Sell The Problem You Solve, Not The Product!
So many times, customers want to sell lateral lining by advertising and showing that they have the best widget to get the liner in the ground. They figure that when people see how neat lateral sewer lining equipment is, they will hire them to install a liner because it’s so neat. But, when you try selling the product instead of the problem it solves, your sales attempts tend to fall short and my not succeed at all.
Sell the problem you solve, not the product you are using to solve it. I saw this simple approach to sales and the more I thought about it the more sense it made in everyday life, whether drain cleaning, plumbing, lining or any other aspect in life. So often we get caught up in selling a process or a brand or your company that we forget that our audience doesn’t care about that. In addition, they get so focused, they forget about other problems that go along with their visit to a customer. The customers are looking for solutions to problems they have and really don’t care that the brand you sell was mentioned in ads on TV, or that your company has been in business for over 20 years, or the method you are using is the latest whiz bang product on the market. If the product were the selling feature a $150,000 excavator is much more impressive than a lateral lining tool and people would jump at the chance to have an excavator in their yard. While one problem leads to a whole host of other problems to be solved, your approach to solving all of the problems that go along with the solution are what people are buying, not the product you are suggesting they use.
Water Damaged Ceiling
I spent a few weeks in Europe developing new technologies to apply to our market. I watched a process being applied that was expensive, had tools that no one had ever heard of, and a material that had been applied to the drain cleaning market a good 9 months yet the customers buying the technology didn’t care about any of that. They did care that this method solved a problem they were having and were willing to pay a premium price to solve the problem that kept them from tearing off lath and plaster from 100 year old homes to fix the problem with conventional methods.
Remember years ago when the oil companies marketed their brand of gasoline? You would have to drive to your particular brands station to keep your engine clean with whatever additive they touted. It soon became apparent that other gasolines offered the same benefits as your brand and today the marketing has moved to providing you a convenient location to get gas. As we drive longer and longer distances, our problem is finding gas, and finding gas is much more important than the brand. The gas stations have learned over the years that automotive service was less important to travelers than fast food and convenience items. Now when we pull off the freeway and there are 4 service stations, we look to the one that offers gas, obviously, but we start looking at the size of the store and the convenience items they offer as well as food choices. The oil industry learned that if they could solve the problem of providing you gasoline and the problem of finding a snack or meal at the same time, they could lure you in by solving the availability of gas, but also solving a subsequently related problem of needing a rest room and a snack to keep motoring down the road.
Most home owners have busy lives and have many problems facing them. And while a backed up drain takes them to the phone to solve an immediate problem, your odds of making them one of your customers increases if you spend a little time learning about any other plumbing problems they’ve been having in addition to the drain back up. When you offer a solution to not only fix their back up problem, but a leading faucet or a toilet that runs water all of the time as well, you will outshine your competition and most likely get the job.
While your there assessing the back up issue, a simple question about any other plumbing problems may get you more work. It’s kind of like going to the doctor for a sore throat and they ask you if you have any other symptoms, you always mention any other items you think are medical and may be related. Need a flu shot, or wondering about a new mole on your skin, they address those issues too. Same here with asking about other plumbing issues when you are assessing the back up. If you offer to solve all of their plumbing related issues meaning they won’t have to call someone else to fix the toilet or leaking faucet, they cross off two problems with one call. The same as getting gas and a soda at the service station.
So on your next service call, no matter when it is, ask about other plumbing issues while you are there. If you are replacing a sink, ask if they’ve experienced sewer back ups in the past, or ask how old their water heater is and if they are having any problems with it. Asking questions will help you discover other services you can offer to solve their problems and make you more valuable than the latest technology you may use to fix their problems.
Next Week: Operating Your Equipment Per Specification vs. Going On Your Own
