After training 4 rookie door-to-door sales reps last week, I was reminded of 4 powerful sales techniques that often go unused.
- Asking your customers for referrals: While finishing up paperwork for a new customer, I asked him if he had any friends, family or places of employment that could use our services. The man proceeded to sign up his rental property and also made an appointment for his 2 restaurants to be inspected. One sale turned into 4 and it was all made possible by simply asking for a referral. Make a habit of asking your customers for referrals. In fact, if the company you represent approves, you might consider offering a discount on future services for referrals that are given under a specific time constraint. For example, “I can give you $25 off your next service if you refer me to somebody that signs up before the end of the week. Who do you know that would be interested in this type of service?”
- Name dropping with service agreements: As I’ve indicated in my book, Door-to-Door Millionaire, name dropping is a vital component for getting potential customers interested in what you are selling. The most effective way to name drop during your initial approach is to use the names of customers you have sold. For example, “Hi my name is Ryan, I’m with Rove Pest Control, I was just next door with Cody and Kylie (and while saying this, show Cody & Kylie’s service agreement to the potential customer and then put it away once they have looked at it), and I wanted to stop by to let you know what they are doing…” This approach is as anti-salesy as it comes, you have a legitimate reason to approach the neighbors of your recently sold customer.
- Using follow-up questions: While observing a new sales rep in conversation, his potential customer indicated that her home caught on fire 8 months ago. The sales rep expressed the perfect non-verbal look of dismay that this happened but then proceeded to go through his pitch instead of inquiring further about the house fire. During my sales training sessions I often witness this mistake when sales reps neglect to ask follow-up questions when potential customers give them information that would facilitate conversation. Instead of asking additional questions, sales reps often babble through their sales pitch. In this instance I couldn’t resist interjecting and I cut off the sales rep mid-sentence and asked the potential customer, “What was the cause of your house fire?” Come to find out the fire was caused by mice chewing on some electrical wires in their attic and wouldn’t you know it, we were selling a pest control service! This provided the perfect segue into building value in our service. A great conversation ensued and a sale was made.
- Remembering that sales come in all shapes and sizes: Finally, as I reviewed my experiences with these 4 sales reps I attempted to discover consistencies in the sales that were made and come to find out, as often is the case, there weren’t any. During these 4 hours I took part in 8 sales. Four of these sales came from a man in his early 30’s who owned a new home, 2 restaurants and a rental property. One of the sales was made to a couple in their 60’s who had lived in their modest home for 26 years. Another sale was made to a couple in their early 30’s who already had a pest control service and lived in a home that was nearly 40 years old. A sale was made to a lady in her 40’s who lived in an upper class neighborhood. And a sale was made to a young family in their 20’s who were first-time home buyers. This training experience proved once again that every contact should be viewed as a potential customer despite where they live or how they appear.
For door-to-door summer sales reps, June is a big money-making month! You should start to reap the rewards of all of your hard work and capitalize on the lessons you’ve learned thus far. And if applied, these 4 suggestions will contribute significantly to your success.