Follow up After a Residentiall Sale

Word of mouth advertising is one of the most effective and profitable for a business.  Word of mouth advertising comes from your Dealership offering the following:

1)      An agreeable buying experience for the customer

2)      A top quality installation

3)      An education for the customer on what the product can do and can’t do

4)      Ongoing follow up to insure future satisfaction from your customer as well as giving your customer a chance to give you referrals.

With this said, your first area to examine is how your customer buys from you.  This starts with how the phones are answered, how your Dealership looks regarding your trucks and how you and your crew is dressed.  Did you show up for your initial appointment on time? Did you complete the job on schedule? How do you leave the job when it’s done?  All these factors help determine whether how a customer feels about their overall buying experience.  This is one of the most important factors as to whether you’ll get referrals or not.

Second, is the installation quality, this is a two-edged sword.  On the one hand, the perception of the customer can work for you since your customer’s job is normally the first one they’ve seen in reality.  This excitement normally overcomes any small inconsistencies you develop during the job and the customer satisfaction is normally the easiest part of the whole equation.  The other side of the coin though is that particular customer you may run across.  Are you doing everything within reason to satisfy this customer?  Too many times we are trying to get the job done quickly so we can get paid and get on to the next job.  A fussy customer can sometimes be your best referral if you take the time and work with them to insure their satisfaction.

Third is the ongoing satisfaction from the customer.  This is best accomplished by educating the customer about what to expect from the product.  Basic things such as telling the customer to hose the area down periodically to keep it clean can keep your customer happier than the one who feels the product should be self cleaning.  In addition, explaining to the customer that the product is not bullet proof so if they drag a heavy, sharp object across the area they’re not surprised that it scratches.  An educated customer will normally talk about the product more because they understand more about it; this creates the word of mouth advertising you want.

Lastly, is the ongoing follow up.  Business owners are hesitant to call their existing customers because they’re afraid the customer may have a complaint.  It is always better for the customer to tell you about any concerns they may have than the 7 or 8 friends that could have just as easily been referrals.  Calling your customers offers you the ability to diffuse any concerns before they become problems and also provides you with a chance to ask the customer the simple question, “do you know anyone else that may be interested in having their concrete beautified?”  Referral business is the key to bringing your Dealership to incredible heights as far as growth and profitability, don’t let this ideal chance pass you by.

Use a follow up system that insures each customer receives the same attention, an example would be:

·         2 weeks after the sale, send the customer a thank you note

·         30 days later, a questionnaire mailed out asking the customer for the thoughts on their experience with your company.

·         2 months later offer a special for existing customers only (10% off any job over 300 s/f)

·         90 days later, a request for referrals.

·         A birthday card on the anniversary of their installation. This also serves as a reminder for the re-sealing every two years.

Qualifying Home and Garden Show Leads

With the advent of the Home and Garden Show season, it’s time to get ready for the shows in your area. One good Home Show can result in enough leads to carry your business right into summer.  However, unless you come up with a system to qualify all those leads, you could wind up spending more time appointment-hopping than money-making.  So, how do you weed out the lookers from the buyers?  Here’s one alternative….

Rather than use a legal pad at your show booth for prospect’s names and numbers, create a Prospect Information Form. It should be a simple form that either you or the consumer fills out while visiting your booth. Besides the obvious Name, Address and Phone information, equip your Prospect Information Form with questions that will really help you qualify them. For instance…

1. Area to be reconditioned?               Approximate size:
2. Is your garage a one, two or three car garage?
3. Do you consider your driveway to be long (4 car lengths or more), or short (3 car lengths or less)?
4. What is the condition of the existing concrete?
5. Good to some light cracking ?
6. Several large cracks?
7. Very poor condition?
8. On a scale of one to ten (ten the highest), how high a priority is your concrete refinishing project?
9. Besides CTi, what other alternatives have you considered for the project?
10. Is someone at home during the day incase we have a cancellation and can get to you sooner?
11. When would you like us to contact you for an on-site appointment?
12. Immediately
13. 2 – 4 weeks
14. 2 – 4 months

In terms of qualifying your prospects, questions 6, 7 & 8 are the important ones.  You might argue that question 5 is as important, but the answer to question 8 is the true answer to question 5.  By using two questions aimed at the same objective, you can get very precise with your qualifying. Once you’ve got your Prospect Information Formlooking the way you want it, run on down to Kwikie-Print and have them make up some pads for you.

By now you should get the picture. Remember, with potentially hundreds of Home Show leads, you’ve got to be able to qualify them. No reason to waste your time following up with folks who aren’t serious about their prospective CTiwork.  By creating your own Prospect Information Form you will both look more professional and be able to follow up in the most profitable manner.

