NFIB

Earn More by Encouraging Your Customers to Buy Less
04/ 02/ 2002

Sales is an art, and one of the main techniques of the art is moving customers into a slightly higher price range. We've all been victims of this type of sales pitch. For example, you're thinking about buying a car in the $15,000 range. But after the salesperson explains all the extras and benefits you'll receive from a $22,000 car, you decide that you absolutely "need" the more expensive vehicle.

But an ambitious salesperson can turn this principle around by encouraging customers to spend less instead of more. In the process, that sales person will establish a long-term relationship and win the respect of his customer. Jeffrey Moses explains how in today's Workshop.

Think back to the times -- and there may not be many -- when a sales representative suggested a lower-priced item or less-expensive service that would provide everything you need while saving you money. The next time you needed a similar service, chances are you called that sales rep first. After speaking with the rep, you probably decided to buy without bothering to call anyone else, an example of what trust can do in a sales relationship.

If you think about it, you're not really talking a customer down in price. Instead, you're finding out exactly what the customer needs and filling that need. By saving a customer money, you're simply fulfilling the true role of a salesperson.

Another benefit of talking a person down in price is that you'll hardly ever get returns, since the product truly meets the customer's needs. Salespeople who talk people up in price routinely have to deal with buyer's remorse and product returns.

So the next time that customer walks in your door or calls, try this technique. There is a strong possibility that customer is one youÆll be talking to again--soon.

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