Paid In Full?
January 12th, 2008 Filed under: Uncategorized — Small Home Business AuthorThe reference is being made to making a purchase that requires servicing. In recent years it has become apparent that the new business model is to withhold telling the prospect about all of the fees involved until after the sale is made. This is done in order to make the product appear to be less expensive.
Most typically, a prospect will purchase a product such as disc storage space. The prospect turned client is relieved the decision-making process is over as the product was finally selected and is excitedly anticipating receiving the product. But to the great disappointment and annoyance of the prospect, after the fact, the businessperson from who he purchased reveals service is not included.
The prospect turned client is now told that if service is desired, there will be an added fee. And, not only is the service fee additional but many times it is more than the actual product. The prospect is so far into the process there is no turning back and must agree to acquire the pricey service agreement.
This practice may inflict further ramification of the problem. The client consequently may not have budgeted properly thus making it a difficult situation for everyone concerned.
Relationship selling involves putting oneself in the mindset of their prospect and working accordingly. Because the service contract was not mentioned during the sales cycle, the client assumed that service was included. You can imagine how the client felt receiving word after the fact that not only is the service not included but costs twice as much as the product.
Here are two questions to seriously consider:
Will this new client be a returning client?
How much damage will bad word of mouth do to the business?
Too many businesspeople are so concerned about making a quick sale that they do not stop to think about earning repeat business, referrals and testimonials or building goodwill in the community. These are the companies that are most likely to lose market share and potentially go out of business.
The practice of hiding fees is diametrically opposed to my advocacy of relationship selling. No one can afford to take the road of greed and not do the right thing by their clients.
The wisest approach to take on a first meeting with a prospect is to build relationships, discuss pricing upfront and sell value. Should the frank discussion about price scare off a prospect, then he was not a good candidate. However, when you have the frank discussion with a qualified prospect, she will be appreciative of receiving all of the information upfront in order to make an informed decision and deal with budgetary issues.
My Story
I experienced the scenario where I previously made a purchase and it was implied training was included. But today it was revealed the training is not included. I should have known better. However, I picked up the ball by requesting a detailed list of every possible fee that could come my way in the foreseeable future.
As a salesperson in corporate and now as an entrepreneur, I make it a practice to explain to my prospects all of the fees involved upfront and the value they will gain from my products and services.
When a range of possibilities exist for product and service my advice is to lay out packages that are easy to compare. Help your prospect make the right choice for them, not for you. They will be appreciative you did and the returning clientele will be coming your way along with testimonials and referrals to help you grow business more quickly.
Elinor Stutz, CEO of Smooth Sale, LLC and Author, has transformed her highly successful corporate sales career into a Sales Training Company.
Smooth Sale Delivers:
Original work in the form of Professional Sales Training, Licensing, Coaching, Motivational Speaking Engagements and a Full Product Line.
Products Include: “Nice Girls DO Get The Sale: Relationship Building That Gets Results” published by Sourcebooks, “The Smooth Sale Toolkit”, the “Smooth Selling 4-Hour/4-CD traing seminar”, and Entrepreneur Manual – “How to GROW Your Business: mindset, strategy and implementation”.
Ms. Stutz was quoted and her book featured TIME Magazine, was interviewed on ABC-TV “San Francisco View From the Bay” and on numerous radio shows. She writes a column for Bay Area BusinessWoman News and contributes articles to Diversity Edge Magazine. For further information visit: http://www.smoothsale.net/products.shtml