Building the Customer’s Trust

A customer needs to trust you prior to buying your product.  We mention in our marketing seminar that the purchasing decision rests on two main questions being answered:

1)      Why do I want to buy this particular product?

2)      Why do I want to buy this product from your company?

Trust goes a long way in answering both these questions, so how do you go about establishing trust with your customer?  First, it comes from longevity, both perceived and real.  A customer can find a level of trust when you tell him you’ve been installing the product for a number of years.  If this is not the case, you can change the customer’s perception is a couple of different ways.  Consistent advertising can change a customer’s perception on how long a business has been around.  Customer who consistently see you advertisement over a period of months will see you as an established company.  The confidence you exude when you’re speaking with the customer is another way of building their confidence.  While newer Dealers may find this difficult (an I’ve even seen some seasoned Dealers who have an issue with this), have a demeanor that puts the customer at ease because they sense you want to solve their problems will lead to more confidence on the customer’s end.  How the customer is treated throughout the sales cycle is also another way of building confidence.  A professionally done advertising message, a phone that is answered “Good afternoon, Concrete Technology, how may I help you?” vs. “Hello?” are just a couple of ways to build the customer’s confidence.  Being on time and delivering on deadlines are other ways to build confidence.  If you say you’re going to be at the customer’s house on Thursday at 5:30, do everything you can to be on time; if you’re running late, call the customer to let them know.  If you tell the customer that; weather permitting, your crew will be on the job site a week from Thursday and should be finished by Friday afternoon, meet those deadlines.  If you don’t think you can meet the timeline, don’t promise the customer.

A customer’s trust will not only lead to more sales, it also leads to more referrals as the customer confidently tells their friends and relatives to give your company a try.

Know Your Customer

According to most sales instructors, customers go through four stages when considering whether to purchase a product such as CTi.  Knowing where your customer is can help you in determining what information to provide to close more sales:

Stage 1: Curiosity - This is the stage where the customer has first found out about the product and is simply curious in finding out whether he has any need for it.  Information here is general and is focused around getting the customer to the passive interest stage.  Most of the time, an effective web site or brochure provides enough information to get the customer to Stage 2.

Stage 2: Passive Interest - Here, the customer is past stage 1, but is still just investigating the product.  They have a better understanding of how the product can help them and they're looking for more specific information on whether the product is right for a particular need.  However, the customer is still just listening for information and is not likely to provide much in the way of "buying signals".  Information provided here should be more along the line of questions and answers so the customer can see how the product can fit their particular need.

Stage 3: Active Interest - The Active Interest stage is where the customer is starting to see how this product will fit their needs so they are considering the value proposition of price vs. benefits of the product.  Here the information provided is very specific and is moving the customer to the commitment stage by providing detailed information about how the product will fit their needs.

Stage 4: Commitment - This final stage is where the customer has all the information, has considered the trade off between price and the value of your proposition and is now ready to move forward.  Many times people leave a customer at this stage which is unfortunate since they've done all the work in creating excitement but have not instructed the customer on how to move forward.  Information here should be how to purchase the product, payment methods accepted and any final details for how the customer can move forward.

Increasing your Lead flow the Easy Way

by Brad Hieneman

 

Do you want a tip on how to increase your lead flow by 10% to 35%? 

 

Using a live voice to answer your phones has been proven to do just this.  With the onset of CTi's new marketing packages and the dashboard capabilities of the leads that come in through this marketing, we've had the ability to track hundreds of phone calls to Dealerships across the country.  Some of the Dealerships used voice mail or answering machines to answer their business line while others used a live voice (either an answering service, office person or having the calls come directly to their phone).  In all cases where the calls came to a live voice, hang ups decreased and the number of people who ended up giving their information increased from 10% to 35% in instances where the Dealer switched from machine to live voice.  This is a huge increase for something that is very easy to implement.  Take a look at how your business phones are being answered and see if there is a gold mine waiting to be tapped.

What is Your Dealership's First Impression?

by Brad Hieneman

You spend hundreds of dollars in advertising to get your phones to ring.  You put together a web site that provides your customers with great information about your business.  The customer finally picks up the phone to call your Dealership and schedule a time for you to visit their home to provide a quote; the question is what is their first impression when the phone is answered?

 

An integral part of the marketing package that CTi provides its Dealers is the web site, search engine marketing (SEM) and search engine optimization (SEO).  These tools are designed to do one thing; to have customers contact your business and schedule a time for you to give them a presentation on the CTi products.  A part of this online setup is a dashboard that records all calls that have come into the Dealership.  In listening to these phone calls, I've seen a big difference in how the phones are answered and more importantly, the comfort level the customer has in inviting the Dealer into their home.  Read the transcripts below and see which one best describes how your Dealership's phones are answered:

 

Dealer one:

 

(Seven rings until the phone is finally answered)

Dealer one: "Hello...."

