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PART FOUR – Sharpening the Sword

“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and

I will spend the first four sharpening the axe”

Abraham Lincoln

List of Contents Participant Notes Page

Highlights, Low Lights, Spotlight 2

Lessons from the Customer Experience Audit 3

Filling in the blanks 4

Beliefs diagram 5

Exercise – What you believe about selling 6

Changing habits to improve results 7

How do you feel about selling? 8

Customer focussed selling 9

Why and how people buy 10

Active listening 11

Features and benefits 13

Understanding the psychology of price 16

The four buying decisions customers make 20

Price objections 21

Four steps to handling objections 22

Dealing with price shoppers over the phone 23

Preparing your staff for a price increase 26

Worksheet – Preparing for a price increase 28

Ask them to buy 29

Adding value 30

Suggestive selling using the ‘this goes with that’ approach 31

Robert Cialdini’s 6 principles of influence and persuasion 32

Influencing effectively – The principle of ‘Liking’ 34

Personal Action Sheet for Workshop Four 35

Preparation for 1 on 1 face-to-face coaching session 36

2018 Terrific Trading Pty Ltd 08 9312 1075 www.terrifictrading.com

2

Update Your Fellow Participants Spend no more than a minute explaining each

Highlights One or two of the best things that have happened since the March workshop

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Low Lights One or two things as a business that could have been better

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Spotlight One or two key things you want to take away from this session

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3

Lessons from the Customer Experience Audit

What lessons have come out of the Customer Experience Audit for you?

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What do you intend doing as a result of this process?

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What interesting points have others made about their Customer Experience Audit?

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4

Filling in the blanks

Research in the field of neuroscience has shown that the objects we see are often not

the same as the information that reaches our eyes. The brain makes adjustments and

fills in gaps when it feels information is missing. You are probably familiar with the

following text prepared by a researcher at the University of Cambridge:

"It deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe." It says, “It doesn't matter in what order the letters in a word are, the only important

thing is that the first and last letter be at the right place. The rest can be a total mess

and you can still read it without problem. This is because the human mind does not

read every letter by itself but the word as a whole.”

Beyond this, researchers from the University of Glasgow have shown that when parts

of our vision are blocked, the brain steps in to fill in the blanks.

They conducted a series of experiments. These showed that our brains predict what

cannot be seen by drawing on our previous experiences to build up a complete picture.

Their results demonstrate that our brain doesn’t rely solely on what our eyes see.

Instead the brain constructs a complex prediction. It is as if it is completing an

incredibly difficult jigsaw puzzle using any pieces it can get access to. These ‘pieces’

come from the context in which we see them, from our memories and from our other

senses.

Apparently our brain is continuously anticipating what we will see, hear or feel next.

If parts of an image are obstructed, our brain still predicts what is likely to be present

behind the object. It anticipates what the whole object will look like. And all this

happens in a nanosecond.

As experienced observers of the world, you and I think we are gleaning precise

information. In fact, it’s a combination of partial information and best guesses. And

our customers are no different!

Key Learning Point: Our customers’ previous experiences and expectations will influence what they see

and how they judge us.

Sources:

Cognition and Brain Science Unit, Cambridge University, UK

Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, Glasgow University


5

BELIEFS

ATTITUDES

FEELINGS

ACTIONS

RESULTS


6

Exercise – What do you believe about selling?

List at least 5 things you believe about selling and why people buy e.g. “All customers

care about today is price” or “People don’t have the money to spend on…”

1. ________________________________________________________

2 _________________________________________________________

3. ________________________________________________________

4. ________________________________________________________

5. ________________________________________________________

6. ________________________________________________________

Are any of these beliefs sabotaging your ability to stand out in the eyes of your

customers?

If so, mark these with a large asterisk.

What beliefs would be helpful in enticing your customers to buy?

1) ________________________________________________________

2) ________________________________________________________

3) ________________________________________________________

4) ________________________________________________________

5) ________________________________________________________


7

Changing habits to improve results

Improving sales performance is about changing habits. Changing habits is

uncomfortable.

The definition of insanity is doing the same tomorrow as you did yesterday and

expecting a better result. If you want a better result you will need to do something

differently and that is uncomfortable.

So, to change your results you will need to change the way you sell, despite the

discomfort!

According to Ros Taylor, a clinical psychologist and the author of ‘Transform

Yourself’, it takes 21 days of consistent effort for an individual to change an aspect of

their behaviour and a further nine weeks to turn that new behaviour into a habit.

Persistence pays

It is often said that persistence is a vital trait for successful salespeople to have, and

this is true. However, this is usually stated within the context of following up with

potential customers. Persistent follow-up is important. Many people who make an

initial inquiry then get distracted with the other issues that they have in their lives. As

a result, your persistence in following up shows that you care enough to help the

member solve their problem, change their circumstances and get the result that they

desire.

