Sales Tips

[electrictrimmer]

What are some of your strategies for a sale. What do you tell the landowner that makes them choose your business compared to someone else's?

 

[groundsmgr]

A good FAIR price and just being honest with them.

 

[RAG66]

It's been siad that you can get what you want if you help enough people get what they want. That being said, be honest, act with integrity, and give the best price you can for what you think it will take. From personal expirience you will blow it sometimes. It sucks. If you can get a second chance to talk to the customer ask how you blew it? Why did they choose someone else? This some times hurts but it is very valuable in the future.

 

[brisawyer]

I thought about making a portfolio of past work with good pics of before during and after. I figure it would be good on the customers that need a tad of convincing.

 

[pdqdl]

When a customer asks me if I can lower my price, I explain that I don't give them a random price with the plan of lowering it in the negotiations. I clearly tell them that my quote is for doing the job properly.

If they persist, and still want a lower price, I just ask them "What part of doing a good job would you like me to eliminate?" They usually stop negotiating, and they frequently conclude that they would like me to do the job. Sometimes we actually negotiate a lower price, but that comes with quality concessions or just leaving all the wood, brush, no raking, etc.

Now all I have to do is find someone that wants some tree work done. It's been two months...

 

[lawrencetreeman]

Now all I have to do is find someone that wants some tree work done. It's been two months...

Yea it's been slow winter here in Lawrence also. Weather hasn't helped out at all.

 

[rarefish383]

What are some of your strategies for a sale. What do you tell the landowner that makes them choose your business compared to someone else's?

I think the best strategy is knowledge. When you come on the job site, you are the pro. If you hem and haw, you just lost the high end customer, and building a customer base is what you want, not just "The Job". I carried a Pocket Tree Guide, and if I had to pull it out, I'd say "Well that's the first one of those I've ever seen." But, please don't do that with a Pink Dogwood.

I see you live in MD, so do I. All of our work was in the DC Metro area, Potomac, Bethesda-Chevy Chase. The vast majority of our customers were profesionals, and they want to deal with an other profesional. Many times we had custoners say their lawn guy gave them a price as much as one tenth of what we bid and they just said "I could tell he didn't know what he was talinking about" Things Have been a little tight around here for a while, but it's starting to pick back up.

If a customer mentions a cheaper price, I do like to make sure I'm giving an apples for apples bid. I also agree with PDQDL "What part of a good job do you want to eliminate". I always offer to leave wood for less money, time and labor, and moving wood is a lot of both.

Remember the high end customer wants a pro. If you want to fight over the cheapskates with the lawn guys you're on your own, Joe.

 

[rarefish383]

I thought about making a portfolio of past work with good pics of before during and after. I figure it would be good on the customers that need a tad of convincing.

Even though we never did this, I think it can be a helpfull tool. I would leave it in the truck, and if I thought it might help, I would refer to it. I only carried a clip board with the estimate sheet, all reference material stayed in the truck like a library, Joe.

 

[af7850]

What are some of your strategies for a sale. What do you tell the landowner that makes them choose your business compared to someone else's?

I come from more of a structured sales background, so start with this: You have to have a Unique Selling Proposition (USP). This is basically the #1 reason that I should choose you over the competition. This could be that you're the most knowledgeable, the most honest, the fastest, the cheapest, the most literate, etc. Or it could be that you're the owner and the climber, so that the job goes exactly the right way every time. Use your imagination a little.

Now realize that every potential client has two problems, the one that they're telling you about (their tree) and the one that they're keeping a secret. Your job is to identify problem #2 and solve it, while simultaneously explaining how your USP will make you the best choice to solve problem #1. Throw in a little FUGI and you've got the job.

In case you're wondering, it really is that simple. If you'd like to ask a more specific question maybe the group can give you a more specific answer.

 

[af7850]

When a customer asks me if I can lower my price, I explain that I don't give them a random price with the plan of lowering it in the negotiations. I clearly tell them that my quote is for doing the job properly.

If they persist, and still want a lower price, I just ask them "What part of doing a good job would you like me to eliminate?" They usually stop negotiating, and they frequently conclude that they would like me to do the job.
..

I agree. I learned from a guy I used to work with:

You can have the job done

1. The way you want it done (properly)
2. When you want it done (promptly)
3. For the price that you want (cheaply)

Pick two.