Sell Products and Services
Information / Page NumberCourse Outline
Critical Aspects / 2
2
Approach the Customer
Why Customers Buy
Techniques to Approaching the Customer
Which Approach to Use
Approach Customers Summary / 3
3
4
5
6
Apply Product Knowledge
Gaining product knowledge
Gathering Information
QuestioningListening
Non-Verbal Communication
Gathering Information Summary / 6
7
7
7
7
7
19
Effective Responses Using Product Knowledge
Respond to Customer Enquiries about Products Summary / 1010
Sell Benefits
Features and BenefitsRational and Emotional Benefits / 11
11
12
Matching Needs to Products
Converting Features and BenefitsConverting Features and Benefits Summary / 13
14
14
Overcome Objectives
ObjectionsPrice Objections
Merchandise Objections
Time Objections
Responding to Objections
Overcome Objections Summary / 15
16
17
18
19
19
19
Close the Sale
Buying Signals
Customer QuestionsCustomer Actions
Customer Reactions
Closing the Sale / 19
20
20
23
22
23
Maximaise Sales Opportunities
Selling up to meet the customer’s needsMonitoring your own sales performance
Closing the Sale Summary / 24
24
25
25
Key Terms and Concepts / 26
Sell Products and Services
This unit involves the use of sales techniques and encompasses the key selling skills from approaching a customer to closing the sale. It requires a basic level of product knowledge.
Critical Aspects of Assessment
Evidence of the following knowledge and skills is considered essential to demonstrate competency in this unit:
· Applying product knowledge and using an appropriate sales approach to sell the benefits of products, overcome objections and close sales
· Using questioning, listening and observation skills to accurately determine customer requirements
· Consistently applying store policies and procedures, in regard to selling products and services
· Maximising sales opportunities according to store policies and procedures
· Consistently applying industry codes of practice, relevant legislation and statutory requirements in regard to selling products and services
· Evaluating personal sales performance to maximise future sales
Approach the customer
Critera covered in this activity:
Timing of customer approach determined and applied.
Effective sales approach identified and applied.
Positive impression conveyed to arouse customer interest.
Convey a positive impression to arouse customer interest.
Knowledge of customer buying behaviour demonstrated.
Customer focused on specific merchandise.
Interact with a range of customers.
Purpose:
A professional approach provides you with the opportunity to create a positive first impression, and helps the customer to feel confident about doing business with you.
Why Customers Buy
Think of the last time that you made a purchase in a retail store. Why did you buy that particular item?
People buy products for two main reasons…
1) They need a product
2) They want a product
Mrs James
just bought
an
umberella / / Mr Hamilton has just bought a new tie. /
Mrs Lockett really needed that umbrella, since she got caught in the rain this morning. Mr Hamilton didn't really need a new tie, but he saw it and wanted it - so he bought it
Knowing whether your customers need or want your product will influence the way that you sell it to them.
Customers will buy from you for many different reasons. The main ones are because they need or want the product, but others include not being able to resist a bargain or buying something to cheer themselves up.
As a professional sales person, your job involves being able to identify the difference between a need and a want, and using this information as part of your sales technique.
Techniques for approaching a customer
When you enter a retail store, how do you like to be greeted?
It is often a matter of personal choice as to how we like to be greeted, so it is important that the way you greet your customers communicates a positive message.
The greeting should also be appropriate to the retail store and the type of customer that shops there.
You are aiming for a positive first impression - so the greeting really counts.
Acknowledging the customer as they enter the store is essential - it lets them know that you are aware of them, and that you are ready to help them.
An "over-the-top" greeting can make a customer feel threatened. Some sales people seem ready to "devour" the customer as soon as they've walked in the door!
The difficulty with getting the greeting just right is that every customer you deal with is an individual, with personal tastes and expectations.
As a customer, you have probably been the victim of an over-the-top greeting at some time. This may have made you feel anxious to get away from the store, rather than feeling welcome to stay inside and browse.
As a general rule, a warm and friendly greeting is always most appropriate. Many customers are quite happy to browse around your store, and prefer to be left alone to do this.
Many retail stores understand the importance of greeting customers effectively, and have put into place a policy for the way that staff are to greet their customers.
In other stores, there is no "policy" as such, but there is an informal agreement between staff as to how customers are greeted.
Some stores have perhaps not realised how important it is to greet customers effectively, and staff say whatever they feel like at the time. Whilst this approach can work in a more casual type of retail store, it is not the most professional or effective way to create a welcoming environment.
The key to a successful greeting is to make the customer feel welcome, and begin building the rapport that leads to the building of successful customer relationships.
There are three types of approach that can be used in a sales situation. These are known as:
1) The Greeting approach.
2) The Merchandise approach.
3) The Service approach.
The Greeting Approach / The merchandise approach / The service approach.
The greeting approach works well when your customer appears to be just browsing, and hasn't shown interest in a particular product. This approach simply involves greeting the customer in a friendly and professional way by using open questions - examples include "Hello, how are you today" or "Good morning".
