System Selling Sales Bytes®: Electronically-delivered “byte”-sized bits of information to help
sales people create more satisfaction and success for their customers, their companies,
and themselves.

• HVAC Spells Wealth: You Deserve a 25% Net Profit by Ron Smith
• Helping the Service Technicians Sell Maintenance Agreements Part 1 of 2 by Ruth King
• Mr. Control Pro: Installing Hydronic Zone Valves Tip by Bill Ribble
• How Web Site Search Engine Ads Can Increase Your Sales NOW by Gary Walker
• System Selling Lead Generation Marketing Tips by Tom Piscitelli
• Say No To No by Matt Michel
• More

 Welcome 
by Tom Piscitelli

Flipped: The 3 Day Right of Rescission

It’s the law. Consumers have the right to cancel a signed contractual agreement that includes some kind of security interest given to the seller within 3 days (http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/rules/6500-2380.html). Your own sales contract has this, or should have it, written somewhere. And you likely have a separate form that is signed by you and your customer acknowledging this.
In sales-lingo the consumer who has canceled using this option is referred to as “flipped”. Sales managers might refer to a certain sales person’s “flip rate” meaning that percentage of sales that cancel within the 3 days. A high first-call close rate is often accompanied by a high flip rate. Why? Because some of the high-pressure closing tactics that can get high first-call closes also tend to leave homeowners feeling battered, bruised and abused. Buyer’s remorse sets in and the “deal” is nulled. Poof...gone. Worse... potential customer shares their negative experience with all of their friends. Ouch.

I just experienced this, or rather my son Dan did. He and his wife just bought their first home. A real bargain... meaning it’s a real fix-er-upper. They’re in a new neighborhood and with two small children are a little concerned about security. By chance a telemarketer representing one of the national security companies called and offered them a free installation promotion. Perfect! A sales call was scheduled.

I was visiting, helping with their move-in, and agreed to sit in on the sales presentation. Four hours... yep, four... and wearied by the salesman droning on and on…my son signed the contract and the salesman left. Questions ensued…doubts surfaced…the internet was fired up, looking for comparisons. The next day the cancellation form was signed and sent in. Four hours of everyone’s time wasted. The salesman blew it; all this was avoidable. What should have happened that would have made and kept this sale:

• Show up on time; he was 10 minutes late and didn’t call.

• Don’t park your Cadillac in the driveway. Better yet, don’t take your Cadillac on sales calls.

• The salesman was personable…too personable. Story after story was told. Make the point and move on.

• Don’t tell your customers about all the money you’ve made in real estate. If that’s the case, why would you still be working?

• Dan asked a direct question “Is the installation free?” The salesman winced and said, apparently uncomfortable, that we’d get to that later. Later? Why later. Answer your customer’s questions directly, honestly and immediately. Don’t play sales games; people get suspicious very quickly.

• We were told the warranty was 100% parts and labor for the length of the contract (3 years). I asked for a copy of the warranty. The salesman said I shouldn’t worry, that theirs was a long-established company and there was nothing to worry about. Okay, I said, but can I see the warranty. The salesman went silent. He didn’t have a copy. So he called his boss (this was at 8 PM…and the first of 2 more calls) and his boss said he’d email the warranty information the next day. He did. I later found the warranty buried in the 34 point contract and it was as the salesman had said. The salesmen said he’d never taken the time to read the contract.

• Yes, there were 34 clauses on the contract. At least 1/3 of them explained that the company wasn’t responsible for things that could happen. One of them said that the warranty wasn’t honored if a third-party / subcontractor installed the system. I asked about this and guess what? They subcontracted the installation…to a third party! The salesman said I shouldn’t worry…nothing would go wrong. Yeah, right.

He was right... nothing went wrong. My son canceled the deal.
Costco has a nice system for about $300, 100% guaranteed for as long as the $15 monthly monitoring service is kept up. The same three year ownership cost will be about a third less than the other company and there is the matter of the 100% warranty. Sold.

If you do have a sale that “flips” then for goodness sake find out why. This will happen sometimes through no fault of your own. But by calling perhaps you can learn from it and at least make sure those (lost) customers don’t feel so negative that they tell their friends.

And keep your Cadillac at home.

Good Selling!
 

 System Selling™ Lead Generation Marketing Tips  

Lead Generation Ideas From System Selling seminar graduates…that work!