For successful salespeople persistence is also important in another context. And that

is in practising techniques until they do become new habits. It is no good if newly

learned techniques are only used when you think about it or when it isn't too busy.

This is where persistence comes in.

Yes, persistence really does pay.

Good salespeople do consistently

what ordinary salespeople do

only occasionally


8

How do you feel about selling?

Typically there are four reasons that people in tourism and customer service roles

often don’t like to use selling techniques:

1. Don’t want to appear robotic

They don’t want to appear robotic parroting scripted phrases over and over again –

the ‘Do you want fries with that?’ syndrome. It feels so false and they want to be

viewed as real people dealing with real people.

2. Aversion to being pushy

They don’t want to appear pushy. Most of us hate it when we are faced with an over

eager salesperson in a retail store or are interrupted by a phone call at home from a

telemarketer who won’t take ‘No’ for an answer. We don’t like that behaviour and

don’t want to be viewed in that light ourselves.

3. Fear of rejection

The first word most children learn in life is ‘No’ and they hear it again and again and

again as their parents and other authority figures attempt to keep them safe. Children

don’t like hearing it and this continues into their adult life. So, they go out of their

way to avoid rejection, to avoid hearing ‘No’. They tell themselves, ‘If the customer

wants it she will ask’, but will she?

4. Fear of damaging the relationship

Good customer service providers in service departments and other areas build up a

warm, pleasant relationship with their customers. There is a fear that overtly selling

to customers will appear distasteful and so will damage the relationship.

Maybe for you there are others. If so, jot them down here.

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9

Customer Focussed Selling

Ask questions before giving information

Talk in the customers language

Give information in small chunks and avoid data

dumping

After giving information ask for committment


10

Why People Buy

There are many reasons given as to why people buy anything. For example:

To be first

To have the latest

To save money

To save time

To make money

To avoid pain

For pleasure

For safety

For security

Yet according to Michael LeBoeuf, author of ‘How to Win Customers and Keep

Them for Life’, despite all the millions of products and services for sale in today’s

marketplace, customers will only exchange their hard-earned money for two things:

Good feelings

Solutions to problems

He says that the degree of success in any business hinges on how many people it

rewards with good feelings and solutions to problems and how well it does both.

This means that you are not a service provider offering advice, processing transactions

and selling products and experiences. You are a dream maker offering the potential of

wonderful feelings and you are also there to use your experience and knowledge as a

problem solver.

How People Buy

“People buy based on what they see, what they hear and what you focus on.”

Hilary Kahn, Frontline Strategies


11

Active Listening

Listening is one of the most difficult skills to develop. Poor listening skills are the

major cause of communication breakdowns.

One of the reasons for this is because we talk at about 100-120 words per minute, but

our brain can process information at about 400-500 words per minute.

There is ample opportunity for us to be distracted when a person is speaking,

particularly over the phone when there is no eye contact.

Effective listening is not a passive behaviour. It requires your full concentration

being given to the speaker to extract the real meaning of the words and the full extent

of the message. It also involves summarising what the caller has said in your own

words to check for understanding.

Added benefits when selling

This vital process of checking and clarifying often has an additional benefit. It helps

the customer to think through the things that they need to explain to you.

As a result, when you clarify, customers will often respond by saying “That’s right,

and also…” and go on to give you an additional piece of information which may

make their problem a lot clearer and easier to resolve.

Advice from Steven Covey

Persuasion is a very poor selling tool. Instead salespeople should heed Steven

Covey’s advice in his best-selling book, ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’:

In other words, ‘Let me listen to you first’.

Active listening is one of the greatest compliments you can pay someone. Many

people feel at times that their spouse doesn’t listen to them, their children don’t listen

to them, their boss doesn’t listen to them (except at Solargain, of course) and here you

are doing them the courtesy of stopping whatever else you are doing and giving them

your full attention.

The underlying message that the caller subconsciously gets from you is that they are

important, they are special, what they say matters. That’s a wonderful message that

many people don’t receive very often.

“First go out of your way to understand

before you attempt to be understood”


12

Use your listening skills to ask clarifying questions

Make it a rule before answering questions to clarify that you have understood what

the customer meant and remember that your intention is

a) To make the customer feel good about having asked the question.

b) To give accurate information.

Avoid a data dump

When a customer demonstrates interest by asking a question, this gives you an

opportunity to inspire confidence in you and in Solargain, which is great.

But PLEASE don’t do a ‘data dump’ on your customer. In other words, don’t

overload your customer with information. First, clarify what it is they want to know

and how much detail will be appropriate.

Get in the habit of giving information in small chunks. Assess the customer’s level of

interest and understanding before going into more detail.

