You’ve Got the Right Number
March 5, 2009
Here a sales representative provided a surprising level of service even though he knew he wasn’t getting the sale.
People attending my workshops often ask me how I “think up” all the stories I tell to illustrate the important points of the program. I explain that there’s no need to invent stories since truth is usually more interesting and more telling than fiction.
On a “getaway” trip my wife and I took to Boston we encountered an excellent example of how knowing your product and service can greatly impact customers. What follows may sound like a product endorsement, but keep reading, there’s an important lesson ahead.
If you travel as much as I do, you know that using your cellular phone on the road can incur excessive roaming and long-distance charges. So I was naturally excited to read about the Sprint PCS Dime Anytime program. You get excellent digital service, and your calls from virtually any major city in the US to anywhere else in the US are only .10 per minute, including roaming and long-distance charges. It includes most calling features, and has numeric and text paging.
Unfortunately, this service was not yet available where I live in Raleigh, and they couldn’t give me a precise in-service date.
While we were walking around Boston, we came across the Sprint PCS store at 422 Boylston Street and spoke with Rodney Brow, a sales representative there. He found out the exact date of service for Raleigh, (in one week), pulled up a very detailed coverage map, and demonstrated, in great detail, each and every calling feature of service.
He then showed us the various phones available with the service and explained with the same level of detail and knowledge the important features unique to that particular phone.
He must have spent 15 to 20 minutes with us that afternoon even though he knew we weren’t going to buy a phone from him in Boston!
Two weeks later, I cancelled my traditional cellular service and turned in my pager. Then I walked into the newly-opened Sprint PCS store in Raleigh, bought two “touchpoint” phones, and established service for both my wife and me.
It was the easiest sale they made that day, and, thanks to Rodney, I actually knew more about the service and the phone than the salespeople did!
Imagine an employee in Boston who took the time to know his product and service and spend time with a customer who wasn’t even going to buy from him! This led to an easy sale for the company’s office in another city and resulted in a very satisfied customer.
Try to find opportunities for your employees to gain a high level of knowledge about their products so they can provide potential or even non-potential customers with the best information possible. Make sure they understand that success in business is not always about making the sale, but more about establishing relationships with customers.
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