Service, Sell And Super-Size Your Customers
By Mark Mandell, DC, MBA
You are spending 5% to 10% of your gross income on advertising to encourage customers to call you. Good for you! That's a necessity for any business that wants to be profitable and grow. But how much are you investing on training your sales team to transform those calls into bigger sales? Do you have ORDER TAKERS or ORDER MAKERS answering your phone?
When a customer calls into your company, do your sales representatives field the calls with the same excitement as you would? Are they guiding the customer through the sale to closure? Are they looking for and offering up-sells and cross-sells? And finally, are they asking for AND GETTING referrals? If you answer no to any of these four questions, then good news! You have some easy opportunities that can grow your business in the next 30 days.
The Greeting
The selling process starts with how your sales reps answer the phone. The customer's first impression is the greeting. Do you have an automated computer answering the phone? It may be "efficient" but how many callers drop out before reaching a live person and making an actual purchase? Check your phone data and you may be surprised at what the efficient routing is costing you in sales. NOTHING beats a live person answering the phone with enthusiasm!
Real enthusiasm is not just a smile piled on top of the stale phrase – "Hello, this is John. How can I help you?" REAL ENTHUSIASM is pizzazz on the phone that immediately engages the customer. Enthusiasm is something that reaches out and makes the CUSTOMER SMILE and say "YES!" Enthusiasm is answering the phone like this:
"We're having a wonderful day here at National Health Products. My name is John, and after I answer your questions, I'd like to share today's special offer with you? Would you like that?" YES!
With enthusiasm and a leading offer, now your sales reps are taking the first step to transition from order takers to order makers!
Guiding the Customer Through the Sale
When a customer calls in, your sales reps should be well versed in navigating the sales process from start to close. Having a clear path to take the call from greeting to purchase can increase the likelihood of closing the sale by 30%!
First, qualify what the customer wants. The customer will tell you that they are interested in your product, but the trained sales professionals will dig deeper to uncover what is driving the customer to make the purchase. What is the customer really looking to accomplish, and what's important to them? Start by asking the following two questions:
"Doctor, what about (this product) interests you?"
"Can you share with me what you are looking to achieve with (this product)?"
The customer will answer your questions by telling you exactly what features and benefits are important to him. Now, you can focus your explanation of your product on those specifics and tailor your conversation to what the CUSTOMER VALUES.
The second part of the sales process is the product explanation or demonstration. Armed with the customer's values, your sales reps can transition to the demo stage, with the following sentence:
"Let me repeat back the points that you laid out. (repeat the list) Based on everything we've discussed, I think you'll agree that we have exactly what you are looking for."
Now instead of downloading every feature and benefit your product has to offer, you only have to discuss the ones that the customer really cares about. This not only reduces the length of the call, but also makes it easier for the customer to make a buying decision. When you provide everything that they are looking for, it becomes a no-brainer decision for the customer to buy now.
A customer may have some objections that need to be addressed prior to saying "yes." Most companies can categorize their common objections into five or six areas and then develop responses to them. Work with your sales reps or outside consultants to develop your own guide of Best Responses. If a sales rep has a formula that works, share the response so everyone can leverage it!
After handling the objections, the sales reps have to ask for the sale. If you don't ask, then you don't get! As many as 35% of all sales are lost because the sales rep never actually asked for the sale. Train your reps on how to recognize the buying signals, to ask for the sale and then to stop talking. Even if the customer says "no" at first, trained sales reps know how to work around a negative response to close the deal. They may use an Assumed Sale response like this:
"Sure, I understand that you want to think about it. Doctor Jones, can you tell me what you like about our product? (listen to the customer) It really sounds like we'd be a perfect fit for you. Would you want me to ship your order out today so you can have it by Thursday?"
Growing the Sale
Once the sales reps have gotten the order, you still have an opportunity to grow the sale. The ORDER TAKER will take the order and be satisfied, but the ORDER MAKER will look for additional opportunities to provide value to the customer. This should not be viewed as trying to squeeze a customer but rather as a means to BETTER SERVICE the customer. One way to provide better value is to Up-Sell the doctor by increasing the quantity or size ordered. This is like McDonald's asking you to Super-size your drink for twenty more cents. Your sales reps should use a similar value approach.
"Doctor, I see that you are ordering 6 units today, however if you want to order 12 today, then I can save you 10% off the unit price. Would you like me to do that for you?"
Another way to increase the order size is to Cross-Sell. This is adding on complementary products to the sale. If we go back to the McDonald's example, a cross-sell would be asking you if you want fries with your hamburger. Your sales reps should be trained in how to match the right cross-sell to the products.
Doctor, most of our customers who order this unit also get the annual service package for $120. This way we take care of all the service care for you. Would you like for me to include that with your order?"
By making the specific recommendation to the customer, you are far more likely to get the add-on sale and provide more value to your customer in the process.
Getting Referrals
Finally, once the sales reps have landed the sale and provided additional value opportunities, the stage is set for even more business growth by asking for referrals. Just like with the sale, if you don't ask, you don't get, so you want to be sure that your sales reps are asking for referrals. Although a blanket statement such as "Do you know of anyone else who might want this product?" is better than nothing, a more specific question will yield more fruitful results.
"Doctor Jones. Thank you so much for your business. We do appreciate it. Who's the first person that comes to mind if I ask you who else needs this product?"
By bringing the referral question down to looking for a single name, the customer is far more likely to give you a name and contact information on the spot. Using this strategy alone can help you to double your prospect list!
Spark the transformation of your sales team from Order Takers into Order Makers with the right focus and training. Marketing makes the phone ring, but Sales has to close the deal. Start developing your sales team today and turbo-charge your marketing results with higher closing ratios and bigger sales tickets. If you're spending money on advertising, it pays to maximize the return!
About the author
Mark Mandell, DC, MBA is the Spark-in-Chief of SPARK!, a leading sales, marketing and operational consulting firm with an unprecedented record of exponentially growing businesses. He is the former Director of Business Development of Foot Levelers, the Clinical Director of Eclipse Mattresses and the sixth chiropractor in his family. Dr. Mandell is the author of ‘Spark Your Sales – How to Get Better Results From Things You Are Already Doing," which is available through www.SparkYourCompany.com. He can be reached for consulting, training or speaking at MarkM@SparkYourCompany.com or by calling 866-940-3656.
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