Additional Listening and Questioning Tips

1. Get information before you give it.

2. Ask one question at a time. That’s how many your customer will answer!

3. After asking, keep quiet. Resist the urge to jump in if your customer doesn’t

answer immediately.

4. After they’ve finished, pause before responding. This gives your customer the

opportunity to provide an additional gem of information.


13

Features and Benefits

The Features describe the characteristics of a product.

Features are things you can perceive through your five senses. This means you are

able to either see, hear, touch, smell or taste them. Features answer questions like

“What is it?” or “What is in it?” or “How does it work?”

A Benefit explains what a feature will do for the client.

There are usually at least two benefits for every feature. The benefits you describe

should appeal to the wants (good feelings) and needs (solutions to problems) of the

customer. They should answer the question “What will it do for me?” or “How will it

make my life easier/better?”

Many salespeople assume that their clients will automatically translate features into

benefits. It is dangerous to assume. It pays to follow a feature with the statement

“What this means to you is…” or “Which means…”

Why bother to state the features, if people buy on benefits not features?

Linking the features to their respective benefits gives the features believability. A list

of benefits isn’t believable. They are empty promises. A well-linked feature gives

the benefit substance.

Comparing Two Products

Every product has certain features and benefits. In helping clients come to a decision

your job is to point out the appropriate benefits of the products they are considering.

A word of warning here –

Never run down one product or price to promote another. Instead point out the extra

value of the alternative. Don’t say “This is better value than that because…” Your

clients decide what is better value based on the benefits that matter to them.


14

EXAMPLE - Converting Features into Benefits

Here is an example of a features and benefits sheet for a guided tour service provided

by a small tour company. We’ve just included four features. There will be many

more.

Product or Service: 16 Person Mini-Bus Tour

Features Benefits

1.

Guided tour

1a) Inform people of interesting sites,

customs and history and provide local

knowledge.

1b) It’s safer and you won’t get lost so it’s a

lot more relaxing.

2.

Takes up to 16 people

2a) Only small groups which allows for a

more personalised service.

2b) Numbers are still big enough to meet and

interact with other visitors.

3.

Mini-bus

3a) Able to park in smaller areas close to

attractions.

3b) Mini-buses get access to some areas that

large coaches don’t.

4.

Air-conditioned

4a) You will get relief from the heat on even

the hottest days making your journey more

pleasant.

4b)

5. 5a)

5b)


15

EXERCISE - Features and Benefits

Complete this features and benefits sheet for a product or service you provide.

List at least three separate features. Match each feature with at least one benefit,

preferably two.

Product or Service: _______________________________________

Features Benefits

1. 1a)

1b)

2.

2a)

2b)

3.

3a)

3b)

4. 4a)

4b)

5. 5a)

5b)


16

Price Points

You can learn a lot from observing the pricing strategy of the big retailers, retail travel

agents and others with consumable products. They are forever testing price points

and assessing customer reaction.

The psychology of this is fascinating. $4.99 does work better than $5.00; $9.95 or

$9.99 will out pull $10.00 every time. $999 will get a better result than $1,000.

People have inbuilt barriers that cause them to hesitate when the price exceeds a

certain price point.

You need to ensure that you are aware of the customer’s price barriers for your type

of products or services. And the emphasis here is on the customer’s barriers, not your

psychological barriers. Time and again we find that owners and their staff are far

more frightened about raising prices than their customers, who often don’t notice

provided it is within the realms that they had expected.

For example, if a café has an item on the menu for $13.00, will they sell any less if the

price is $14.95? I doubt it.

Let’s say you sell products at $115, $135 and $165. If the prices were $125, $145 and

$175 would it cause customers to hesitate?

It might, if competitors with an almost identical offering were lower priced. Other

than that, once you pass $110 the next price point is probably $125; after $125, $145

or even $149; after $150 it usually moves to $175 and so on.

You always need to test this, particularly with some items such as accommodation, as

it can be particularly price sensitive to people doing comparisons over the internet.

But be aware that in some instances you may be unnecessarily keeping your prices

low to the detriment of your business.

Complete the exercise sheet on page 10. It will help you to review your pricing

strategy.


17

Pricing Exercise

List your 5 most popular products and services. Against each mark your advertised

price.

1. _______________________________________________________________

2. _______________________________________________________________

3. _______________________________________________________________

4. _______________________________________________________________

5. _______________________________________________________________

Taking into account the advice and examples in the ‘Price Points’ section of these

notes. Using this, do your prices make sense?

If not, adjust them up or down to a logical price point and measure the difference in

sales for each over a four week period. That will tell you how your customers react to

the different price points.

Once you know this you can start to adjust the pricing of other items to suit the buying

behaviour of your customers.


18

Bottom up or top down?

What do you show the customer first, the highest priced item or the lowest priced?

