Customers Want Excellent Service Regardless Of What They May Say

You have heard the oft’ quoted statement that customers can choose two of three options; price, quality or service when they make a purchase. The majority of buyers will pick price and quality. The least chosen combination is quality and service. Given the three options I would always choose quality and service. Sure, I am interested in price, but at the end of the day, if you pay too little for something, it is probably incapable to doing what you purchased it to do. Then, the money you spent, even though you may have purchased the item for an incredibly low price, may be totally wasted.

Purchasing a product for the lowest price on the planet has no value if the product is not available when you need it. I have seen people pay ten times what a product was worth just to have it available when it was needed. If you pay too little, you might be better off not purchasing at all. The product quality may not meet your expectations or it may not be available when you need it. As a salesperson you have a solemn responsibility to diagnose and understand what the customer truly needs. I can promise you this, “If the customer isn’t happy, there is no way in the world that you will be happy”.

John Ruskin, the British essayist and social thinker said this about focusing too much on purchasing for the lowest price:

“There is hardly anything in the world that someone cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man’s lawful prey. It’s unwise to pay too little.

When you pay too much, you lose a little money…that is all. When you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything, because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing it was bought to do.

The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot…it can’t be done. If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk you run.
And if you do that, you will have enough to pay for something better.”

When all is said and done, your customer will have a far greater memory and emotional attachment based on the service that you provided than either quality or price. Again, the customer may tell you that price is the most important of the three elements of a purchase, but service is what they really want and expect. Let me share a couple of personal examples with you.

Last week I drove to Phoenix to visit my grandchildren and to conduct some business. The cruise control on my car was not working and by the time I arrived in Phoenix, my leg was somewhat stiff. The next day I drove over to the Audi dealer in Chandler, just a mile or so from my daughter’s home. As I approached the dealership I could see the new car showroom, but not the service department. I parked my car and went inside to ask directions to the service department. When I asked one of the salespeople directions to the service department, he said to follow him and he would take me there. He could have given me directions, but he jumped in a golf cart and led me their. That is what I call service.

When I arrived at the service department, there was a service technician waiting for me to get out of the car to take care of my needs. After explaining the situation, he suggested that it would be well for a mechanic to test drive my car. In less than one minute the mechanic and I were on the freeway testing the cruise control. He told me that he was almost positive that the clutch sensor for the cruise control was bad and within fifteen minutes he had the new part installed and I was on my way. This dealership and service department could write the book on excellent customer service.

My second example of extraordinary customer service involves Discount Tire Company. I’ve been buying my tires from them since 1992. I purchased new tires before my Phoenix road trip. The tires are not a common size and were shipped from the distributor in Dallas. The day after returning from Phoenix, I noticed the tire pressure sensor flashing on my dashboard. I was near the Discount Tire Store, so I immediately headed in that direction. I no sooner pulled up in front of the store with my engine still running when one of their sales people greeted me and asked how he could help me. I explained the situation and he instantly checked the pressure in all of my tires to determine if I had low air pressure or a faulty sensor. He found the tire that was leaking air and within just a few minutes had the tire off my car for repair.

After about ten minutes, the technician came into the waiting room carrying my tire (not a good sign). He said he had good news and bad news. The good news was that I had free replacement coverage on the tire and the bad news was the six-inch long half inch diameter piece of steel protruding through my tire had damaged it beyond repair. He told me that he had already done a search to find a replacement tire (I’m thinking Dallas and four days). The technician jumped in his truck, picked up the tire at the local Michelin distributor and within twenty-minutes I was on my way.

Service is the only thing salespeople offer that is purely emotional. We sell the product, but we provide the service. Memory is deeply rooted in emotional experiences, so when we provide great service, we are creating strong emotions and memories in the minds of our customers. It is those emotions that generate repeat sales, referrals and letters of recommendation. You can offer quality, price or service. Even the best company and salesperson can only provide two of the three. Trust me on this; the very best combination is quality and service.

How Good Are Your Sales Skills And Techniques?

