The power in a perspective change

I was in a Country Road store recently and the following rack of clothes caught my attention.

Rather than call these clothes a “sales” rack or discount them heavily they referred to them in a positive light. These are the “last of the best sellers”. To me that made this rack go from bargain basement, to a far more enticing proposition instantly.

What words are you using in your business that might have a negative connotation? “Sorry” “Unfortunately” “Sale” “Bargain” “Discounted” “Economic Downturn”. Could a simple perspective shift like the “last of the best sellers” rephrase any of them in a positive light?

Those of you who work in a retail environment will know how frustrating it can be keeping your shopfront clean and neat during autumn with the wind sweeping leaves in and out open doors. This fabulous florist I recently passed had taken leaves in the shop to a whole different place. Their front window was decorated with leaves, their floor was covered in Autumn leaves and it was nothing short of SPECTACULAR.

A negative, turned into a gorgeous show case. Inspiring stuff. What negative can you make into something stunning today?

By Kirsty Dunphey with No comments

Corrupt Honesty

On a recent trip overseas I passed by a DVD shop that was clearly selling pirate products. I didn’t purchase any, but I did overhear a really interesting sales technique.

When a customer picked up a copy of “The Social Network” the store worker quickly told them that it was a “bad copy – filmed in a cinema”. When they queried other films they were told that most of their other choices were “good copies – A1”.

What did the customer walk out with? 15 DVDs including the Social Network and one other film they knew to be a “bad copy”. They chose to purchase these copies despite knowing they wouldn’t be high quality, such was their desire to see those films.

Without the honesty approach by the sales person, the exact same sale would have been made and the customer would have then gone home only to find their “bad copies” and have been disappointed.

As it was, the same product was sold, and yet because the expectations were appropriately set, a goodwill and a level of trust was almost definitely gained.

Please note: I do get the irony in talking about honesty as a sales technique in an industry where people are selling illegal goods – the point, I think, is still valid though.

Whatever you’re selling, be it a product, a service, yourself if you set the appropriate expectations by giving the purchaser all the information they need up front it’s much easier to avoid disappointment long term.

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By Kirsty Dunphey with No comments

What I would look for when choosing a real estate agent

I’ve worked in real estate since I was 15 years old. One of the main reasons I wanted to open my own agency at the age of 21 was that I was aware that not all real estate agents are equal. Some are dreams, some are nightmares and many are in the middle. I get asked all the time – “how do I find a dream agent to sell my home?”, so this is what I’d look for in trying to find my dream agent.

The dream agent shows me the price
An agent who can SHOW me why they’re saying they can sell my home for a certain price. The way they would need to show me would be by showing me what comparable properties had sold within the past 3 – 6 months (I’d want to see addresses, photos and sale prices). Even better if they have personally or at least their company have been responsible for some of these sales.

The nightmare agent tells me the price
I don’t want an agent who:
• Finds out and then tells me the price I want to hear
• Finds out the other agent quoted prices and then quotes a selling price higher to get the business
• Plucks a price out of their head
• Bases their price on properties that are not comparable to mine

The dream agent’s marketing is first rate
I want to look at your website, your property presentations on real estate portals (like realestate.com.au), your brochures, your sign boards, your newspaper advertisements and see:
• Consistency of branding
• Quality
• Readability
• Descriptive eye catching wording

The nightmare agent’s marketing isn’t flexible
I want options and I want to know why you recommend that marketing option for my property, not a one size fits all approach.

The dream agent talks with me
Their presentation is question based and they take time to find out about me and what I’m looking for. They know their stuff, but they find out what areas I’m most concerned about before launching into a recorded message-like presentation.

The nightmare agent talks at me
Their presentation is said at me and they speak more than 80% of the time.

The dream agent is a natural negotiator
I can test this out by asking them to drop their commission (if they don’t negotiate hard for their money, what are they going to do when it comes to negotiating for mine?). I can also test their negotiation skills if I’ve ever bought from them before – did they get top dollar out of me then?

The nightmare agent is a natural regurgitator
The other agent offered you 20% off? Well we can offer you 25%... The other agent said they’d do that? Well I can do better.

The dream agent cares
I can test this out by showing up 10 minutes before one of their scheduled open homes and watching them arrive, set up and conduct the open. I can test it by taking note of any promises they make (they’ll call me Monday, they’ll find that information out by Wednesday) and see if they live up to it.

The nightmare agent talks at me
The nightmare agent screams in at the last minute for an open home, doesn’t tell me their name and doesn’t follow up.

The dream agent has fans
And they’re more than happy to let me know about their fans by showing me testimonials (lots of glowing ones) and by allowing me to contact people they’ve sold houses for in the past month.

The nightmare agent has people fanatically trying to track them down
(to complain)

The dream agent remembers me
Long after the sale.

The nightmare agent develops acute amnesia
As soon as they get paid.