Less experienced salespeople typically opt to show the lowest priced item first. Their

thinking is that if they show the highest price item first they will scare off or

embarrass the customer and so lose a potential sale. Whereas, if they start at the

lowest priced option they can see the customer reaction and work up to the higher

priced item if appropriate.

Our experience shows that with all types of products and services, starting at the top

and working down results in a higher average sale per customer than starting with the

lowest priced item.

There is a famous study that was done selling billiard tables. Staff were instructed

during certain weeks to show the lowest priced table first. In other weeks they started

at the top end. They sold more or less the same quantity of tables – which means that

people weren’t scared off by being shown the most expensive one first. But, when

they started with the highest priced table first they took far more money because the

average sale per customer was considerably higher.

Unconsciously, without even realising it, customers shown the higher priced item last

perceive it to be more expensive than if they are shown it first.

What about the middle ground?

What if you go for the middle priced item first then work up or down based on your

customer’s reactions.

In some settings, starting with the middle priced item may work best. Let’s take the

billiard table example described earlier. Would more tables have been sold if they

had started by showing the middle of the range? We don’t know for sure until it has

been tested. If we think we are losing sales by starting at the top, we need to test out

going for the middle ground first and compare the results.

A former colleague tested this selling premium products priced up to $10,000. She

found that showing the middle first helped to relax her customers and resulted in a

higher percentage of people buying from the top of the range. Make starting at the top

your first option but if this isn’t working go for the middle ground and see how often

you are able to work up from there.

Making choice and price work

So, the lesson from this is work at showing your customers three different options. If

the customer has indicated a price range, select three items within that range. Start

with the highest priced item, and then move on to the mid-priced one. Doing it this

way you may not even need to show the customer the lowest priced item.


19

Can higher prices mean better results for the

customer?

Numerous studies including some that you may have conducted informally over

dinner with friends have shown that people often assess higher priced wines as tasting

better than inexpensive wines. This isn’t limited to wine.

The psychology of price is fascinating. In his book ‘Brainfluence’ which you can

learn more about at the ‘Terrific Book Reviews’ section at www.terrifictrading.com,

Roger Dooley cites some other experiments including one that showed that people

who paid more for an energy drink actually solved puzzles more quickly than those

who bought it at a discount. The higher price made the drink more stimulating.

Another study showed that 85% of subjects given a placebo pill for pain relief

reported a reduction in pain when they were told the pill cost $2.50 per dose.

When told the pill cost 10 cents, only 61% of subjects reported a pain reduction. The

pills of course, being placebos, had no actual active ingredients.

What these reported experiments don’t state is that for higher priced products and

services to work more effectively, your people must also believe that the price is good

value and have confidence in the product.

You and all your team should be proud of your prices. I’m sure you have invested a

lot of money in equipment, systems, your people and refining your expertise. That

needs to come across to the customer. For example, “You’ll be pleased to know that

it is only $650 for...”

For higher priced products and services

to work more effectively, your people must also believe that the price is good value and have confidence

in the product


20

The four buying decisions customers make

Customers make four buying decisions before they purchase. Many customers

confronted by inexperienced sales staff will do online research, visit several

businesses and ask others before making their final buying decision.

Have you noticed how many of these customers enquire via email to which a standard

response in sent and then… nothing. There is no further response.

Or they come into a business, spend some time browsing and may even be approached

and get into discussion with you or one of your colleagues and yet leave without

purchasing?

And have you noticed how often your colleagues (not you, of course) say, ‘Oh, they

were just browsers killing some time.’ Car salespeople even call them ‘tyre kickers’!

Most of these customers are not killing time. They are people who are gathering

information to make these four important buying decisions:

1. Product, Service or Experience – Which one, size, colour, brand etc?

2. Place – Where and who will I buy it from?

3. Price – How much am I willing to pay for it?

4. Time – When will I buy it? Is there any urgency?

Decisive customers have usually made these buying decisions before they contact

your business or enter your office or showroom. For others, it is only when all these

decisions have been made that they will buy. Customers rely on either their own

research or salespeople who ‘tell’ them all about the product yet make no attempt to

secure the booking or sale.

To ensure that customers buy from you, be a ‘Seller’ not a ‘Teller’. Be someone who

is well aware of each customer’s potential buying motives and who matches the

benefits of their products and services with the customers’ individual needs.


21

Price Objections

An objection doesn’t necessarily mean an objectionable or difficult customer. In fact,

it is often the opposite.

An objection in ‘sales language’ can be defined as anything which a customer says or

does which indicates that they have a doubt about the product or service. Objections

are a natural part of the sales process.

In most cases an objection is your customer’s way of telling you that they want to

know more. Of course, it often won’t come out sounding like that, but if customers

weren’t interested they wouldn’t bother to make a comment.

