The key, says Phil Rea, sales consultant at R2R Associates, in Yorktown, Va., and well-known industry sales trainer, is to put the prospect’s interests before your own need to sell. That means, he says, abandoning your own agenda and taking up that of your prospect. Rea says that when he explains to prospects that he’s there to “get onto their agenda,” they immediately become less defensive. “You can see the tension leave their body.”
On the other hand, it’s wise not to rush things but rather to proceed at a pace that’s comfortable for the homeowner. “They’ve invited us into their house, so it’s their time, not ours,” says Gary Kearns, director of sales and marketing for Kearns Brothers, in Dearborn, Mich. “Some people want to get right into it and some don’t.”
WHAT TO DO 1. Prepare a list of questions. Write a list of needs-assessment questions to establish your process and to help keep it on track during the sales call. It isn’t complicated, Lemons says. Just ask yourself what you need to know not only to write a proposal but to close the sale. The basics are, he says, “The five ‘W’s — who, what, why, when, where — and how,” including things like, who else they have talked to and what other products they have looked at.
2. Expect to ask dozens of questions. But ultimately, the answers you need are to the four essential questions you’ll ask yourself, Dunbar says: “What are they going to buy? Why are they going to buy it from me? Why are they going to buy it now? What objections will they have when I come back with the proposal?”
3. Document your findings and the prospect’s answers. The best way to do this is using a printed form. Include the questions as a prompt for the salesman, and provide space for notes, measurements, drawings, etc.
A form will organize the process at the same time that it establishes you as a professional conducting research — more a consultant than a sales guy — and sets you apart from your competitors. Ronzino says that Four Seasons Sunrooms reps use “a needs-assessment form that looks like an official document,” where they can record measurements and note the prospect’s answers. But, more importantly, “it makes the rep look like he has come to the home prepared,” he says. Write down what prospects tell you, paying special attention to “hot buttons” such as likes, dislikes, and any particular emotional responses.
4. Don’t interrogate. When gathering information from homeowners, “it must be conversational,” says Ralph Feurer, co-owner of Norton’s Quality Exteriors, in Midvale, Utah. “It’s not hammering them with these questions,” he adds. Nothing, he points out, can be more counterproductive.
“The rep has to use a conversational style to draw this information out,” Ronzino says. He can’t just whip out an order pad and fire off a set of questions. “If he does, he won’t build rapport and he won’t find the ‘in’ or the hot button for the purchase.”
5. Be thorough. Think broadly about what you need to know. Certainly, gather all the information about the project; think about the logistics of the job, where you’ll get power, where to stage materials, and so on. But you also want to understand the prospect’s needs, wants, and motivations, even if they aren’t clear to the prospect. “If you think about the things that most people spend money on, they don’t spend much on needs,” Rea says. People generally don’t need a new kitchen if they’ve already got one, he adds, “but if they want a nice kitchen, then they will spend [the] money [to get it].”
6. Repeat yourself. The chemistry between sales rep and prospect will change as the needs assessment progresses, rapport develops, and the prospect begins to trust the salesperson. Don’t be afraid to ask a question more than once. “I ask the same question a few times [during the sales call] because the question you ask during the first five minutes with the homeowner can get a very different answer toward the end [of the call] when prospects feel comfortable with you and have opened up,” Dunbar says.