Telling the Value Story

You arrived on time and completed your calculations. You worked up a presentation of all the things you're going to do and items included, going over each item carefully. You've just given the customer the price. They look at each other. He says, "Okay. Thanks for the quote. Well get back to you. Of course, we need time to think about it. It looks good. I've heard good things about you. So there's no need to worry. We never make a decision without thinking it over first."

You probably just lost the sale. Unless, of course, you se-verely underbid the job. Which all of your competitors will try to do, especially if your clients reveal your bid to them? Where did you go wrong? What could you have done to have a better shot at getting the ink on the contract?

Let's go back to Marketing 101: What makes you better than others in your business? If we made a survey of your past customers, what would they say about you? Your knowledge/skill level? Your Professionalism? Your quality of work? Your creativeness? If you don't know the answers to these questions, you're losing business and money (by not generating more profit per sale). By taking the time to answer these and other similar questions, you can start improving your presentations, more sales and a better bottom line.

Put it another way: People have no way of knowing how good you are without your telling them. They're afraid to make a wrong decision. They have made bad decisions. Their friends and relatives and coworkers have made bad decisions and, miracu-lously, they become "experts". They'll tell your clients why doing business with you (or any tradesman they select) are just no good because they know better. The world is full of nay-sayers. Your presentation will over-come those objections-if it is well thought out.

So what can you do? As we mentioned above, you need to answer certain questions. Having answered them, you can put that knowledge to work right from the get go. Your are now ready to create your own personal 'VALUE STORY". The more valuable you seem, the more people will trust you to do work for them and the more they will pay. It's just that simple.

In the beginning of your first contact you should be mentioning something about your professionalism. When you first arrive, dressed appropriately and with a cordial greeting, you outline what it is that you are going to do on this visit. (A one-call visit is the same as a 2 or3 call process, just abbreviated.) You begin with asking questions. These questions help you demonstrate mastery as well as qualify and determine client needs and desires, which you will use later in the presentation stage. After completion of your quoting process, you arrive at the presentation stage. You start by demonstrating your recommendations, showing how your product or service is different or superior and, most importantly, how that benefits your client. It might go something like this:

"You asked for my quote for a good quality (whatever). In my experience, there are good and poor choices. While this is cheaper, this one will last twice as long but at only a little higher price." Or "Let me ask you Mrs. Client, which is more important: A job well done at a slightly higher cost or a cheaper job that you'll regret later? Let me show you why the product /service I'm recommending will be worth the extra cost." Stay Tuned: more next month.

John Stahl

If you want more info, just call me at 610-775-1500. I'll gladly help you develop your best presentation.

---

10 Important Things To Tell Your Prospects

Hello everyone, hope your day is going well! I know... Read More

Sales Letters - How to Write Them

You could just send out your brochure to potential customers... Read More

Web Promotion: 10 Amazing Web Promotion Ways To Jump Start Your Sales

Hello, do you have a website and sell something on... Read More

The Biggest Mistake In Selling!

Some trainers and sales managers teach that there are prospects... Read More

Getting Referrals

ReferralsA substantial part of your business can come from referrals.... Read More

Qualifying Your Prospect

How do you respond when an absolute stranger calls, at... Read More

SPIN, Relevant To Both Salesmanship & Advertising!

Neil Rackham turned the world of high-ticket salesmanship on its... Read More

Stop Talking - Start Selling

Selling is not talking. It's listening. You may have heard... Read More

Incentive Dilemma:

Manufacturers and distributors are rolling out more sales incentive programs... Read More

Secrets to Buying Without Being Sold

Have you ever asked yourself, now how did I let... Read More

Why Cold Calling Is Dead

Our world of selling is closed off from other areas... Read More

The Anatomy of a Sales Letter

When Dr. Frankenstein exclaimed "it's alive... it's alive," he thought... Read More

Selling Abilities - Part 1

Selling "-abilities": Reliability (Part 1 of 4) Most salespeople... Read More

Building an Action Plan

Going into your workday and waiting for things to happen,... Read More

9 Ways to Keep Clients Coming Back For More

A lot of effort is put into getting new clients.... Read More

101 Ways to Improve Your Direct Mail Response

1. Mail to your customers more often. If you are... Read More

Selling Services

Selling a service isn't the same as selling a product.... Read More

Marketing Conversations, And Conversation Stoppers

Where many marketing conversations get off-track are the ones you... Read More

Selling ? Remember These Ten Rules and Succeed

There are thousands of books and seminars on how to... Read More

How To Bully Your Prospects Into Buying Your Product or Service

Selling is a tough job, and sometimes you may need... Read More

Handshake Intimidation

In some situations, attempting to intimidate the other person will... Read More

Sales 101: Handling The Angry Customer

I am often reminded of the following true story whenever... Read More

How A Simple Greeting Or Post Card Can Turn Into Cash ? Guaranteed

I've been using a technique that has helped me to... Read More

Sell With KISS, As In Keep It Simple, Stupid

One of the most useful and fundamental communications lessons that... Read More

Clear Up Blurry Communication

One of the top brewing companies in America is a... Read More

Count Down To An Advert

There are hundreds of books available to teach you how... Read More

How To Shorten The Selling Cycle And Reduce Buying Stalls

The main reason for buyer resistance and selling stalls boils... Read More

Packaging Maketh the Person

The multi million pound cosmetics industry is acutely aware of... Read More

Program Your Biocomputer For Sales Success

Selling isn't something you do to people, it's something you... Read More

Are You Selling What They Want To Buy? Is It An Appropriate Solution?

Let me tell you about my friend Peter who has... Read More

Connecting with Customers

I just got off the phone with a friend of... Read More

A Pause For Thought

You can have your cake and eat it.What is it... Read More

Business Lessons Learned At The Mall

Normally in this column I dispense highly-intelligent small business advice... Read More