Would any of us buy a car that gets 10 MPG?
June 11, 2009 by Coach Rick · 1 Comment
No? Then why do we let buyers think that used homes are such a great deal?
How to use the “pain at the pump” to pump up your sales!
I’m taking a one-month break from my “8 Ideas for 2008″ series to talk with you about a subject that’s on everybody’s radar these days – ENERGY.
With any market downturn comes a great opportunity to expand your business in new areas. Right now, if you are not repositioning your business to focus on energy, you are missing the boat! Our industry is historically slow to change, but for those of you who are open to some new ideas, this is a subject you want to jump on.
How long do you have to watch the news, read the paper, browse the Internet or listen to the radio before you see, read or hear something on fuel prices? The answer is, don’t blink. With skyrocketing fuel prices on the minds of nearly everyone today, we have an incredible opportunity to use this mindset for selling energy-efficient homes and remodeling projects. As with anything else, it all depends on how we present it to the consumer.
More than saving the planet green, let’s talk saving some greenbacks.
Price vs. Cost
We all have a story about trying to save money only to have it cost us more. My story is about a stupid hose reel (really, I’m not bitter). A few years ago, I visited my local garden store to buy a hose reel. There were three kinds: the $40 plastic model, the $60 tougher plastic model and the $85 steel model. Of course I figured I could get by just fine with the $40 reel and promptly purchased it and brought it home.
About two months later, as I was reeling up my hose, I heard a “snap” and the plastic handle broke off. Hose reel number one landed in the garbage can.
So back I went to the garden store to purchase the $60 tougher plastic model (much stronger I figured), brought it home and put my hose on it. That worked for another summer, and the following year “snap”- hose reel number two ended up in the garbage can, too.
Now if you’re keeping track, I have “invested” $100 in reels so far, and I still don’t have anything to hang my hose on. Twice I bought on price, but paid a much higher cost than I would have had I originally purchased the $85 steel model. I still haven’t bought my next hose reel, because I am too ticked off at myself!
The used home and the SUV
If you’ve been paying attention to what $4/gallon gas has done to the automobile market, specifically light trucks and SUVs, you know anyone trying to sell these types of vehicles is taking major hits. The Toyota Prius Hybrid has emerged as the top selling vehicle in America getting nearly 50 MPG on the highway. But is the Prius a low-price car or a low-cost car?
What the Prius has going for it is frequent fueling. Most of us must fill up our vehicles each week brutally reminding us of the fuel cost realities. What’s a consumer to do? Trade in the SUV, take a bath on it and buy a Hybrid, no matter what the price, because now we have lowered our ongoing cost.
Used homes are just like SUVs that get 10 MPG. They were designed during a time when energy was cheap, and they no longer fit the reality of today’s energy prices. So if you don’t show a home with a radical alternative – like as the Prius does for cars – you will go the way of the SUV and be forced to massively discount to sell your homes.
It’s already happening…
Here is some information from a recent NAHB newsletter:
According to a survey, remodelers have installed a number of efficiency-enhancing products in recent months, including:
- Windows – 73 percent of surveyed remodelers installed more energy-efficient windows that are insulated to prevent outdoor heat exchange.
- Insulation – 65 percent made upgrades such as insulation replacement and spraying foam or fiber insulation into enclosed walls and roof cavities, while 27 percent insulated foundations and 52 percent installed insulated exterior doors.
- High-efficiency HVAC systems (56 percent)
- High-efficiency kitchen appliances (47 percent)
- Water-saving faucets and fixtures (46 percent)
“Newer technologies are also quickly gaining in popularity,” says said NAHB Remodelers Chairman Lonny Rutherford. “Thirty-five percent of remodelers reported installing tankless water heaters, which save on energy costs by heating water on demand instead of continuously eating energy.”
For more information about remodeling, visit www.nahb.org/remodel.
Would you buy a home that is a major energy guzzler?
