I was doing some crusin’ on the internet this morning, and it just hit me how many people want me to DO something.  They want me to work at something I probably do not want because it gives me more to do…WHO HAS TIME?

Sign up for this, take this survey… tell us how we’re doing… get this free fill-in-the-blank… just sign up.  You cannot get on a website or make a call without them giving you more work!

If you are like most people on the internet an average of 4 hours a day, you get bombarded with these same types of requests!

In 2006 when I first started to study internet marketing, people talked about these pop-ups.   One of the classes I took encouraged us to put them on your website to grow a more extensive list of interested buyers.  Give them something free for their email address.

That was fine 10 years ago because very few people were doing it, But now?  It’s just pure noise and annoying! It’s just one more thing people are asking me to do!  Giving me more work!

I am sure, like me. When you scroll down to see where a movie is playing and that pop-up comes up to sign up for the newsletter, you let out a big sigh and gingerly “X” it out if you can find it!

So what does this have to do with selling beautiful products to interior designers, you ask?

We can’t leave it up to the designer to figure out where to use our product.  When we just show products they may or may not have a current need for, that’s precisely what we are doing.

It’s just one more thing for them to do.  That leaves sales totally up to chance, no matter how good your relationship is with that designer.  Once you leave, it’s all up to chance!

Help them do their jobs! Qualify more, show less!

Don’t just overwhelm them with more and more products. Qualify what their CURRENT needs are. Here are a few ways to do that.

  1. Don’t just make an appointment randomly. By doing this without looking at sales figures and coming up with a sales, strategy is like shooting at a target with a blindfold.  Look before you leap, as your mom would tell you.  Have a firm plan of what you are going to show for that sale!
  2.  When you get to that appointment, don’t just leap into your presentation. It doesn’t matter how beautiful a new product you have if your clients cannot use it. I know you want to show a new product, and that’s fine, as long as it is shown after you work on current needs. I am happiest when salespeople tell me they had to make another appointment to just show new product because they took so long working on a current project with them.  That’s what you want MORE of!
  3. After your appointment, get them what they will USE, not just what they ask for.  When a client looks at a product, it resonates with them, they ask for sampling, many times they are focused on the MAYBE or WHAT IF.  Maybe we can use that on this project.   I like the aesthetic of this wall covering/ lighting/fabric/sofa/carpet/hardware.. whatever you are showing at that time.  I want this in my library JUST IN CASE or WHAT IF I need it in the future.

The less strategy you have, the more you JUST show product on appointments; the more random sampling you give out just because a client wants it;  “They have to say, “Where can I use this?”  If they have to figure that out, it turns into more noise and more work for the client!

Don’t ask them to do more work…do the work for them.  Make your client’s job easier.  It will pay off in dollars and a very tight relationship with your clients, I promise!

Deborah Flate, founder of Dialogue Consulting, has trained hundreds of salespeople in the interior design industry after her own sales career with high-end product companies and showrooms.  

She teaches people HOW TO SELL BY DESIGN!  Deborah increased sales by 300% for one of her clients using these techniques to train their salespeople.  

She is a sought-after keynote speaker on revolutionary new ways to Power up Your Sales NOW! and has a three-part e-course based on her ebook: Conscious Selling Master Class! 

Picture this.  After implementing this 3 part ecourse system, your salespeople increase their sales from 10% – 30%?  What would THAT mean to your bottom line?  Click here to get that right now!

For information on booking Deborah for your next sales conference or her ecourse, email at deborah@dialogue-consulting.com  or call her at 773-281-9448.