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By Kirsty Dunphey with No comments

Is It An Asset Or Just Making You An Ass?

What’s not an asset in your business?

1. Your systems (if they’re only in your head)

2. Your written systems (if they’re rigid, inflexible, un-personalised and can’t be changed with influence from your team and customers)

3. Your number one customer (if your business is too dependant upon having their custom)

4. The customer you’re dealing with right now (if you don’t have a service plan in place to nurture the relationship into the future)

5. Your best salesperson / employee (if they believe that they’re indispensable, worst still if you believe they are)

6. Your longest standing employee (if they can’t embrace change)

What could be a hidden asset?

1. Your customer complaints (they should scream to you: fix or implement a system here)

2. Your outgoing emails (many could serve as a blog post, an answer to a frequently answered question and a reason never to have to type that same email answering that same question ever again)

3. Your current customer when you only have a few (One delighted customer (if you do it right) can talk about you ten times more than 10 moderately satisfied ones)

4. Your suppliers (if there’s a hidden customer hiding there)

5. That plucky (translation: sometimes annoying) employee who just won’t shut up with all their great ideas (find a way to channel their creativity so that you don’t get frustrated, and so that you can farm any brilliance that may occur)

6. That employee you know has dreams and desires of leaving you and starting their own company (figure out a way to encourage, challenge and inspire them, utilising the best they have to offer while they’re with you – who knows you might also end up with a dedication in their book once they’ve gone on to further greatness)

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flickr photo credit

By Kirsty Dunphey with No comments

What happens in Mexico…

Friends and I were chatting recently about our favourite places in the world to shop. Paris, Berlin, London, Thailand all got a mention along with one of my favourites Mexico.

I’ve only spent half a day in Mexico (so far!) – but it was one of the most enjoyable shopping experiences of my life.

Why?

Firstly, I love to bargain – and so did the shop owners I met in Mexico.

Secondly, the entertainment value was immense. To prove to me that it was real gemstones, leather or silver I was being sold, every merchant we met in Mexico whipped out a lighter and burnt their product saying that real gems don’t melt and plastic burns but leather doesn’t etc (highly entertaining especially after a few daiquiris).

In having this discussion with friends however I was told what may be an urban myth about shopping in Tijuana, Mexico. The myth being that when you purchase something you’re given a plastic bag that corresponds to your strength as a buyer.

As an example, a yellow bag may mean you’re a complete push over and will pay way over market value but a blue bag may mean you’re a hard negotiator who’ll drive the price down and bargain til you’re blue in the face.

Is it true? I have no idea. But I must admit – I think its genius.

Imagine if we could do this in other areas of life. If your employer were to send you out to the marketplace secretly colour coded say with red meaning you were a world class invaluable employee, how do you think that would impact the next job interview you went on? What secret colour coding would you have if your clients were secretly rating you? Your boss? Your family? Your friends?

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By Kirsty Dunphey with No comments

I Found A Mini-Sales Superstar In Vietnam

While holidaying in South East Asia earlier this year I was besieged by young boys selling postcards. “10 postcards for a dollar” to be exact and I heard the phrase more times than I care to remember.

After buying my postcards in Cambodia, Thailand and again in Vietnam I really had no further need for postcards. But that of course didn’t stop the onslaught of sales inquiries. The persistence of these young boys (some I’m sure as young as 4) was to be applauded, but I wasn’t keen to come home with additional luggage completely comprised only of postcards. It got to a stage where my automatic response was “no” when we saw anyone approaching with postcards.

Until that is one sunny afternoon in the seaside locale of Nha Trang Vietnam where I sat sipping cocktails with friends. A young boy, maybe 11 approached postcards in hand. I gave the standard response and was about to turn back to my cocktail when he pulled out a Connect Four board. His “sales pitch” to me was that we’d play Connect Four – if he won, I’d buy the cards, if I won, the cards were mine free.

My husband ordered another beer at this stage, knowing that all hope was lost as soon as this boy pulled out the game. You see, not only do I love games, but I’m also a sucker for an innovative sales pitch.

So we played, I got beaten (badly). We played again and I got beaten again. I cut my losses then and paid slightly higher than the normal postcard price for my 20 gleaming new postcards.

This eleven year old boy knew more about selling than many I encounter who’ve had a formal education.

1. He was different! Imitating everyone else would have gotten him nowhere in this case.
2. He made me an offer I found hard to refuse. The lure of a battle of the brains for the cards was a bit of excitement for my afternoon.
3. He had a win / win situation. He was a connect four rock star, but c’mon what tourist is really not going to pay anything if they were to win?
4. He never stopped selling. He asked me to play again after the first game.
5. He left me with a smile on my face. True value for money if you ask me.

I think any of us in sales (and isn’t that all of us really?) could learn something from this mini-sales dynamo.

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By Kirsty Dunphey with No comments