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, residential buildings alone account for 21% of the nation’s energy consumption – nearly as much as transportation (27%).
If your buyers are spending almost as much on natural gas, electricity and water for their homes as they are in fuel for their vehicles,
you need to do what Toyota has done –
become the beacon of hope for beating high energy costs.
Here are some steps to capitalize on this opportunity:
- Educate yourself on energy-saving ideas. Read everything you can. Take classes. Ask your suppliers and trade partners what products they have for saving energy. Look to the NAHB and your local HBAs for guidance.
- Build an energy package or several energy packages. Most of you are familiar with option bundles. Create 1-3 energy bundles and show the energy savings of each as a percentage and dollar figure. Sell them as an investment in reducing monthly costs and enhancing resale value.
- Promote your energy package under a third party such as Energy Star. www.Energystar.gov is a great resource to help you get started. Your energy package will have instant credibility behind a well known third party.
- Incorporate your energy package into your next model home. Don’t be afraid to take a bold step. Chances are, most of your builder competitors haven’t done anything like this yet. The key to promoting an energy package is to show products and techniques your buyers can see, touch and feel.
- Talk about your energy package on your website. Devote 1-3 pages on this subject alone. Speak as an expert!
Want more ideas like these? Click here for 100′s>>
What will your buyers be looking for, a used home with 10 MPG or a brand new home with 100 MPG?
We already have a leg up on the used home market. Most people would rather own a brand new car or home if they can logically justify the price. Our job as salespeople and marketers is to use the pain at the pump as a reason to consider a new home for all the cost savings.
Happy Selling!
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In What Do You Believe?
June 8, 2009 by Coach Rick · Leave a Comment
Eight Ideas for 2008 newsletter and then expanded on each idea in subsequent months. None of us could have imagined the changes that have taken place in the housing industry, credit markets and overall economy since December 2007. But the changes have happened, and my final topic is even more relevant today than it was back in 2007: Believe.
Several years ago, I attended a seminar presented by one of my mentors, Myers Barnes, who explained that there are four types of people in this world. He confessed that it really bothered him when he couldn’t get his message across to everyone he trained. In fact, it used to keep him up at night.
Myers described the first type of person as the Laugher and Mocker. They dismiss any new idea brought to the table with a chuckle and smile. They won’t step out of their comfort zone, because if they try something and fail, they will be humiliated in their own mind.
The second type is the Critic and Skeptic. The words that most often come out of the mouth of these types are, “that won’t work in my market!” That’s because many years ago, a Critic and Skeptic tried something new, and it didn’t work so he or she has been forever scarred. Yes, for this type, the glass is always half-empty.
We all know the third type of person – the Perplexed. These are the folks, through no lack of trying, just don’t get it. They never have gotten it and probably never will. Many of the perplexed have already left the real estate business because of the complexities of the marketplace.
The fourth type of person, Myers explained, is the Believer. A Believer doesn’t track the national market, listen to the national news or rely on the market to sell homes for them. A Believer finds a system to sell homes and focuses 100% on that system.
Government will save us
We have a presidential election coming up in a couple of weeks. Both democrats and republicans are talking about their plans for getting us out of this financial mess. Millions of people on both tickets believe their side is right and can fix the problem. “Change is coming” is the rallying cry from both sides of the aisle.
“Wall Street, deregulation and predatory lenders got us into this mess,” we are told by both parties. “And we will save you!”
Ladies and gentlemen, are you ready to be saved by the very entity that got us into this mess? Our government has been pushing for increased homeownership since the mid 1990′s by relaxing lending standards for those that shouldn’t have purchased a home in the first place. And now they have passed a bailout bill to save us?
I believe we need to take away one very valuable lesson from the financial crisis and this political election:
Never rely on the marketplace or the government to build or save your business.
How to sell in this economy
Immediately after the bailout bill was passed and the stock market lost ground for eight consecutive days, three of my clients sold a total of four homes (and made good profits on each one). Did they sell their homes because the market was so great? Hardly. Did they sell their homes because the government promised to save everybody? Absolutely not.