Welcome objections. The objections your customers verbalise are a gift. The worst

objections are the ones they don’t tell you. You don’t get the chance to do anything

about them!

Price issues such as ‘It’s outside of my budget’, ‘It’s too expensive’, ‘I’ve had two

quotes that are far cheaper than yours’ are among the most common objections these

days.

There is a danger in jumping in too quickly to justify the price until you are clear as to

the reasoning behind the objection they have raised. For example, when they say,

“That’s too expensive.”

1) Are they challenging you to justify the value?

2) Are they testing you out to see if you will offer a discount?

3) Do they feel that compared to other places selling similar items it is

expensive?

4) Or is this their way of letting you know that it is outside their budget?

Being a detective and finding this out is what makes selling so much fun!


22

Four Steps to Handling Objections

Here is a four step process to use whenever you are handling objections.

1. Acknowledge the objection

This opens the lines of communication. You might say something like:

Thanks for raising that point;

Sounds like it’s more than you expected to pay.

Even if you think the objection is ridiculous, to the customer it is real. By using these

openings you are letting the customer know that you are there to help, not to fight.

2. Pause to consider it

You may have a standard answer to the customer’s objection. Hold off. Don’t jump

in with it. Briefly pause, indicating that you are thinking about the objection.

3. Ask questions

Start by restating the objection phrased as a question. That way you can make sure

you know exactly what is meant by the objection. Is it the real objection? Does it

disguise another problem? You won’t know unless you ask.

Get the customer to elaborate.

Sometimes when you do this they end up answering their own objections.

4. Answer calmly and convincingly

When you respond, ensure you maintain eye contact and relate to the objection raised.

Your response must show consideration for the customer’s point of view. Even if the

customer’s objection seems silly or offensive, respond in a positive manner both

verbally and non-verbally. That’s what separates the professional salesperson from

the rest!

And, remember, don’t get into an argument. You will never win an argument with

customers and it never pays to prove them wrong. In other words you can’t win

arguments by arguing.

That doesn’t mean you have to say you are wrong if that isn’t the case. But you do

have to empathise with the customer.


23

Dealing with price shoppers over the phone

Some businesses dread, even despise people who phone up and ask for the price of a

product or service. They feel that they are being used and believe that their chances

of getting anywhere with the customer are low at best. Then there are the ‘sales staff’

who don’t care or aren’t aware of the opportunities. They give the price, say, “Bye”

but the customer doesn’t buy... from them.

Before looking at the process and tactics for dealing with this situation, let’s explore

your beliefs, intentions and objective when you get a price shopper over the phone.

Your Belief Your belief needs to be: Price enquiries are good. Our advertising must be working if

they’ve called us. I don’t care how many people they phone, we are the best people to

help them due to our price/quality/service/convenient location/delivery/credit

terms/help line.

Yet often the belief from people who dread price shoppers over the phone is: ‘It

doesn’t matter what I do, the last person to get the call wins.’ In other words, if you

are the first or second business they’ve phoned they are going to phone at least one

more and that lucky business will get the order.

And do you know what? They are right. Aren’t they clever people? Their belief

about callers is reinforced every day by the result that they get!

Your Intention Your intention must be: To give the price and benefits of dealing with your company.

Now, in the old days the rule, reinforced in many USA based training programs, used

to be – You don’t give your best price over the phone. You tell them to come into

your showroom or place of business and then you will give them the best deal.

Today’s customers are too savvy and too assertive to put up with that approach. And

in this internet era, with the customer spoilt for choice, it just doesn’t work.

Your Objective Your objective is: To get the person or to make a booking, appointment, sale over the

phone or into your showroom

This is very different from the objective: To get them off the phone so I can deal with

some real customers!

Once we are clear about our belief, intention and objective we can clarify our process.


24

4-Step process for handling the call

The process is – Acknowledge, Ask clarifying questions, Confirm requirements, Gain

commitment. Let’s go through this step by step.

1. Acknowledge

Make an acknowledging statement to the question “How much is a…?” For example,

“Good question” or “Thanks for your call” and let the caller know your intention,

“Certainly, I’ll just get that for you.”

2. Ask clarifying questions

“To make sure I’m giving the price for the right make/model/service can I just

ask…?” For example, the caller is phoning about the price of a particular make and

model of dishwashing machine. You ask them what make and model they have at the

moment. “What’s that got to do with you? I just want the price!” is the answer.

“Certainly, I understand that,” you reply. “It’s just that this new model has some

additional load sensing features that are a bit different from other brands and I

wanted to check whether you are familiar with these. Also, I can give you the price

for delivery and installation so that you are aware of the total cost for a new

machine.”

3. Confirm understanding

Prior to giving the price, confirm the details and what is involved in that price.

