February, 2007

Plan a Successful Sale

If you sell decks on an installed basis, here are some tips to close the sale.

By Bob Heidenreich

It starts the minute you meet a sales prospect. You realize that to close the deal, ultimately your customer will have to decide that you’re the best choice they could possibly make.

When I first meet a prospect, I show up with a three-ring binder that I use to tell my story. I find it helpful to talk near where the construction will take place, which is typically in the kitchen if the project is a deck. And be sure to invite all the decisionmakers to this meeting.

Most homeowners immediately want to tell you what they want, but before they do, I encourage them to listen to me for a moment. To start, I open my book and tell the story of my company, delivering my credentials very quickly. I tell them about my company’s history and show them a photo of the building and my 30 employees. I point out that since I have employees, I don’t need to rely on sub-contractors.

Next, I tell them that I am fully licensed—and show them my actual licenses, pointing out that they have some of the oldest license numbers the prospect is likely to see. (After all, I’ve been in business for 26 years.) In no time, they can see that I’m a licensed landscaper and electrician, too, as well as a member of Better Business Bureau. All this is designed to tell the homeowner that I am both qualified for the job and reputable.

Then I tell—and show—them my industry achievements. I show them the awards we’ve won, and the binder includes every magazine and newspaper mention of my company. I also highlight the community service that we perform. (If you support the Boy Scouts or a local softball team, mention it.)

Finally, my binder includes my published prices. I explain that the decks I price are based on size. I do this intentionally, because at this point, I don’t know my prospective customer’s budget.

Remember: Avoid discrediting your competitors, but clearly tout your advantages.

Share Your Insights with Tips

The next step is to educate your prospect. I do this in three parts:

1. View. I show the homeowner photos of two decks that overlook some nice scenery, and I tell them that even though we build the nicest deck in the industry, our decks only enhance the homeowner’s own yard and landscaping. I remind them that our deck will only make their yard look better.

2. Proportionalism. This helps determine how big the deck should be for any given house. I explain that the decks we build duplicate the shapes and angles found in a home. We want our decks to look like an extension of the home, not an afterthought. I tell them that a single section of any deck I build never exceeds the size of the largest room in the house. That’s my rule of deck proportionalism, which helps us determine size, and also shows my prospect that I’m not there to sell them the biggest deck I can.

3. Focus. The third step is to show the homeowner photos of two identical decks. The planking on one runs parallel; the planking on the other runs diagonally. They look different because of how we installed the decking. The one with the diagonal decking directs the eye toward where it points to divert attention away from an eyesore or toward a beautiful garden.

People think that diagonal decks cost more money, but they actually cost less. Most decks are 10-, 14-, or 18-ft. wide, while composite lumber comes in 10-, 16-, and 20-ft. lengths. That means anything other than a 10-ft. deck will require installers to waste 2 ft. from each plank. Conversely, diagonal decks make use of every combination of plank length. (Homeowners like this because I’m showing them how to save money by being smart about material usage.)

At this point, I sketch my idea for their deck on a design tablet in five minutes. I then hand the picture to the customer and ask for their ideas. Nearly 95 percent of the time, they say they love it and it is exactly what they wanted.

Next issue, I’ll share my strategies for effectively closing the sale.