My clients were able to sell their homes because they believed and followed a system designed to sell homes in any economy.
I want to discover a system where I can sell homes no matter what the economy is doing>>
You know what? My clients aren’t any smarter than any of you. They simply follow a system that focuses on three key components:
Key #1: Positioning
My clients have all re-positioned their offerings to be unique and different from those around them. They understand it’s better to be a big fish in a small pond by targeting a specific buyer profile with a unique offering. If a consumer can’t make a direct comparison to what you are selling, you are considered a specialist. In this economy, everyone wants to work with a company they feel understands their needs and problems better than anyone else. What specialty are you known for?
Key #2: Lead Generation
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – mass marketing is dead. Too many home builders and Realtors use the shotgun approach to lead generation and then wonder why they don’t get any or only attract unqualified leads. My clients’ lead generation is based on their unique position. Their leads are highly qualified to purchase their homes and offerings. How do you lead generate?
Key #3: Lead Conversion
Just one week ago, the Builders Association of the Twin Cities held their semi-annual Remodeler’s ShowcaseSM where local remodeling companies can show off their recent projects for three days. The Showcase had 130 entries between dozens of different companies.
Everyone was nervous that consumers wouldn’t show up or – if they did – wouldn’t commit to moving forward with projects right now due to the financial markets. A client of mine, who had diligently prepared their lead conversion system, converted 30% of their cold leads into hot prospects. They finished the weekend with 14 confirmed consultations. I can already tell you they will convert 50% – or seven of those consultations into buyers because they follow a system.
I’m ready to close more sales and maximize profits>>
Are you a Johnny?
Here is a great story that will show you how one unlikely person was able to dramatically increase business for his company. At the end of the three-minute video, you’ll be asking yourself, “Am I a Johnny?” http://www.stservicemovie.com
Happy Selling!
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The Key Mistake You Must Avoid
June 8, 2009 by Coach Rick · Leave a Comment
I had one of those “ah-ha” moments last week after hearing the same story from some of my clients. Let me give you a little background.
Both of them are very busy meeting with leads (we’re very fortunate to have about 4-5 times more opportunities than our competitors) but they found themselves getting stuck at the same part of the sales process.
My Transformational Sales System works like this:
Step 1 Preparation
Step 2 Meet and Greet
Step 3 Discovery
Step 4 Presentation
Step 5 Demonstration
Step 7 Logically Justify with Finance
Step 8 Close
Step 9 Follow Up and Get Referrals
Step 10 Follow Thru and Get Referrals
My clients were getting hung up on Step 6, Customer Objections. Can you guess what the consistent objection was? Of course it was price!
Now, there’s no way to eliminate price objections from the sales process. And it’s not like they couldn’t handle these objections (we’ve worked diligently on how to deal with them) it’s that they were consistently getting them with every prospect (sometimes with a lot of frustration). Is this happening to you too?
Misdiagnosis
I’m sure you’ve heard of stories of doctors misdiagnosing illness causing patient frustration and extended uncomfortableness. If you’ve been one of those patients you can empathize here.
Imagine being one of your prospects that’s also been misdiagnosed. Do you think they have some frustration with you too? You know the answer.
Most People Don’t Know How to Open
If I hear one more builder tell me there salespeople don’t know how to close I think I’m going to puke. This is a classic misdiagnosis. Sure it’s probably partially right, but their missing the bigger picture.
You Can’t Close if You Don’t Know How to Open!
When you know how to open you know how to diagnose and understand people’s problems. Only then can we properly close. Trying to sell without following this truism is fighting the natural sales process.
Remember the steps?
Step 3 Discovery
Step 4 Presentation
Step 5 Demonstration
Step 6 Customer Objections
Step 7 Logically Justify with Finance
Step 8 Close
You can’t get to Step 8 until you master Steps 3-7. Anyone you think is a great closer is really great at discovery or, uncovering problems. Once you truly understand people’s problems you’re presentation/demonstration builds the value of your solution.
