I am a salesman. Indeed I am a damn good one, especially on the retail floor. In fact I once was so good that I could make a judgment about a consumer before I had a chance to QUALIFY him or even hear his voice.
I’d look at his car, the way he carried himself, his clothes, his watch and then I would make an EARLY JUDGMENT to either engage with this guy or let the new guy on the floor waste time with this guy.
Of course you can guess what happened next… The new guy wound up making a $3,800 sale at “full boat” (retail price and lotsa gross profit). Even better, the consumer, upon whom I made an EARLY JUDGMENT sent the new guy two more “full boat” consumers in the next three weeks.
Well that LOST OPPORTUNITY experience taught me the difference between EARLY JUDGMENT and a proper QUALIFICATION. I even learned the importance of talking with every consumer, every time before losing that “full boat” opportunity again.
A proper QUALIFICATION reveals the following …
• What the guy is looking for
• What he knows and does not know
• How he heard of us and where else has he shopped
• Approximately how much he thinks it is worth and his budget idea
• When he wants to buy (today, tomorrow, next month, next year…)
• Does he have the authority to buy or will his wife put the kibosh on the deal
• Does he actually have the money to make a purchase
There are six very important components of a successful selling transaction… Greet. QUALIFY. Present. Trial Close. Overcome Objections. Close. I contend that among these equals, QUALIFY is the most important. Look again at the items a proper QUALIFICATION reveals. Imagine if you had this knowledge about every consumer you talk with. You would increase the number of consumers who make a purchase from you, increase the amount of the purchase and very likely improve the profit and the profit margin. The way I see it, if you’re taking time and talking with consumers you might just as well make it a productive interaction.
If this sounds foreign to you or it makes no sense, do yourself a favor and secure the services of a good sales trainer. Call me. I know some good ones. 949-600-8195