For example for a dishwasher this may include the warranty, and the options

mentioned above for delivery and installation. In doing this you may remind them

that when delivering you can remove their old dishwasher at no cost and you’ll take

away all the packing materials, something that other retailers often don’t do. The

other places they phoned may not have mentioned anything about installation or

removal of the old dishwasher and packing materials.

Suddenly, you have moved up the list of preferred retailers to select their dishwasher

from. By doing the thinking for them you are increasing their confidence and trust in

you and your business.

4. Gain commitment

Once you go through these steps ask them when they expect to come into your store

(using this washing machine example), perhaps even arrange an appointment. This

might be by using an assumptive close or an alternative choice.

For example, “Please ask for me. My name’s Allana or for Will when you come in.

We’ll have the make and model you are interested in on the floor. Would you like to

make a specific time so that we can have it set up for a demonstration for you?”

You won’t win every caller but you will greatly increase your conversion rate and

make a favourable impression with your professional approach.

This process is really powerful and it tends to be a lot easier to develop once you are

clear on your belief, intention and objective.


25

EXERCISE – Dealing with price shoppers

Fill in the following:

A product or service that customers often phone up about: ______________________

_____________________________________________________________________

What the ‘price shopper’ might say: _______________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

Acknowledging statement: _______________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

Alternative acknowledgement statement: ____________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

Seek permission to ask one or more clarifying question e.g. ‘To be sure that I’m

giving you the correct price, there are 3 quick questions I need to ask.’

Permission statement: __________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

Potential questions:

1. ___________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

2. ___________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

3. ___________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________


26

Preparing Your Staff for a Price Increase

Once the decision is made to raise your prices, believe in it. Ensure you don’t pass

any anxiety onto your staff. Be proud of your prices and the value you give. Exude

confidence and be ready to pass this confidence onto your team. Let your team know:

a) there is going to be a price increase

b) how much it will be

c) when it will occur.

Convert their Sabotage Belief to a More Helpful Belief

In doing this, be aware that staff will often have misgivings about a price rise. These

feelings can trigger a Fight or Flight response in them when customers make a

negative or cynical comment about the price increase or even ask a question about it.

Fight – They jump in and defend the price increase ‘to the death’.

Flight – They feel like doing a runner and instead avoid eye contact with the customer

and pretend they didn’t hear the comment.

Surrender – They join the other side! They agree with the customer that the price

increase is unnecessary and over the top or they commiserate with the customer

saying, “I know, everything is getting more expensive these days, isn’t it?”

These reactions are caused by a Sabotage Belief about price increases. A belief that a

price increase is a bad thing and customers will hate us for it. You can help them

develop a More Helpful Belief such as:

“It’s OK for customers to make negative or cynical comments about the price rise.

When they do it gives us the opportunity to reassure them that they are getting good

value and to thank them for their custom.”

Winning over the team

Ideally get your team together as a group and, after letting them know about the price

increase, ask them, “How do you think customers will react?”

As they explore this listen to their answers. Acknowledge their comments and

misgivings.

Now, remind them of when your company’s last increase was and ask, “Can you

think of anything else our customers would have bought that has gone up in price

since then?”

Gather examples.

Next ask, “Can you think of any of our costs that have gone up since we last had a

price rise?”

Gather their examples.

If they don’t say it, mention wages – then add other hidden business costs they may

not have mentioned such as insurance premiums, superannuation, rates etc.


27

Stress that gathering this information isn’t so that they can defend the price rise by

going into a detailed justification with customers. The reason for gathering this

information is to develop a More Helpful Belief. It’s not about being defensive it’s

about reassurance.

A defensive reaction is driven from our point of view.

Reassurance is from the customer’s point of view.

Get them into their customers’ shoes by asking, “Why does the customer buy from us

anyway?”

This discussion puts the focus on the positives associated with dealing with your

organisation.

Encourage your team to take comfort in knowing that people dislike changing to an

unknown supplier, venue or service provider as much as they dislike paying more.

Intangibles like trust, reliability, knowledge of their requirements and personal service

all add value.

Prepare and practice

The first step in this stage is to gather and record their thoughts on how to

acknowledge and handle negative or cynical customer comments about the price rise.

Add your own and get agreement on what techniques and wording are likely to work

best with different customer types and situations.

Next, have a fun, confidence building series of role plays where they take turns at

being the customer and at being the service provider. In doing so practice:

1) Acknowledging the customers comments.

2) Reassuring customers that they’ve made the right decision in dealing with

your organisation. Review and…

Discuss with your team how they are going and monitor the customer reaction,

particularly in the first few days. It is vital that you make time for this. A bad reaction

from one customer can have everyone on edge if you aren’t around to put it into

perspective.

In most cases, the pricing becomes a non-event, with customers either not

commenting on the price increase or not mentioning it again after their initial

comments have been handled well.

