If you want to deliver an in-store service that goes above and beyond any knowledge the customer might already have, you need to know your product inside and out, writes industry training specialist, Adam Hankinson (Furniture Sales Solutions) …
Looking back, I’m so lucky to have worked with many absolutely amazing sales professionals.
I call them ‘professionals’ because they viewed their craft as the epitome of an expert in their field. It was expected that you knew your products inside out – not only the names of the models but different specifications, what features, advantages and benefits these specifications delivered to the customer, and how they were better than others you were competing against. You had to know all about your competitors’ models too!!
I worked with Ronnie Orr, Tony Dickson and Chris Jones, all from Colorvision, a major electrical retailer way ahead of its time in many regards including finance offerings, deal builders and urgency-creating promotions, as well as incredible incentives and ongoing motivational prizes for top performers.
While at Allied Carpets, the best of the best underlay-selling stores’ managers won trips to Florida and Disneyland, because their expertise and ability to convey this knowledge to customers was celebrated throughout the business as a hugely important benefit to the customer (and of course, to the business itself).
In 1996 I was filming my sales team roleplaying, presenting and demonstrating shabby chic removable and washable settee covers to customers, on a Ferguson Videostar shoulder camera!
Fast-forward to today, where I truly believe that product knowledge, let alone expertise in product knowledge, is rare, at best – in fact, with over 80% of customers having researched online before making a considered purchase, it’s more likely that the customer knows more about the product they’re looking at than the majority of salespeople they bump in to.
What defines a great product presentation?
Let’s take a Calligaris extending ceramic table, for example. If you’re going to sell a £2k, £3k or £4k+ table, you’d better know your s**t!
Firstly, know what size options each model come in. Lengths and widths in cm, ft and in. Leaf and extension sizes the same. Retracted, it’s x, and extended y. Don’t have to thumb through the catalogue erming and ahhing as you try to decipher a myriad of choices, losing credibility as you call ‘an expert’ in for help.
Know colours and finishes, how it’s made, base options and the benefits of different bases over others (“This is great when you entertain, because you won’t knock your knees on the leg as you move in towards the table”).
Practice opening and closing the table, extending and retracting it literally like a well-oiled machine (“Can you see how easy it is?”), actually demonstrating to the customer why and how this mechanism is so much better than the cheaper alternative.
Practice fitting dining chairs in, around and under each table so you know exactly what works best in terms of fit, ease of movement, weight, colour, style, swivel, recliner options (yes you can buy reclining dining chairs), and how each one works well with different bases.
Every colleague in your store should be able to demonstrate every product like an expert. We know that confidence is a salesperson’s best friend, and the biggest source of confidence is product knowledge. Not just facts, but what this product and its features can do for your customer, and how to demonstrate this clearly and confidently so that it seems super easy to your customer to see, hear and feel the associated benefits.
Next time you’re in a showroom considering making any reasonably sized purchase, ask, “Can you please show me how it works?”
I’ll bet 9/10 salespeople can’t.
