February 2008

Commentary

Ask, and You Shall Receive

If you ask the right questions before your sales presentation, you can make better suggestions and score a sale.

By Gabrielle Rohde

Joe, the bank’s assistant vice president, is looking for, as he puts it vaguely, “shirts” with his bank’s logo on them for employees to wear on casual Fridays. Once a quarter, the bank orders a new set of shirts for everybody – and it’s that time again. Joe puts in a call to Frank and Lori, two distributors he’s bought from in the past. The way they each handle the pre-presentation call clearly impacts who’ll get the sale.

"Don’t begin with the budget question.
You’re limiting your sale before you’ve
started selling."

The first distributor, Frank, asks Joe a few questions. “How much do you want to spend per shirt, Joe?” “$25.”

“OK,” Frank says. “Are you looking for a basic polo or something more upscale?” Joe thinks for a moment. “Well,” he says. “I guess the shirt doesn’t have to be no frills, but we don’t want it too fancy either.”

“How about a color?” Frank says.

“We always like blue,” Joe says.

Frank’s almost done. “OK, do you need men’s and women’s shirts?” Joe pauses. “I suppose so, about 50-50,” he says.

The answers to those questions are definitely critical to narrowing the field of possible wearables solutions. However, there is such a thing as limiting your presentation that it kills your ability to maximize the size of the order and the degree of satisfaction achieved by the end-user. Let’s take a closer look.

Pitfall number one: Don’t begin with the budget question. You’re limiting your sale before you’ve started selling. There’s time to discuss the budget. There isn’t a retail salesperson worth his salt who won’t show a customer something at a higher price point than she asked for. You shouldn’t either.

Pitfall number two: Don’t assume the customer is always looking for the cheapest solution when in fact he’s looking for the best value. There’s a difference. Sell him a stylish shirt he’s proud to wear and it’ll get worn in front of more people outside the bank, for example, creating additional positive impressions.

Pitfall number three: Don’t assume the customer is only going to buy one shirt. Many customers are looking for the “casual Friday” piece, which implies they can only wear the logo one day a week. Use this as an opportunity to sell the concept of using more apparel to market the brand. Would an apparel program for every day of the week be a more cost-effective way to spend marketing dollars?

Pitfall number four: Don’t assume the only thing you can sell this customer is apparel. Never make the sales call without bringing in three new fabulous and fun items you’ve found to serve a different need. At the end of your apparel presentation, briefly present each item along with a fresh idea of how to use it. Then set an appointment to review the client’s favorite idea. Remember, your job is to help him market his brand or business – not just sell him your products.

Lori, the second distributor Joe contacted, takes a different tack.

• “You’re looking for some new shirts? Great! I’d love to show you some new styles that would really please your employees and impress your customers. Did you have a particular color in mind? Blue? Great! I’ll bring some different shades of blue along with a couple other swatches I think you’ll want to consider.”

• “Have you tried any performance fabrics, such as those with moisture management? They look great all day and keep your staff comfortable so they perform better. I’ll make sure to include some.”

• “Is this for both men and women? Great! I’ll bring several styles. I’ll also show you some complementary products.”

This conversation gives Lori the information to accomplish the following at her face-to-face meeting with Joe:

1. Sell a better product because she got her customer excited about other possibilities and better values.

2. Sell more product because her customer now understands that logoed apparel represents the best marketing value.

3. Sell additional products because she brought some great teaser items with her, and presented ways to use them that her customer would never have asked her for.