I recently had a friend and former co-worker reach out to me asking about how I would recommend he coach or train his technicians on the fine art of making a referral or turning over replacement sales opportunities to their sales team.
As always, “the art of any sale is in the set up” but this is especially true with regard to replacement sales. How the technician discusses an equipment replacement option with the prospect and how they introduce the incoming “sales person” can either make or break a replacement sales opportunity.
How To Boost Replacement Sales With A Quality Turnover
I’ve personally heard and seen some horrible and gut-wrenching turnovers while out in the field including but not limited to:
“Well the quote is free, so why not just get a price?”
And
“If you don’t like our price, you don’t have to hire us to do the work.”
And
“I’m going to have our sales guy come out and he can talk with you about your replacement options and sell you a new unit. I’m not qualified to build the quote for you, but I’ll probably be back to do the install work.”
I could blog about why these are horrible turnovers ad nauseam, but let’s just suffice it to say that these are ineffective, poor attempts at a turnover and they do nothing to set our sales team member up for success in replacement sales.
In order to ensure your success in turning over a lead, it’s best to define and follow a process. A process is a repeatable series of steps that helps to ensure consistent results.
I’ve come up with a short, simple, 3-step process for turning over leads to a replacement sales team member.
3- Step Replacement Sales Turnover Process – NUTTS!
Step 1: Establish Need
Before I elaborate on this step, I want to stress that this does NOT mean having the technician TELL the prospect that they “need” a new system. Remember “telling isn’t selling” and if you haven’t already, go ahead and read my previous blog article, “Wants Vs. Needs – Good Vs. Bad Sales Practices” at some point.
“Establishing the need for a new unit” is a pretty straight-forward concept, right?
Of course, we want the customer to come to the conclusion that they “need a new one” on their own, without us (or the technician) coming across as a “pushy salesperson.”
The best way to accomplish this is to use an “analogy.”
I’ll use the example of a non-working, 12 year old furnace.
Technician: “Mrs. Jones, are you aware of how old your current furnace is?”
Mrs. Jones: “Well I’m not real sure…”
Technician: “Do you see this sticker here? It says this unit was built in 2005 which means it’s already 12 years old and has outlived it’s factory warranty by a full 6 years. Does that sound about right to you?”
Mrs. Jones: “I suppose so. That’s about when we moved into this house. Do you know what’s wrong with it? Can you fix it?”
Technician: “Well, as long as the manufacturer still make parts for this unit, I’m sure I can keep making repairs to it so we can keep it going for you Mrs. Jones. Although, I’m afraid that at this point repairing this unit would be a lot like putting brand new tires on an old, inefficient 12 year old car with 500,000+ miles of wear and tear on it.”
Technician: “Would you rather invest in repairs to keep this going or would you prefer to look at a few affordable replacement options?”
Mrs. Jones: “Let’s look into replacing it. No sense in paying just to keep it going.”
Let’s quickly recap this example.
- We asked the prospect a question which helped us bring up the age of the unit.
- We didn’t just tell them, “Your furnace is 12 years old.” We provided proof of the age of the unit by showing them the manufacturer’s sticker.
- We established the unit has been out of warranty for 6 years and asked the prospect to confirm that detail.
- When asked if we could fix it, we responded with a progressive statement, “I’m sure we can keep making repairs to keep it going for you.” which indicates that if we were to make a repair on this unit, we would likely have to continually make repairs to it.
- We used an analogy to relate her current mechanical equipment to another piece of mechanical equipment she would be more familiar with, i.e. a car.
- Notice we “framed” the reference with particular details about the condition of the car using words such as, “Old, inefficient, 500,000+ miles of wear and tear” etc.
- We ended on what I would refer to as a “trial close” which doesn’t ask or pressure them to buy at all, but rather asks them to make a decision on whether they would prefer to invest in repairs or a replacement of the unit.
- Notice, we used the word, “affordable” when describing the replacement options, but not the repair. Just a suggestion, but referencing it in this way will increase the number of replacement sale opportunities.
Step 2: Create/Maintain Urgency
Urgency is a HUGE motivator. Urgency is a deep psychological pressure we are all susceptible to. A cheesy example of an urgency-based sales line would be, “Hurry, act now! Offer expires soon!”
If a homeowner is living without heating, cooling, electric, hot water, or other type service, it’s likely they are already feeling some urgency to remedy their situation.
In this case, our job is to create or maintain urgency when we make our turnover and transfer the lead to a member of our sales team.