If you really want to improve your sales skills and increase your income, conduct a self-evaluation. Most salespeople go through their entire career doing the same thing over and over again, not really knowing the value of their performance. They may actually be better than they thought, or believe they are good when they are not. The evaluation process is similar to going to the doctor. The doctor will give you an examination, a series of tests and procedures that will indicate with fairly precise accuracy, your physical well-being. When was the last time you conducted a personal sales examination? If you don’t know your condition, how will you ever improve? And that, my fellow salespeople is the point of this article. If you don’t know your sales well-being, then how will you know if you need to improve, and if so, what to improve on.

Make a point every day to perform a personal diagnostic evaluation. Evaluate every aspect of your activities and your performance in each area of the sales process. Begin with the basics and then move through the more difficult and complicated activities. Don’t skip any steps or activities. Make a list of all the activities and skills you use in your daily schedule. Once you have completed your list, give yourself a grade for each area. Any level of performance less than an “A,” should be scheduled for an evaluation. Be honest with yourself. If an area needs improvement, make a note and then think of things you can do to improve. Be specific and write down each suggestion for immediate and future reference. Make notes of those things you do very well and commit to doing them more often if needed.

Self-improvement is a constant evaluation of what works and what doesn’t and then doing those things consistently that will improve your performance. Outline exactly what needs to be accomplished in order to achieve the desired result. Remember, nothing is impossible even though it may seem difficult. Committing yourself to a regular program of improvement will be the best guarantee you could possibly have against unemployment. Excellent salespeople are in constant demand, even in challenging economic conditions. You will be able to write your own ticket for success. Companies are constantly looking for top talent and will make a hiring decision when the right salesperson comes along. Guaranteed employment is one of the perks for top performing salespeople. They are recession proof, age proof, and performance proof.

Know your strengths and your weaknesses as well as those areas where you have passion to improve. After a few short weeks, you will sense improvement that will motivate you to be consistent in your efforts. The day will come when your improved skills will enable sales to become easier and more natural. A regular routine of self-evaluation and improvement focus will be your answer to enhanced performance, improved attitude and greater wealth.

It’s What You Do With Knowledge That Counts

At the conclusion of each of my workshops, I always make this statement:

“The principles and skills you have learned today are valuable and correct. I hope that you have not only been richly fed, but have had a fire lit within your soul. Nothing we have discussed and learned today will make any difference in your life and sales career unless you take action. The only thing that really matters is what you are going to do with the knowledge you have gained today. If you take action and change your behaviors, then the time we have spent is worthwhile. If you do nothing, then you would have been better off going to a movie. The only value derived from knowledge is found in its application. Take the knowledge you have gained today, apply it in your sales activities and I will guarantee that you will enjoy greater sales success. I’ve done my part; the rest is up to you. What you choose to do with this information will influence your career in either a positive or negative manner. The choice is yours. Thank you for your patience, your participation and your willingness to improve yourselves.”

I’m reminded of the story told about Socrates as he demonstrated to a student the importance of desire in learning. The story alleges that Socrates took the student to a fountain where he held his head under water. The student struggled with all his might to free himself for a breath of air. When he finally broke free and raised his head, gasping to take in a life saving breath, Socrates replied. “When your desire to learn is as great as your desire to breathe, then you will become a great student.”

In sales, there is no shortage of great knowledge and learning. The world is full of great fundamentalist teachers and practitioners. Sales training is a seven billion dollar per year industry. Salespeople are learning daily. Where the world falls short, is with salespeople who are willing to take action and apply the principles and skills they have learned. People tend to gravitate to their comfort zones and only do those things they feel comfortable in doing; those things they have always done. Regardless of how much they have learned, there will be no change in their performance until they take action. Taking action on things learned brings about the birth of change. Knowledge and action are inseparable in bringing about change. One cannot exist without the other and together they can bring about great success.

Find the desire and motivation to gain knowledge and then take action by putting your new knowledge into practice. Knowledge and action; there is no substitute for these two principles on the road to sales success. The more action you take, the more you will come to understand this principle. Learn and apply, isn’t that the way we learned in Kindergarten? It is also the way we learn in sales. “Take the knowledge you have gained today, apply it in your sales activities and I will guarantee that you will enjoy greater personal sales success. I’ve done my part; the rest is up to you. What you choose to do with this information will influence your career in either a positive or negative manner. The choice is yours. Thank you for your patience, your participation and your willingness to improve yourselves.”