Customer: "Um, is this (Dealer's company name)?"

Dealer one: "Yeah"

Customer: "Uh, I was wanting more information on whether your products might be right for my driveway."

Dealer one: "OK"

Customer: "Um, Uh, we have a two car driveway and it has a few cracks.  Can your products still be installed if there are cracks?"

Dealer one: "Yeah"

Customer: (In a frustrated tone) - "OK, let me get with my husband then and let him know, thank you for your time."

Dealer one: "OK"

 

Dealer two:

 

(Two rings and the phone is answered)

Dealer two: "Good afternoon, (Dealer's company name, and person's name), can I help you?

Customer: "Yes, I'd like some more information about having my driveway done"

Dealer two: "Certainly, can you tell me a little about it?"

Customer: "Well, it's a two car driveway and it has some cracks.  Can your product still be installed?"

Dealer two: "Yes, provided the concrete is still structurally sound, we can repair those cracks, apply our products over the top and provide a protective coating that will stop any further deterioration.  Where are you located?"

Customer: "Oh wonderful, I was worried we would have to have our driveway ripped out because of those cracks. I'm at (customer's address)."

Dealer two: "The easiest thing to do would be for me to come out and measure up your driveway.  While I'm there I can show you some photos and samples of our products and get a better idea of the look you would like.  Once you've made a couple of basic choices regarding our products, I can provide you with a quote right there.  I currently have 5:30 on Wednesday or 4:00 on Friday available, which one would work best for you?"

Customer: "Probably Thursday at 5:30"

Dealer two: "Is there anyone else who needs to review the photos and samples I'll bring to insure everyone's happy with the choices?"

Customer: "Yes, my husband would want to look things over."

Dealer two: "Will he be available on Thursday?"

Customer: "Yes"

Dealer two: "OK, let me get some directions to your home then and I'll see you Thursday."

 

A simple thing like putting the customer at ease when calling in can lead to a double digit increase in the amount of sales your Dealership makes.  It sounds simple, but most of the time, the basics are what lead to the best results.

Increasing Referral Business

Referrals from existing customers are one of the key marketing components that will kick your Dealership into another gear.  According to a research study done by the McKinsey group, 43% of baby boomers site favorable referrals from friends, relatives and peers as one of their main determining factors when considering a contractor for home improvements.  Generating referrals is a function of three main things:

 

1) Getting people to talk about you in the first place.  Some Dealers begin their businesses with the attitude that word of mouth advertising will generate the leads they'll need immediately.  Looking at this viewpoint logically, a majority of home and business owners don't even know about the concrete resurfacing and repair option when they have issues relating to their concrete.  Couple this with people who don't know about a new business that offers a product and service that most people don't consider an option yet, and you can see where word of mouth advertising is anything but.  To get people talking about your business, you need to do the things outlined in step two effectively.  However, you also have to have the ability to walk through these steps with new customers on a regular basis.  Good, old fashioned, advertising is where the initial interest and response will come from.  Once you begin to put work on the ground and have satisfied customers, you will see an increase in the referral business.  It's the equivalent to adding fuel to a fire first, not looking for the heat.

 

2) Making sure the customer's experience leads to favorable referrals.  Most Dealers site doing a good job as the key component to having a solid referral stream.  This is true to a degree, but is not the only element that can lead to more referrals.  From the first moment a customer sees your company, to the follow up after the job is completed, every interaction can lead to a greater referral source.  Some key areas to consider:

* How does your advertising look?  Is it professional?

* How are your phones answered?  Does the customer get a warm, professional greeting (Good afternoon, CTi of Largo, can I help you?) or do they simply hear "Hello" and then have to dig to see if they've reached the right number or not.

* When they invite you into their home, do they receive a prepared and educational presentation of the CTi products or is it simply a bid number given to them without them knowing what they're purchasing.  Did the Dealer's sales representative show up on time?  Was he prepared?

* When your crew shows up on the job site, are they dressed appropriately?  Is your truck or trailer properly lettered so they know it's your crew showing up?  Did your crew show up on time?  Was the job completed on time?

* Follow up after the job.  Did the customer receive a thank you call or note after the job was finished thanking them for their business?  Did they receive a call after the job was completed to see if any issues need to be addressed?

 

3) Asking for referrals.  You probably have many satisfied customers if you've been in business for any length of time.  No matter how elated these customers are, human nature dictates they probably won't call you simply to give you someone to follow up on even if their neighbors, relatives, friends, etc. asked about their installation.  Calling periodically (every few months) to follow up on the job (see the last bullet point on item 2), and simply asking the customer "has anyone else inquired about your patio?  Did they happen to mention if they would like for me to call them to schedule a free estimate for their job?"  There are sales studies showing that asking a simple question such as this can increase referral business by 20% to 500%!