OK, I get it, no one wants to be known as “that push sales rep”. I understand all the reasons and I AGREE WITH THEM ALL! However, if the pendulum swings too far to the other direction you are just as wrong.
Let me give you an example of what I am talking about. If your product was selling for a fixed price for a long time, and there were a lot of potential customers out there that didn’t buy because they didn’t want to spend that much money and then you run a “special” and reduce the price. How you present the price drop means a lot!
I was working with a rep and when she walked into the first prospect to tell them about the price drop she looked at the customer and in a very monotone, expressionless, deadpan voice said, “the price is now only $XXX.XX, that’s pretty good isn’t it”?
That’s it, that’s all she said. I was watching the customers face, I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt, he had no idea what the old price was, he had no idea what was included, and he had no intention of buying with a delivery like that.
When we walked out (without the sale) I asked her if she thought she could have done a little more in that presentation. She said she thought she could but didn’t want to seem pushy. I explained that she was so far from pushy she could have pulled a gun and not reached pushy yet!
I then took a few minutes, which ended up being the better part of the morning, trying to teach her how to sell the sizzle along with the steak.
For any of you that are ever in the situation where you can present a price cut, let me give you some of the same points I gave her;
1) Never give a price cut without a reason – your reason can be just about anything. Make it real, make sure it’s reasonable. In this case the company is having a temporary price cut, so that is the reason.
2) Always build the value of the product – you need to restate the value statement of your product and make sure you answer the question WIIFM.
3) Look, Act, and Sound EXCITED – If you make it a big deal it will be a big deal, if you make it sound like it is nothing than the customer will react in the same manner.
4) Always remind the customer of the original price BEFORE you give them the discounted price – never give the discount price first, if the discount price is given first the customer has nothing to compare it to and it may still seem high.
5) Let the customer know if there is any difference in the product between the original price and the discounted price – in this case there was no difference so we had to tell the customer that.
6) Let the customer know how much they will save – a $50.00 a month price cut is $600.00 a year, let them know that.
7) If there is a time limit on the price reduction let them know it UPFRONT – don’t make it sound like you are holding a gun to their head, no one wants to be squeezed. But let them know that it is a time sensitive price cut that ends on a specific date (if it doesn’t have a specific date, at least let them know that it can be ended without any notice)
8) Price cuts don’t take the place of selling – you still need to go through the sales process and make sure the customer’s questions are answered and that they understand the value of what you are offering.
9) Don’t ever be ashamed of a small price cut – every dollar you cut from your price is a dollar the customer doesn’t need to spend and falls to their bottom line directly from yours.
10) Look, Act, and Sound EXCITED – If you make it a big deal it will be a big deal, if you make it sound like it is nothing than the customer will react in the same manner. (Did I already mention this? Well it is worth mentioning twice!)
Remember, a price cut doesn’t automatically mean a customer will buy, but how you present a price cut can definitely make a big difference in how many will buy.
Lorin
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