plumber" people say that because they are proud they found not just a plumber but a friend......and what do we know about friendship????? It's built around trust, right?

You don't want to get in the habit of spending hours on the phone with someone but remember that a person that trusts you will spread word of mouth like a wild fire if you promote it.

I learned this in politics because if you think selling plumbing is hard try selling an idea, or a promise. Just imagine how hard it is to convince a person to leave their home, jump in the car, and go to the voting booth because of something you say. It's really hard in an environment where both political parties have failed to deliver as promised, the fact is people have no trust.

Once you have trust your job now becomes one of promoting loyalty.

What I would do if I was in your position is keep a notebook handy for every phone conversation and each time you get a call give yourself a grade on how you did and ask yourself some questions like "Did I talk to much" or "Did i make them feel comfortable and did I earn trust". Be honest with yourself monitor progress each stranger at a time.

The next time you go out practice talking to people in a gas station or places like that. Do this and you will discover a big change in business. You will also discover that the stranger will become a customer and he will not worry about price like a stranger would and also will take pride in paying right away. He also tends to pay a higher price, strangers are as cheap as they come and why not.....they don't even know you.

This is the most important topic you can master and for myself it's everything. The reason I have what I have is not knowledge but instead relationships built on trust and loyalty.

Mike