Mind Your Business – Sales Pick-Up Lines

Selling and dating are not all that different.

“If you look at the whole process for selling – from the time you write the proposal to the time you close the sale – it can mirror romancing a relationship step by step,” compared Jeff Mariola, president, Rentokil Tropical Plant Services, Riverwoods, Ill.

But what happens when clients aren’t so turned on by a company’s sales advances? Here, a few sales pick-up lines to combat those common customer comebacks.

1. “No thank you. I’m happy with who I have.” This is the most common brush-off salespeople hear from prospects, Mariola identified. However, don’t let disinterest sway you from pursuing the account, he stressed. “Really, when they say they are happy with who they have, they are saying they don’t want to talk,” he said. “All you’re looking for is a continuation of dialogue.”

To keep conversation flowing, Mariola suggested this reply. “Agree with them and say, ‘I’m glad you see the value in having a high-quality lawn care program,’” he suggested. “Then, there is the however. Say, ‘Does that mean you will never consider another option?’” The key word: never. Most clients will never say never, and that leaves an open door for you.

2. “I’d like to purchase only a few of the applications in your service program.” Bob Miller, director of sales, D. Foley Landscape, Walpole, Mass., said not to nix the contract just because the customer doesn’t want the whole kit-n-caboodle. “I would first say, ‘Why are you only interested in those applications?’” he advised.

“If it is money, we could try to give them options, and if it’s a lack of education, we will try to get them up to speed.” After all, some services are better than none at all, Mariola added. “All you really want is a foot in the door, so if I can get in the door with two services, that gives me a platform to build on.”

3. “Can you beat this price?” Here is the typical price shopper – a character familiar to most contractors. “First, we try to make sure we can review the specifications or a service calendar to make sure we are comparing apples to apples,” said Tom Brown, corporate sales consultant, GroundMasters, Cincinnati, Ohio.

But for the most part, GroundMasters won’t consider matching prices. Brown is not interested in that “game.” He tells price-shopping clients: “We are providing you what we feel your site needs or what you’ve communicated to us that you want, and we know that we are an affordably priced company that can givse you the best service available.”

4. “I can do it better myself anyway.” Sure, Mr. Jones says he can mow better, mulch better and spot spray his plants better than your company. But this doesn’t mean he might not rather spend his time doing something else, Mariola noted. Mariola calls it “opportunity cost.” What is the customer giving up to take care of their lawn? You must make them feel like they are missing out on a piece of life before they will be convinced that a professional service is for them, he said.

5. “You have reached the voicemail of…” Man-on-the-run types will not likely have time to talk about lawn service. That is, unless you trap them for 10 minutes. Mariola sends them a letter like this: “I’ve been trying to contact you, and I’d like 10 minutes of your time.

On Tuesday or Wednesday, allow me to see if there is any mutual benefit between what we offer and your business, and at the end of the conversation, you can tell me two things. We can continue our dialogue, or you can tell me no, you are not interested, and I’ll never call you again. “If you say ‘I will never bother you again,’ people really respond to that,” he added.

Miller makes a point to place no more than five calls to clients, contacting them at different times. “I call at weird hours, and I will leave voicemail at three different times,” he said.

“That way I can tell if they are on the run, and if I get a hold of someone who answers the phone, I will ask when is a good time to get a hold of the person I am trying to reach.” – Kristen Hampshire

 The author is Managing Editor – Special Projects for Lawn & Landscape magazine.