But… it's not what you say, it's how you say it. Always use a smile, a friendly expression and a pleasant tone of voice so the customer knows you are happy to help them.
The greeting approach should get a positive response from the customer and get a conversation started. This conversation will lead to discussion on the customer's needs and/or wants - and eventually to a sale. / The merchandise approach should only be used when a customer has shown interest in a particular product by looking at it, touching it or reading information on the packaging.
The merchandise approach immediately focuses the customer's attention on the product, and provides you with an opportunity to start selling the features and benefits of the product, since you know that the customer is already interested.
The most effective way of using the merchandising approach effectively is being able to judge exactly what feature of the product the customer is interested in - the colour, the price, the quality etc.
An example of the merchandising approach would be as follows; a customer is looking at a red velvet jacket, and touching the fabric… you approach them and say "Good morning… isn't that velvet lovely and soft." The customer responds in a positive way, and the sale begins.
Remember, a merchandising approach needs to include a greeting such as "hello" / The service approach can be used with customers who know exactly what they want, or appear to be in a hurry. A typical service approach is "Hello, can I help you?". This is different to the greeting approach, because you are making an immediate offer of assistance rather than just saying hello, although a greeting needs to be included in the approach.
The danger with using the service approach is that most customers will respond immediately with "No thanks", or "I'm just browsing", which can make it hard for you to continue with the conversation. Avoid service approaches that include a closed question - "Can I help you?" will usually get a "no" response, where "How can I help you?" means that the customer has to answer you with more than just one word, and you can start a conversation more easily
Some customers really are just looking, and would like to be left alone, or prefer to browse without being pressured by a sales assistant. Give them time to look around - you can always approach them again if they are still there after a few minutes.
Which Approach to Use?
Using the right approach and greeting technique will help you to create a positive first impression, which will usually lead to a successful interaction with your customer.
Customers will have different ideas about how they like to be approached by you when they're shopping in your store. Being able to adapt your approach to suit individual customers will improve your sales skills.
Approach Customers Summary
A professional approach is the first step towards providing excellent service to your customers, and meeting their needs with your products and services. Remember that each customer is different, and be prepared to pay attention to the way that they respond to your approach. Look out for non-verbal communication such as their facial expression and body language.
Apply Product Knowledge
You will need to know about the products you sell in order to tell customers about them.Customers need information to help them make a buying decision. The essence of selling is to communicate this information.
Being an effective salesperson is all about your ability to communicate with your customer. More specifically, it involves being able to pass on details about your products and services, and provide your customers with the information they need to make a buying decision.
To sell effectively you must be able to respond to your customer's enquiries about a particular product or service.
Sales staff must gain information about the products they are selling. You should be able to answer questions that a customer may ask, such as;
· What is the product used for?
· How does it work?
· What are the main ingredients /components?
· How much does it cost?
· What are its advantages over the products of a competitor?
If you cannot answer questions like this your ability to sell the product is severely limited.
When customers ask these questions, they expect you to be able to answer them. A response of "I don't know" tells customers that you are not able to help them make a buying decision (or worse still - that you don't care), and they will probably go to another store where they can find someone who knows about the product.
The more strategies you use to get to know your products and services, the better you will be able to sell them to your customers. In most cases, the best way to learn about your product is to actually use it yourself - get it out of the box and see what it's all about. Your store may not permit you to take products home, so make sure you read all the instructions and product information you can find.
Gaining product knowledge
There are 3 key components to developing product knowledge
1. the information that you need to know about the products you are selling
2. knowing where to get the information
3. communicating the information to the customer
The information that you need to know is determined by what you are selling and by your customers. For example, a car salesperson would need to know a lot more about the product than the checkout operator in a supermarket.
The most valuable and easiest source of information is from the product itself. By looking, touching, tasting, smelling, using and reading the label/box you can learn most of the information needed to sell a product. Other staff members and customers can also give you a wealth of information about a product. Suppliers can also be a very valuable source of information.
Do not forget about the information that can be gained from trade shows, media advertisements, family and friends, government departments (eg ACCC) and magazines like Choice.
Gathering Information
Gathering information requires the effective use of questions in a non-threatening and conversational way. Determining a customer’s needs is vital to successful selling
The most obvious way to gather information from your customers is to ask them questions. Customers will be more willing to answer your questions if you have already approached and greeted them in a professional and friendly way, because they have already started to trust and like you.
Some salespeople use a questioning technique that is similar to an interrogation, making the customer feel intimidated or even threatened. These salespeople are usually unsuccessful, so this is not an effective questioning technique.
Questioning
There are three main types of questions that are used to determine a customer’s needs: open-ended, closed and reflective.
1. Open-ended questions– should be used when first serving the customer to gather the required information. The amount of information gained will vary with the customer and the environment you have created as well as the questions asked. This type of question generally starts with one of the key words: which, what, where, when, who, why or how.
Examples / Open questions begin with words like:
“How do you think you will use the product?”
“Where are you planning wearing this dress?”
“When do you need the present by?”
“Why do you require that particular brand?”
“What do you think of this season’s colour range?” / How