How We Solved the Problem
We went back and focused on discovering their prospect’s problems. It turns out the salespeople were not spending nearly enough time in the discovery process. They were making assumptions and presenting solutions that weren’t understood or right according to the prospect.
The Results?
In a 2 week period they transformed 42 cold prospects into hot leads (by hot lead I mean appointments!). They’ve already moved 4 of them into design agreements (with checks) and are going out of their mind meeting with the rest of the leads (A nice problem to have in today’s economy). Oh, and by the way, neither of them lowered their prices!
Would You Like to Have the Same Problem?
If you’d like to find out the exact types of questions and sales strategies they used you can order a copy of
The Ultimate System for Transforming Cold Prospects into Hot Leads.
My new web site is nearly ready to go and this will be the first manual I’m making available for ordering.
I’m offering it to a limited group of people at an incredible introductory price, one that will go up substantially within a very short time period.
Stay tuned and Happy Selling!
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Reflections on 2008 – What I learned and how you can profit from it
June 7, 2009 by Coach Rick · 1 Comment
Picture this…the cabin scene from the movie Fargo where the kidnappers are holding the victim until they receive the ransom money. That scene pretty much sums up my setting between Christmas and New Year’s where I spent four days reflecting on 2008 and planning for 2009. The only difference was:
- I had heat
- My television got better reception
- I didn’t have a wood chipper on the premise
So what did I learn in 2008? Here’s a start…
1. Quit trying to sell.
You read that correctly. The New Home Sales Coach just told you to quit trying to sell. Let me explain. Most of you use what’s called a one-step sales method. Meaning, you advertise your homes, lots, remodeling services, etc. and hope for the phone to ring. Doesn’t ring too much does it?
You need to quit “going for the jugular” and trying to convert a prospect to a customer in one step and start building a relationship through a multi-step process. A multi-step process focuses on three things.
First, take plenty of time to get to know the prospect and them to know you. Second, build the value of your company and third, earn their trust.
“Rick, we’re already doing this.”
You may think you are, but you’re probably not executing it correctly. This is not about being a good listener when you meet with someone or properly demonstrating your model home. A multi-step process takes place before you even talk to your prospect. My clients are just now beginning to execute this system. One of them just had a prospect email them for an appointment to build a home before they ever talked to them.
How often does that happen to you?
In 2009 I’ll be launching my newest Sales Symposium called The Ultimate System to Landing the Perfect Prospect. I’ll show you what you need to do to design, build and implement a lead generating system where you, too, can get prospects emailing you for an appointment before you’ve ever talked to them.
2. Mastermind.
Government or the market won’t save you in this crappy market. Those around you, combined with your intellect, can and will. Remove all negative people from your business life and surround yourself with people in this industry that are on the cutting edge in dealing with this recession.
I invested thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours collaborating with some brilliant people in 2008. The knowledge I’ve gained, and continue to gain, is what has allowed me to grow my business in this recession.
In 2009, I’ve decided to bring a mastermind group to you. That’s right, coming this summer I will be forming a “virtual” mastermind group of some of the finest, most intelligent contractors and salespeople in the industry and you will have an opportunity to participate.
Send me an email if you want to know more before I launch the program>>
3. Do Something.
My clients tried a lot of things in 2008. Some of them worked and a lot of them didn’t. But do you know what their bankers, suppliers, prospects and subcontractors said (no matter what the results), “You’re doing something! Everyone else is sitting on their hands. If we have to go to bat for someone we’ll do it for you.”
The faster you try and fail, the faster you learn. The more you learn, the more you sell. The more you sell, the more you figure out how to maximize profits. Don’t worry whether it’s going to work or not. Try it!
Click here to “do something” about attracting more buyers in 2009>>
4. Understand your prospects better than anyone else.
There are four types of personalities. Two of the four are in the marketplace buying today and two are sitting on the sidelines.
