As we move through this year, we should reflect where we’ve been . . . where we are . . . and where we’re going. The first of the year should be a time frame where we are focused on closing or funding last year’s sales in backlog, while putting a new crop of sales on the books for this year.

However, in taking stock of where we are, there is some alarm that we may not be ready to tackle the emerging market of the year end. After such sweet success, why do we say this? Answer: After eavesdropping on more than 100 performance reviews via mystery shopping, there is concern that we may not be physically and mentally fit to sell the new buyer.

Let’s liken this scenario to our Olympic track and field team. Each individual has worked hard to develop his or her skills to a razor sharp edge. They are at the top of their physical and mental capacity. This is a given – a known. But what is not known is the capacity of the adversary. How well trained and mentally conditioned is the competing athlete? And that’s the point. We know our strengths as they relate to the prior market, but this market is different.

• Markets are softening
• Softening markets spawn spurious claims
• Struggling competitors pollute the “sell”
• There is more competition
• Consumerism is rampant
• The Internet is educating more buyers
• Rates are rising
• Traffic is lessening
• Urgency has dwindled

To combat these and a number of other sales-eroding situations, today’s new home Counsellor must absolutely and without fail address the following issues:

1. Internet buyers are growing by leaps and bytes. A major builder recently proclaimed that 74% of their homebuyers seriously shopped the WEB before visiting their offices. That next prospect may know a great deal about your proposition and may be ready to purchase if properly handled. Salespersons must practice a greeting similar to . . . “Seen us on the Internet?” . . . “Do you have any questions regarding information you saw there?” . . . “Has our web site influenced where you are in your home buying process?” In other words, find out where they are in the information matrix and commence your presentation from there. Don’t start way back at square one. Remember:
   A website oriented prospect is comparable
   to a be-back prospect.
2. Sense of community and lifestyle very often drive more sales than the home itself. Yet when we hear salespersons spout their spiel, the home is dominant. The “50-50 Rule” says that not more than 50% of what one sells is the home, homesite, and financing. The other 50% is sense of community, lifestyle, schools, churches, shopping, convenience, recreation, statement, health issues and a host of others. The smart salesperson weaves the other side of the sales story into each and every presentation.
3. Over half the presentations in the U.S. today are a direction to the models for a self sell. That’s not selling, that’s copping out to the momentous opportunity to strut your stuff! Suppose the Olympic long jumper sent the judges to mark his jump before the event. Since no jump occurred, the athlete would be disqualified. Many salespersons are disqualifying themselves because of non-participation in the selling process. Demonstration creates perceived value which fosters 1-of-A-Kind. While demonstrating, the sales pro can qualify and discover how to close the prospect. Sitting in the sales office negates all opportunity.
4. When it comes to the home demonstration, salespersons fail to sell what their buyers buy. Research tells us that home buyers buy style and design first and reinforce that decision with value-added components. Yet mystery shopping shows when salespersons sell, they focus on components and do little if anything with style and design. Why? Other than Richey Resources, there is not one salesperson’s style and design training module in the housing industry! Your sales staff should sing from the style and design song book or they’ll be singing the blues.
5. Feature dumping is a cancer that must be licked. Whoever said that you should lump your features into a 5-minute presentation and dump all that overload into a prospect, did not understand today’s Counselling! Better to utilize questions for that five minutes than to spew out information, much of which the prospects may have already gleaned from the Internet. Sadly, the overriding majority of salespersons still resort to “telling” not “smelling” (smelling out the customer’s needs, wants and desires). You can fashion a whole presentation with nothing but questions – both open and closed ended. You read the information that comes back (feedback) and tweak your message to arrive at a close. It’s simple and it pays off.Remember that a question is nothing more than a fish hook laying on its side. You throw out the question; ……..? You reel in the fish!
6. Salespersons must utilize more tools to differentiate from the competition. The condition of your toolbox presages the strength of your presentation. And, lest we forget! A presentation is simply preparation for the close. Would the Olympic track star show up without her shoes? Or the vaulter without his pole . . . or the shot putter without the shot? I don’t think so, yet there is something wrong with the picture of a salesperson selling sans toolbox. Here’s the list of tools just in case your team needs a checklist:
   • Visualizer book
   • Hard back plot or plat map
   • Hard back floor plans
   • Compass
   • Polaroid and digital camera
   • Laser measuring tool
   • Laser pointer
   • Sold sign
   • Walking shoes and rain slickers (for prospects)
   • Ice cold water bottles
   • Ziplock bags
   • Plastic cones
   • Contracts, paperwork and pens
   • The Counsellor’s Toolbox
   • Calculator
   • Clean 4-door touring vehicle
   • 100-foot tape
   • Parasol or umbrella
   • Flashlight

   And the list goes on!

7. Speed is essential in the follow-up process. (Particularly with Internet clickers.) Yet so many salespersons take too long to follow-up or don’t follow-up at all! Your hierarchy of follow-up should be:
   1. Acknowledgment of request with specific or overview information. (Instantly with Internet shoppers.)
   2. Telephone call (informal).
   3. Orientation letter and package (formal).
   4. Thank-you card (informal).
   5. E-mail or fax response (informal).
   6. Follow-up call. “Did you get my card?” . . . “Answer to your request?”

   Time is a big deal today and buyers simply won’t wait on a slow response. FedEx instead of mail your packet to out of state queries. Call at work as well as home. Procure their cell phone number. Ask their permission to use it. An Olympic athlete would show up for the gold medal event. So should a salesperson insure a closing presentation happens with formula follow-up.

8. 80% of all sales are made after the 5th close. (The American Management Association said that) . . . yet 80% of all new home sales presentations don’t close at all. (The shops proved that.) As a leading selling trade publication admonished:
   

   “Whatever happened to old fashioned closing? There’s been too much emphasis in selling or just making friends. It’s time to take out the socializing proven closing processes; dust them off; tweak them to the new buyer and start using them again!”

   We couldn’t have said it better!

9. Referral sales happen by chance not by plan. Do you know your true incidence of referral sales? Probably not. That’s why every salesperson must be accountable to themselves that each and every prospect is asked to refer at least seven times from contract to one year after move-in. Studies show that buyers become authentically pleased after move-in and proof of performance. They will give more referrals after move-in than before move-in – yet the majority of salespeople quit asking after a month or two. Let’s win a double gold at the Olympics. Let’s go “1 for 1.” I will write 1 referral sale for each 1 new home I sell the rest of my career.”
10. The process works if you sell to the process. Every salesperson should have a selling code just like a code of ethics. That code called the Counselling process allows the prospect to move through a series of value builders until 1-of-A-Kind is created. Then the salesperson has earned the right to ask for the sale.

The memory point of this article is that the Counselling process must be trained into the new hires and reinforced with the old pros. To do less is an abdication of the sales management regimen.

—
© 2008 Thomas W. Richey, MIRM, Richey Resources
View Tom’s profile
www.richeyresources.com