Quit Selling to Your Customers

After two bad experiences, I told myself at 20 years old that I would not be pursuing a career in sales.

I could be a teacher, or a farmer, or whatever… just not sales. I was not cut out for that.

So now, here I sit having worked in some capacity of sales jobs for close to 13 years, and you might ask what was it that almost steered my life in a completely different direction altogether? I saw the ugly side of sales before I saw the good part, and it almost cost me a career.

Let me explain.

Fresh out of high school, I took my first full-time job as a porter at a large car lot outside of my hometown. It was as glamorous, high paying and easy as you’d expect it to be. I almost couldn’t type that without laughing. It was the most tired, hot and filthy I’ve ever been in my life. I lost 20 pounds that summer. But I was just the unskilled, grunt labor and had to earn my place. Such is life.

Although I doubt that would have been my long-term landing spot, it wasn’t the work that made me quit that job… it was the salesmen. I won’t name brand names to avoid any offense, but the car lot sold a cheaply made import, and as soon as the customer was out of earshot, driving off in their brand-new car, the salesmen would begin to berate their stupidity for being talked into their purchase. It was rough. “What a sucker. See you in 6 weeks when you come in for repairs!” “I’m just glad that one got out of the lot before falling apart!” It got worse from there. They would make fun of the customer for being duped, praise themselves for being good enough to do the duping, then gleefully smile all the way to the bank with their commission checks.

I couldn’t take it. Strike #1, sales jobs.

The second blow came while I was in college. I got a part-time gig working with a small, regional magazine as a columnist. I wrote an outdoors article with hunting and fishing tips and a devotional minute for the faith & family section. I loved that part of the work. The problem was, the writing didn’t pay squat, but I knew that coming in. My salary would be based almost entirely on selling ad space in the magazine I was contributing to. The magazine looked great, and the articles were interesting, but every single time I booked an appointment with a business to make a pitch, they always asked the same questions. “What’s your circulation and is this worthwhile for me?” That’s when I was reminded that I could not be like the laughing car salesmen. The truth was, our circulation was small, and the ads were overpriced. Truthfully, they could get more bang for their buck advertising somewhere else... and I told them that. How’s that for a sales pitch? All those business owners had to do was ask me my honest opinion, and I would basically talk them out of buying from me. A few bought for a month or so just because they appreciated my honesty, but that wasn’t enough to pay the bills. So, I didn’t last long.

Listen, I am not trying to make myself appear as some moral saint. But somewhere deep down, the act of using your skill to persuade someone into a bad decision for your own gain seemed like the highest kind of wrong. And guess what, if you choose to operate that way, get what you can quickly because it’s only a matter of time before word spreads. That car lot and the magazine are no longer in business.

So, what restored my faith in sales to a point where I chose it as my profession? I had someone who showed me that good salesmanship is NOT you vs. the customer, it is you AND the customer vs. the problem. Always remember that.

There is a reason 99.9% of the American public won’t answer the phone to talk to a telemarketer. They have lost faith that most salespeople are actually trying to help and have developed a cynicism that anyone selling is only a parasite after their money.

Can you fix this problem alone? No. But you can be aware that a good portion of your customer base is already looking at you skeptically. They’re borderline expecting the big, bad business to try to rip them off. Why? Because just like the younger me, they’ve seen things… we all have.

Bad salesmen have put a hard shell on a lot of our customers, and it can be a hard nut to crack. How do you stand out as different and change that mindset in them?

The first thing is: Remember to talk like a person TO A PERSON.

A weird thing happens when we go into a sales pitch. We tend to sound rehearsed, sometimes inorganically excited and we use a ton of technical jargon the customer doesn’t understand. As a result, it comes off as, well… creepy. Scripts can be a decent sales tool for keeping you on track, but they can also take all the personality out of your interaction. Remember, a sales call should be a conversation, a dialog, where a customer is never afraid to stop you and ask questions. Whether you’re asking permission for a $100 repair or a $10,000 system replacement, it’s their investment. Take the time to make them comfortable.

Next: Keep in mind, people don’t like to be sold, but they DO like to buy.

Being sold gives us the feeling that someone “got us.” Buying makes us feel like we are in control and chose to make the purchase. Semantics? It’s a bigger difference than you might realize.

Again, you want the customer to feel like they are making the correct, informed decision, not that you are talking them into something. Remember, you are the expert on home comfort, so they are depending on that knowledge coming from you. And if you have built up some trust, you have now switched roles from a “salesman” to an advisor. That’s a good place to be.

Last: Too much pressure will destroy your sale.

Sure, we all like sales and extra commissions and the techs like to be spiffed, but push too hard, and it will all go up in flames. The second a prospect starts to feel uncomfortable pressure to sign on the dotted line before they are ready, the switch flips right back to defense mode. “What is this guy trying to pull?” You are MUCH better off with a soft approach. “Have I answered all your questions?” “Is there anything else I can do to make this decision easier?” And then the always welcome, “Whether you get this done today or you call someone else to do it, I would really advise you to get this handled as soon as possible.” With that statement, you have effectively let the customer off the hook and released the pressure like a wide-open gate valve. Your prospect will appreciate your honesty and most of the time, you will get that sale on the spot. If not, give them time. If they trust you, they’ll be back.

You’re in the service industry to help people with their problems. If they don’t trust your opinions or feel like they can partner with you to get their problems solved, you’ll probably have a hard time succeeding in your market.

The takeaway? Your marketing and branding – which covers everything from your CSR to the in-home technician to the piece in the prospect’s mail or inbox – have to reinforce that credibility and, most importantly, the relationship.

We’re here to help you form a plan to get more leads and keep more customers. Let us know how we can help. Call 1-800-489-900 or email [email protected].