The Dominant and Analytical personalities are buying today. Why? Dominant people are more risk tolerant and love to negotiate. They see the opportunity in this market.
Analytical personalities see the opportunity to dramatically upgrade their housing situation with high quality materials at rock bottom prices.
Do you understand how to work with these personalities? Do you know how to deal with their objections, negotiation tactics and their hidden fears? Do you know how to attract these types of personalities?
This is probably one of the most overlooked selling techniques in today’s market. I’m going to tell you exactly what you need to do to attract, understand and sell to these personalities at my next Sales Symposium – The Ultimate Guide to Attracting Home Buyers. You have only five days left to register for this once a year class.
5. Give them something for free (remodeling contractors pay attention to this one).
I’m not talking about a new kitchen or fireplace. I’m talking about a great way to start a relationship with a prospect.
I’d been working on a marketing plan with a client of mine when they told me they’d been experimenting with Google Adwords online advertising. My client forwarded me their monthly keyword report that showed they had 482 “click-throughs” that cost them $280.
Guess how many converted to leads and contacted them for more information? One!
Another client, whose website I’ve been able to help revamp, is averaging 8 leads a month without paying any money for keywords or search engine optimization. What’s the difference? One is giving the prospect a compelling reason to leave their information – he’s giving away something for free!
In 2009 you need to give prospects reasons to start a relationship with you. Give them something for free!
Happy Selling!
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Last Chance to see how the Woman-Centric Approach to New Home and Remodeling Sales can Make Your Company Remarkable!
June 1, 2009 by Coach Rick · 5 Comments
Okay, 3 quick questions…
1. Are you a home builder or remodeler and would like quit competing on price alone?
2. Would you love to leverage your website for new leads?
3. Does the idea of increasing your sales conversion rate sound appealing?
Dear home builder or remodeler,
“People don’t change until the pain of staying the same outweighs the pain of the change.” I love that quote. The only constant in life is change and today’s economy dictates that we must change and adapt to the new way of selling homes and remodeling services.
You have an opportunity to learn a system that allows you to do just that. It’s called Woman-Centric Matters and there are about 100 home builders, remodelers and other businesses across the country utilizing it to make sales and grow their business no matter what the economy.
Watch the video below to get a better idea of the program…(the end of the video gets cut off but just follow the instructions below if you’d like to watch and listen to the webinar)
Get more information by clicking here>>
You have one last change to attend a 1 hour webinar to learn all the details of the program and determine if it makes sense for you and your business. The webinar details are below:
Check out the MN Woman-Centric Consortium of Home Builders web site>>
Our Last Webinar is Monday June 22 at 2:00 CST
1. Please join my meeting.
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/join/718690170
2. Use your microphone and speakers (VoIP) – a headset is recommended. Or, call in using your telephone.
Dial 213-286-1203
Access Code: 718-690-170
Audio PIN: Shown after joining the meeting
Meeting ID: 718-690-170
If you would like to attend this meeting please post a comment to this article with your name, phone, email and company name along with the date of the webinar.
There is limited space for each webinar so if you would like to attend, please send me a comment with your information and we will send you a reminder email prior to the event.
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A Different Approach to Selling New Homes in Today’s Economy
June 1, 2009 by Coach Rick · Leave a Comment
Minnesota Builders Know What Women Want
From BUILDER Online — By: Alison Rice — A fresh approach to marketing, customer service, and home design brings business to small firms during a incredibly difficult market.
When a handful of small Minneapolis-St. Paul builders decided in 2008 to join forces on a woman-centered marketing campaign, they had no idea how timely a decision that would be. “What started out as a marketing strategy turned into a survival strategy,” Rick Storlie of New Home Sales Coach told attendees at the International Builders Show in Las Vegas Tuesday.
Read the entire post –
http://www.builderonline.com/sales-and-marketing/minnesota-builders-know-what-women-want.aspx