There are three (3) tactics we can skillfully use to create or maintain urgency and make sure the prospect has our company out to quote their replacement. Those three urgency tactics are:
- Unpleasant Condition – If someone is in an uncomfortable situation, they automatically respond in a more urgent manner. Even a quick and subtle reminder about their uncomfortable situation can kick their brain into “urgency mode.”
- Time Related Words – These are words which cause the mind to think in relation to time. Examples include: Now, Fast, Quick, Hurry, etc.
- Scarcity – The scarcity bias states that when a person thinks that something is running out or limited, they want it even more.
Step 3: Turnover The Sale
The turnover occurs AFTER Step 1, when the prospect has expressed their interest in being presented with replacement options.
Following our example used from earlier, here is how we would transfer the sale:
Technician: “Would you rather invest in repairs to keep this going or would you prefer to look at a few affordable replacement options?”
Mrs. Jones: “Let’s look into replacing it. No sense in paying just to keep it going.”
Technician: “I agree. Now Mrs. Jones, I want to let you know, here at [Company] we have a specially trained and certified specialist who helps our clients find the right replacement option that fits all of their needs and their budget and I’m confident he can help you too. You might imagine he is a very popular guy and he stays extremely busy. Now, due to the nature of your situation, we don’t want to leave you in this [Insert Uncomfortable Situation] for too long, so I’m going to call the office right now to see how quickly I can get him over here to review replacement options with you, okay?”
Let’s quickly recap this example.
- Agree with the prospect’s decision. Assure them they’ve made a wise decision.
- Build value in the person you’re turning them over to. Reference them as a “specially trained and certified specialist” whether you’re selling a new HVAC system or a new sewer.
- Note we also emphasized the benefit this individual presents to the homeowner by mentioning this individual can ‘help them find the right replacement option that fits their needs and their budget.’
- “Help” is also a very powerful word. We have emphasized this individual is coming in to “help” not to “sell them a new unit.”
- By letting the homeowner know that our specialist is “popular and busy” we have created the perception that this individual keeps a tight schedule and thus we have increased the demand for their consultation by applying scarcity to their availability.
- Now, I bet you missed the three (3) times we used the word, “Now” in this short script. We also used the word, “Quickly” to apply urgency. Starting the sentence with the word “Now” is a very subtle, non-aggressive way to apply urgency!
How To Get Technicians To Comply With Turning Over Leads
Okay, so you have your team trained on the 3-Step NUTTS process, but how can you get them to comply with turning over leads in this way?
Here are a couple of quick ways you can increase compliance with the turnover process:
Set A Goal For Turnovers/Referrals To Replacement Sales Team
What percentage of routine service calls result in a turnover/referral out to the sales team? 5%? 10%? 20%?
However regular the occurrence is, you should track and establish a goal based on the regularity which exists in your business. I.e. If you find that 1 out of every 10 routine service calls result in a replacement sale opportunity on average, each technician should be given a goal to turnover 1 out of 10 calls they go on for a replacement sale.
A goal also means they should be held ACCOUNTABLE!! So whatever standard you create, you have to be willing to police it and hold them accountable to making their fair share of referrals.
Set Up Reward(s) For Making Turnovers/Referrals To Replacement Sales Team
If there is a goal, there has to be a reward, right?
The problem that exists in most organizations is that if we pay someone to make referrals or turnover leads to a sales team, they will only take enough action to make the referral to get their bonus, but not enough to build value and set the sales team up for success.
If we only pay them for the leads that convert, they become even less likely to make the referral at all.
So, I have found the best approach is a bit of a hybrid approach where we pay them a nominal spiff to turn the lead over to sales and an additional bonus when the lead closes.
Practice, Practice, Practice. AKA, “Role Play”
Practice the turnover during company meetings. Rehearse different scenarios/situations and role play.
This will help the technicians get comfortable with the NUTTS referral/turnover process.
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About The Author:
Patrick is a Husband, a Father, a Modern Entrepreneur, the Founder of BizPAL.org, and the Creator of BizPAL’s Automated Recruiting Program.
He holds certifications in Social Media Marketing, Facebook Advertising, Inbound Marketing, Business Automation, and more!
Fun Fact:
Patrick was born and raised in a predominantly Amish community in Northern Indiana.
Got questions about the Amish? Ask Patrick!
Patrick is the son of a Career Tradesman and is extremely passionate about helping the Contracting industry grow and advance.
He has over 10+ years of experience in Customer Service, B2C Sales, Social Media Marketing, Sales Training and Coaching, Business Consulting, etc.
He has spent the past 7+ years working with Service Contractors from coast to coast to increase their Sales, boost their Profits, increase Customer Satisfaction and Brand Loyalty, and improve their Operational efficiency by Building Creative Solutions and Implementing Innovative Ideas!
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