I bought a new smart phone last week. I had absolutely no intention of getting a new phone when I walked into the store, yet I still walked out with one. How did this happen, you ask? Solely because of the professionalism of the sales representative!
Before you say it, no, I’m not an impulse buyer. In fact, anyone who knows me will tell you I’m quite the opposite. I was only there to buy a car charger!
When I walked into the store, I was promptly greeted by a very friendly sales representative. He asked questions about why I was there and then showed me exactly what I had asked for. Most sales representatives would have stopped the process right there, and sent me off to the cash machine to pay for my new car charger.
Not this sales representative, though. He didn’t stop. He kept asking me questions. He probed deeper into how long I had had my phone, what I use it for, how much I was paying for it etc. He finally said, “You know, for only $20.00 more than you were going to pay for that car charger anyway, you can have a brand new phone that will allow you to take those better pictures like you wanted to.” The first thing I thought was, “Tell me more!”
As I said, I’m not an impulse buyer. I didn’t sign the contract right then. I had questions. Yes, you could even call them objections. Objections like:
- How much is the screen protector, carrying case and memory card going to cost? It all has to be more than just $20 up and above a car charger.
- How are you going to get my contacts from my old phone to my new phone because I certainly don’t have the time to re-enter them all.
- I want to stay with my current carrier. They are very dependable in the rural areas where I frequent (i.e. the golf course).
- What about the car charger? That is why I came in today, after all!
This sales Rep had done his homework though. He knew about all the current promotions from his store and my carrier. He was able to deal with all of my objections, one by one. It really was only $20 more than the car charger. Granted, my new plan was going to cost more per month, but with all the extra services I was going to receive, it was going to save me money in the long run because I won’t have those overage charges any more.
Wait, did I just say I had agreed to pay more than what I was paying when I walked in? I was only there to buy a car charger, and now I had bought a brand new, shiny phone with all these fancy bells and whistles, on a moment’s notice, no less? More importantly, I was (and still am) feeling absolutely wonderful about the whole experience. I guess it really is true; we all want the cheapest price, but the cheapest price for what we want.
When I look back, I realize, he didn’t sell me anything. He simply made it very easy for me to buy the solution that was right for me. But isn’t that what the best sales reps always do? Like I have always said, “Better the fact find, happier the customer, better the paycheck!”
This article was originally posted to The Sales Compass blog by Susan A. Enns on April 2, 2015.
