Garage door industry magazine for garage door dealers, garage door manufacturers, garage door distributors, garage door installers, loading docks, garage door operators and openers, gates, and tools for the door industry.
Issue link: https://idoi.epubxp.com/i/134362
SaleS&MarkEting; (continued from page 45) Who's the Boss? Summary If you are a female sales person reading this article most likely you already know this. For you fellows out there, listen up! 85% of all home improvement purchases are either made or strongly infuenced by women. So you need to understand their hot buttons. While the men are mostly concerned with functionality, women are more about form, ft and fashion. Selling doors or other home improvement productsisnodifferentthansellinginteriorfurnishings.Plan for it. You'll need lots of photos, color swatches and options. Be prepared for many questions, especially regarding customization to make your product their own design. The top fve things women are looking for in their sales rep are: The title of this article is a bit of a trick question. A peddler by Webster's defnition is "one who offers merchandise for sale along the street or from door to door." So is a sales professional. The difference is that the peddler sells you a product he has with him and moves on. The sales professional sells you a product and starts a relationship. The peddler is selling "stuff" while the professional sales person is selling well thought out solutions. Both have their place in the market. However, selling doors or other building products at the retail level requires a higher skill level. The proft margins are greater but the expertise required to be successful is also. In the past I have conducted a seminar called"AnyIdiotCanSellPrice."This90minutesessionis designed to show how selling solely on the basis of having the low price takes very little skill. During the seminar we discuss how selling is a science that has to be learned, practiced and polished. The aim is to move from being an order taker or peddler to a professional sales person. Which one are you? 1.Listeningskills 2.Punctuality 3.Productknowledge 4. Flexibility 5. Eye contact If you are meeting with a couple, make sure to include the woman in the conversation regardless of the subject matter, including tech talk. Talking past them to the man because you think she doesn't understand such things is a sure way to alienate the real decision maker in most cases. The best way to hone your skills for targeting sales to women is to practice. Make your sales presentation to a female you know that will give you honest feedback. In one practice session you may learn a lot about how to sell to women. Basic sales training tells you to direct your efforts to the decision maker. In most cases, she's it, so plan accordingly. 46 International Door & Operator Industry™ Dan Apple is president of The Apple Group LLC, a consulting frm located in Bonita Springs, Florida. His focus is assisting garage door dealers with proftability and marketing. Dan served as president of Apple Door Systems in Richmond, Virginia for 33 years which grew to a statewide dealership with eight locations. He was the frst president of the Institute of Door Dealer Education and Accreditation where he was responsible for creating the industry's frst national accreditation program in 1998. Dan also served as a director of the Door & Operator Dealers Association and the International Door Association from 1994-1998. For more information, contact him at 804.640.4253 or email: danielapple@me.com or visit the website at www.AppleLLC.net.