5 Steps to Referral Sales Success

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This weeks guest is Beverly Koehn, Beverly Koehn & Associates, author of Loyalty Is Love – How to Hold Clients Close for LIfe.

Are new buyers crowding into your sales center these days?  No?  Then, look to a different source of leads – your existing customers.

Referrals from your existing homeowners should be your #1 source of sales.  In fact, experts say that you should be realizing at least 30% – 50% of your sales from referrals.

So the big question:  Are your customers loyal enough to you to send you referrals?  That probably depends on whether you’ve been loyal to them.  Here Beverly Koehn shares her top 5 keys to developing customer loyalty and getting more referrals:

Love is like a rug – we walk all over it.
“We all know that we need to be compassionate and caring about our customers, but many times, because we become so process oriented, we set up systems that negate all the good signals we send out into the market.  We tend to loose sight of the personalities and emotions of our buyers; we’re more connected in the process itself.  The process doesn’t deliver the lasting relationship.”

Instead, we need to connect with them emotionally on their level.  “Many times we try to have our customers fit into a specific slot within our organization, and they don’t like to be slotted.  They’re individuals and they need to be treated that way,” says Koehn.

She encourages salespeople to subscribe to the Platinum Rule – Treat people like they wish to be treated, not as you wish to be treated.  “We have to understand who they are as individuals, what their hot buttons are, what their motivations are and how we can adjust our processes to fit within their comfort zone.”

#1.  Survey:  How do your customers really feel about you?
You must be able to answer this question in order to connect with your customers in a meaningful way.  Koehn is a firm believer in customer surveys… if your going to act on the findings.  “Many builders subscribe to some kind of survey system, but then they don’t do anything with the information they receive.  It’s like getting a doctor to write you a prescription and then never taking the pills.”  Taking action to respond to what you learn about your service from customer surveys could be the cure for ailing sales.

#2.  Every engagement counts.
“Every time you interact with your customer you need to make a positive and lasting impression.  You’ve got to court that relationship, not just at the beginning before you get the check, but throughout the relationship and after they’ve moved in and the warranty has expired.

People don’t want to feel like past customers. They want to feel like they’re still important to your company years later.  What often happens is we expect them to send us referrals, but after they move in and after the warranty’s over, we don’t do anything to deserve it.  You’ve got to keep the relationship alive.”

Great customer care comes from great internal training.  “Every person in your organization has to feel that they’re part of the process of delivering a great customer experience.  That doesn’t happen naturally; it’s a training initiative.  Without good training programs”, says Koehn. “Individuals in the company revert back to the status quo, and we can’t allow that to happen.

In our current market, a lot of companies have pulled the plug on all training; they’re pulling back from some of the most important and vital systems to their company, that is, continuing to give their people the tools they need to move forward.  You can’t pull the plug on employee training.  That’s something that has to be constant.”

#3.  Sweat the little things.
“Everything that delivers great customer service and a great customer experience are the little tiny things; they’re not the big things.  It’s writing hand-written thank you notes when everybody else is sending emails.  It’s stopping your car when you see one of your customers out in their yard and giving them a complement about their landscaping instead of driving by with your blinders on and hoping they don’t see you.  We’ve got to continue the relationship and make them feel important for years and years.  That relationship is your lifeline to your next customer.”

#4.  Watch what you eat and who you eat with.
“I can survive without watching CNN,” says Koehn.  “Reading all the negative news and focusing on that drives behavior.  We have to watch what we put in our brains, hearts and souls.  And, if you think positively, you’re going to make positive things happen.”

That also applies to our associations, even the people we work with or hire. “Hire people with A-Attitudes.  If they don’t have a good attitude, you’re not going to be able to change them.  If they’re not loving, caring, giving people naturally, you can’t teach that trait; it’s not going to happen.  Look for a great attitude, then you’ll be able to train them for skill level.  And, if you have someone that might be a skilled salesperson but they just stink up the place with their attitude, get rid of them!”

#5.  Know when to run.
“Understand from the beginning that not everyone is going to become your customer.  You need to look for warning signals for what I call ‘vigil anti’ customers and don’t do business with them because they cannot be satisfied.  You’ve got to give your salespeople permission to not sell those folks.  When people walk in and they’re already angry and using abusive language, what makes you think they won’t do the same thing to you?  You’re not going to change those people.”

Links:

www.bkoehn.com
Loyalty Is Love
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Using Technology to Sell More Homes

Online coaching webinar with BuilderRadio’s Scott Stroud

Wednesday, December 16, 2:00pm EST (plus recording for on-demand download)

Registration:  $37

So much technology, so little time!  Can popular technologies like Twitter and Facebook really help you sell more homes, and if so, how?  You’ll be surprized at the answer… and at how other simple (often free) technologies can be used to help you find new buyers, develop relationships, and close sales.  Register here.