Gather data on what effect the price rise is having on sales and profitability and share

this with your team.

Congratulate them on handling the situation well. It will be a lesson learned for

everyone about the importance of focusing on value rather than price.


28

Worksheet – Preparing for a Price Increase

Manager – Please use this in conjunction with the ‘Preparing Your Staff for a Price

Increase’ briefing sheet (i.e. the information on pages 26 and 27 of these notes).

1. How do you think customers will react to the price increase?

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

2. We last put our prices up on…….. Can you think of anything else our customers

would have bought that has gone up in price since then?

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

3. Can you think of any of our costs that have gone up in price since we last had a

price increase?

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

4. Why do customers choose to buy from us?

_____________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________


29

Ask Them to Buy

You are a professional problem solver. If the customer demonstrates interest in a

product, a tour or accommodation and you don’t ask them to buy or book there is

an 80% chance that they won’t say “I’ll take it” without being asked.

So, whenever you give information follow up by asking for commitment.

Closing Techniques

There are many different closing techniques. Among the most effective are –

The Direct Approach

For example, “Shall I book that for you now?” or “Would you like to take that

one?”

The Assumptive Close:

For example, “Would you like that wrapped?”

Alternative Choice:

For example, “Would you prefer the green or the blue?”

The Time Close:

For example, “Their tours fill up very quickly this time of year. I can’t guarantee

there will still be two seats when you drop back this afternoon. Would you like to

make a booking now?”

If you don’t ask the answer is:

“NO!”


30

Adding Value

By getting information, listening, observing and building rapport with customers, higher

value sales can be made... especially with people who are focussed on getting good value

for their money.

Here are three ways of adding value and being rewarded with increased sales:

Up Selling

Suggesting a product, tour or accommodation which is of higher value. This is often

called selling up or trading up.

For example, your customer books the 11.00am tour that has lunch included rather than

the 2.00pm tour that doesn’t. It costs more but they appreciate the greater value.

Related Selling:

Suggesting a related product or service which goes with the product the customer is

purchasing. Sometimes called companion selling, cross selling or add-on selling.

For example, the hat with the sunscreen or the stamps with the postcards.

Substitute Selling:

Offering an alternative product in place of something the customer has asked for. This is

the difference between saying, “Sorry we don’t stock those” and using your product and

customer knowledge to suggest an alternative.

If you have built rapport and are suggesting all of the above as a service, you are not

only adding value to your visitor centre, you are providing the customer with value too.

“Small or large?”

Adjusting the way you say things can achieve a far better result without anyone

having to work harder or longer. That’s the wonderful result you can get from

refining your selling technique.

A cafe I’ve been doing some customer focussed sales training with has two cup sizes.

When customers ordered a coffee, the boss had a habit of saying, “Small or large?”

Many of his staff copied him – modelling the behaviour of a manager or more

experienced staff member is how most people learn – or else they asked the customer

what size cup they want as they point to the two sizes.

As a result of this approach 80% ordered the small size.

This was changed to having everyone ask, “Will that be a large?” as they point to the

two sizes. The result was tracked over a 3 month period. 72% ordered the large size!

Just think of the effect this has on turnover and profitability. For the same amount of

time and effort there is a dramatically better result for the business AND customers

are happier because they’ve had the opportunity to select a better value option.


31

Suggestive Selling using the “this goes with that” approach

Write down the name of the product or service your customer wishes to buy/book.

Alongside the name of this item, list some of the ways in which you might increase

the value and benefit to your customer by suggesting one or more complementary

products or services. For example, the stamp that goes with the postcard or Gastrolyte

that goes with Imodium!

Work out the phrases or questions you can use to recommend the complimentary

items e.g. For the pharmacy, “Do you have a rehydration product at home to help you

recover quicker?”

Product or service: ____________________________________________________

Complimentary items:

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

Phrases you could use to introduce the complimentary items:

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________


32

Robert Cialdini’s 6 principles of influence and persuasion

1. Reciprocation

We feel obligated to return favours performed for us.

2. Authority

We look to experts to show us the way.

3. Consistency

We want to act consistently with our commitments and values.

4. Scarcity

The less available the resource, the more we want it.

5. Liking

The more we like people, the more we want to say yes to them.

6. Social proof

We look to what others do to guide our behaviour.

Building Authority

The unknown is scary for customers. They fear it. You can take away that fear by

communicating authority and expertise. For example,

“We are sending out Brett. He is a qualified solar technician with 15 months

experience working on solar systems. He is also accredited…”

Examples of Consistency

In his book ‘Influence: Science and Practice’ Dr Robert Cialdini quotes some great

examples to illustrate the Principle of Consistency.

