Drop Your Pants
That’s an old adage that is used in the car business when the salesperson would come in from the lot and talk to the manager about the customer who only wanted to know the price of the red Chevy Impala on the lot.
No matter what the salesperson tried to say or do, the customer only wanted to know one thing. THE PRICE. The sales manager would then go out or send out another salesperson with the original salesperson and “drop their pants” and give them a rock bottom price.
When the slow season approaches in your business, is this what you will be doing with clients that call and ask the price question? Let’s examine this further.
First off, how are you approaching the price question? For most buyers (of anything for that matter), they don’t know what questions to ask? Let’s face it…the guy truly just needs transportation to get from point A to point B and that customer on the phone just wants music for their event, right?
The right answer to that question is “maybe”. Maybe that customer just needs a winter beater.
Maybe he’s traveling on long trips and would like fuel economy and maybe you as the salesperson can show him a new electric model that would save him far more money in the long run. Maybe that client on the phone is just calling around checking prices because they have no idea what they should be asking (most don’t). This, my friend, is where YOU come in.
It may seem tempting during the slow time of your business to drop your price to get that sale but what are you doing for future customers that want to book you and the referrals that they generate? You are setting a precedent in the marketplace for clients to tell their friends “Well…just ask him for a discount and he’ll drop his pants for you too and give you a deal just like me.” Do you want to be known as the “pants dropper” in your market?
“But Mitch…you don’t understand…people won’t pay my price here in _______________.” Of course, they won’t if you still compare yourself to everyone else and have no way of differentiating yourself. You see in today’s society we are virtually trying to replace humans. Heck, I got my wife an iRobot vacuum last year for Christmas to vacuum the house. We have dishwashers to do our dishes. Microwaves to cook our food. Now, with the advent of the AI, we have virtual assistants in our pocket to help us with any inquiry 24/7/365.
Can some of these inanimate objects replace humans? Possibly.
Can they for the vast majority? HELL NO. What society can’t take away is PEOPLE. PEOPLE are what drives our world. PEOPLE care. PEOPLE love. PEOPLE talk. These intangible items without feelings, heart, and talent CANNOT replace YOU. Show you care (if you do…if not get out of this business) CONNECT with your clients on a personal level and don’t just look at them as a paycheck. It’s the quickest way to lose a sale.