Anyone who has read even a couple of my articles knows that I am firmly behind helping your client buy rather than trying to sell them something. Clients generally want to buy a specific result rather than a specific item.
A few recent conversations I have had with distributors revealed that customers shopping online actually have provided them with more opportunities not fewer. The distributors all had a website, but with several invitations to contact rather than conduct any transaction online.
When potential customers ask for a price for a specific promotional product, that immediately indicates they are shopping. The following are a few sales skills and tactics that might be worth giving a try.
1- Call me last. This distributor, Elizabeth, suggested that once the potential customer had checked as many sources as they wanted, they should contact her again to see if she could provide a better price or confirm that they already had the best one.
The distributor asked about delivery charges that might impact the competitive pricing, as many web sellers keep that a secret as long as possible! After checking total net costs and having done almost no active work, this distributor was willing to use a straight cost plus 10% markup on prepaid orders. Three percent (3%) additional if a credit card is used. She said this process was successful often enough that she has stopped simply giving quotes on the phone or email.
2 - Are they local? The Internet is obviously a world-wide reality and sellers can be (and are) located everywhere. Some are just smoke and mirrors waiting to get your credit card number. When asked for a price, our next distributor, Howard, offered price shoppers a cautionary bit of advice. He said that his website had a physical address noted, an invitation to stop by and a listing of the counties he did business in. Unrealistic low prices without the ability to make direct face to face contact is usually asking for trouble a short distance down the road. Considering this many potential customers were happy to keep their business local.
3 - Are you sure? That is what Dennis asks when he is contacted about a price, “So many times the potential customer is asking about a really terrible item that will never impress a recipient." The product was obviously selected based on getting the greatest number of items at the lowest cost. Dennis asks if it is OK to present a couple of other possibilities staying within budget. He said he has a good record of doing repeat business with the customer once he helped them with the first order.
4 - Is it real? When Robert gets a call or email asking for “your best price and a few samples”, he responds that getting samples is a great idea. But Bob knows that he is likely talking to a sample collector! He discusses a couple other options and said he will include samples of them too. He then informs the caller that there is a $10 deposit that will be credited against the price of the order.
Most of the time the caller is never heard from again. But- some of the time the caller asks to have them sent on their FedEx account or overnight at additional cost. When that happens, Bob offers to take care of the deposit. A new customer is very often the result.
Obviously not everyone will be comfortable using these tactics, but just giving a price is ultimately going to be a waste of time. Converting a shopper to a buyer is a skill that is necessary in the age of the Internet.
Gregg Emmer managed Kaeser & Blair’s marketing, catalog publishing and vendor relations for more than 30 years. Prior to arriving at K&B in 1991 he owned and operated a graphic communication company featuring promotional products and full service printing. Today Emmer’s consulting work provides marketing, public relations and business planning consulting to a wide range of businesses including promotional industry suppliers, venture capital and market research companies. If you are interested in growing your business (or privately commenting on articles) contact Gregg at gregg.promopro@gmail.com.