• MAGNETIC FLASH LIGHT WITH COMPANY LOGO FOR KEEPING ON THE FURNACE, INDOOR UNIT OR BOILER.
 
• KIDS NIGHT LIGHT WITH COMPANY LOGO.

• YOUR COMPANY OFFERS A HVAC SCHOLARSHIP FOR CONTINUING EDUCATION FOR SOMEONE IN YOUR COMMUNITY. OFFER IT THROUGH THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.

• LEAVE YOUR BUSINESS CARD ON THE TABLE WITH YOUR TIP WHENEVER YOU EAT A MEAL AT A RESTAURANT.
 

 Say No To No  

By Matt Michel, President and CEO of Service Roundtable

(Note from Tom: This article is reproduced exactly as it appears in Matt’s weekly e-newsletter Comanche Marketing... I suggest you sign up for it! www.comanchemarketing.com.)

Last week I returned my Bluetooth earpiece. It was broken and I wanted a new one. If it was still under warranty (I couldn’t remember), I wanted a free replacement.

The 20-something customer service kiddo’s immediate, knee jerk response was to officiously inform me, “Well if you broke it it’s not under warranty and won’t be replaced.”

In a nanosecond the steam started to rise. I was about to inform the 20-something customer service kiddo that the whole purpose of a warranty is to replace products that break during the warranty period. I was going to inform her loudly enough that every customer in the store would hear.

Before the pressure relief valve blew, a manager walked up and asked, “What’s the problem?”

I explained.

“No problem,” he said. “Let’s go back and look up your records on the computer.”

He found my records, told me the warranty’s good for another couple of months, and handed me a new Bluetooth, still in the box.

“You’ll like this one better. They improved the design so it won’t break, plus it’s lighter and more comfortable.”

“That’s it?” I asked.

“That’s it,” he said.

As I walked out I couldn’t help but hold up the new Bluetooth for the 20-something customer service kiddo to see. It was all I could do to refrain from sticking my tongue out.

The 20-something customer service kiddo obviously wasn’t well trained on store policy or customer service. As a result, she didn’t know what she was talking about. She was ad-libbing. In her ignorance, she was taking what would have been a very positive service experience and turning it into a negative. If the manager hadn’t walked up when he did, it might have gotten ugly, without reason.

The simple solution is to deny front line service personnel permission to say no. If the 20-something customer service kiddo didn’t know if she could give me what I wanted, she should have courteously said, “Let me find out what I can do.”

If the manager wasn’t going to accommodate me, he should have come to the front to explain it. Or, he could give the 20-something customer service kiddo something else to offer.

Thus, the three acceptable responses to a request are:

1. Of course, I’d be happy to take care of that.

2. Let me find out what I can do.

3. Here’s what I can do.

Stressing what you can do, changes the dynamic of the exchange. Instead of closing the exchange with an abrupt negative, it prolongs the exchange and shifts from opposition to problem solving. The 20-something customer service kiddo would shift to my side of the table.

For example, if the warranty was expired, the 20-something could say, “I’m sorry, but the warranty on your Bluetooth has expired. Here’s what I can do to get you a replacement. If you’ll follow me, I can show you the earpieces we have available...”


Another note from Tom: Check out Service Roundtable. It’s a bottomless resource for you that can save you time, headaches and money. To register and join this established group of HVAC contractors who are willing to share their hard-learned information with you, go to: https://wwwserviceroundtable.com/SignUp/signup1.asp


© 2008 Matt Michel

Note from Tom:

Matt Michel sends a no-fee e-newsletter each month called Commanche Marketing. This article was taken from a recent issue and is typical of his straight-forward, common sense approach to the most important aspects of running a successful HVAC business. To subscribe, which I strongly recommend, email Matt at  matt.michel@serviceroundtable.com. Tell him Tom sent you.


Sponsored By The Service Roundtable

Comanche Marketing is sponsored by the Service Roundtable. If you’re in the plumbing or air conditioning industries or you serve contractors in those industries, you ought to check it out at www.ServiceRoundtable.com.

 

 Articles by Tom 

READ TOM PISCITELLI'S SYSTEM SELLING WITH T.R.U.S.T.® ARTICLES THAT HAVE BEEN PUBLISHED IN HVACR Business Magazine.

Go to HVACR Business Magazine.

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