Reducing ‘no shows: He recounts the story of a Chicago restaurant, which like many service businesses that

see people by appointment, such as doctors, dentists and vets, was plagued by people

making a reservation then failing to turn up. Rather like a technician going out to

someone’s house and no one being home!

This restaurant typically had 31% “no shows” (not unusual in that industry

particularly in cities with variable weather) even though when taking bookings they

concluded the call by saying “Please let us know if you change your plans.”

Two words were added to this statement to turn it into a question. It became “Will you

please let us know if you change your plans?” PAUSE. Following this pause the

caller typically said “yes, sure”….and they did!


33

“No shows” dropped to 9%. Why? Because the customer made a commitment.

Aren’t human beings fascinating creatures?

When people say ‘Yes’ to a ‘no pressure’ question: A university’s research team surveyed residents of a suburb on community issues.

One of the questions was to ask them what they would say if approached by the

American Cancer Society to spend three hours collecting money on their behalf. Not

wanting to sound uncharitable most people said, “Yes” (easy to say when there is no

‘cost’). When the American Cancer Society called people who had said “Yes” a

couple of weeks later and asked for their help in collecting in their neighbourhood the

response rate was in excess of 700% higher than in neighbouring suburbs where the

initial survey hadn’t been carried out.

The same survey strategy has been used in the US (where voting isn’t compulsory) to

encourage people to vote. By asking citizens to predict whether they would vote on

election day, researchers have been able to increase significantly the turnout at the

polls among those called.

So, the research is telling us that people typically prefer their behaviours to be

consistent with their pre-existing attitudes, statements, values and actions.

Principle of consistency tested Inspired by these examples, Steve Martin a UK colleague of Cialdini’s, led a series of

studies to see if they could reduce appointment no-shows in health centres by

triggering this same motivation. They asked patients seeking a doctors appointment

to make one of two small commitments:

1. Patients calling for an appointment by phone were asked to repeat back the

time and day of their appointment before hanging up.

2. Patients who visited the centres were given a pen and asked to fill in the time

and date of their appointment on a small card, rather than the usual practice of

the receptionist doing so.

These two small changes led to an 18% drop in appointment no-shows. Steve Martin

concluded that as no-shows cost health providers and governments billions of dollars

every year, these cost-less strategies that align to this universal motivation can make

for impressive differences.


34

Influencing Effectively – The Principle of Liking

According to Robert Cialdini, people prefer to say yes to individuals they know and

like. Who do we like? We like people who are similar to us.

This fact seems to hold true whether the similarity is in the area of opinions,

personality traits, background, our lifestyle or even in the way we dress.

Consequently, those who want us to like them so that we will comply with them can

often accomplish that purpose by appearing similar to us in a wide variety of ways.

That’s why salespeople look for points of common interest with their prospects and

customers – the golfing trophy on the bookshelf, the picture of the children, the

person’s accent all provide opportunities to weave into the conversation something

that suggests you share a common interest.

Another well-used tactic is to mirror the behaviour of your customers. This can

influence how they relate to you even though they may not realise it (and probably

wouldn’t believe it could be an influence on them). If they are fast paced in their

conversation you can pick up the beat of your words to match this; if they take it slow

better to slow your pace.

Being aware of how your rate of speech and general conversation can influence the

sales process is useful. But please don’t overdo it. Keep your focus on understanding

and providing solutions for your customer.

The way to ensure you do this is with the missing ingredient from the principle of

‘Liking’. This is the rarely explained part: People buy from people who help them to

like themselves.

Your purpose is to help people feel better about themselves for having chosen to

phone you.

When this is your objective, your focus is on them as individuals as well as on

identifying their problems and coming up with solutions. It’s not about you trying to

be liked or to be like them. Take it to a different level; help them to feel good about

themselves for taking the time to go through things with you.

The Three Ingredients: In summary, be aware that there are three ingredients in the principle of liking and

turn them into well balanced, effective tactics.

1. People buy from people they like.

2. People buy from people who are like them.

3. People buy from people who help them to like themselves.

Concentrate on the third aspect. Do this by focussing on your customers’ problems

and the solutions to them rather than a self-centred focus on selling your products and

services.


35

Personal Action Sheet from Workshop One

Actions I intend to take

1) ___________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

2)___________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

3)___________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

4)___________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

5) ___________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

The Next Step

With each intended action:

a) Note your reason for doing this.

b) Identify the likely result.

c) Set your time frame for doing this.

Now go back and pick out the 1 or 2 actions that you are going to give priority to.


36

Preparation for one-on-one face-to-face coaching session

This is a one hour session unless information still has to be gathered for your

Customer Experience Audit. Then it will be a total of two hours.

Your Name: _________________________________________________________

Date booked for session: ________________________Time booked: ____________

Potential points to explore:

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

What specifically would you like to achieve from this session?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

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