The Finish

Sales Byte®

The Finish

Last night our Major Soccer League team, the Seattle Sounders, lost 2-0 to the Columbus Crew, a team they have beaten 8 times in a row, even though they dominated in every other measureable aspect of the match. They dominated with possession time, steals, corner kicks, shots on goal…everything. The Crew had two fantastic plays and two fantastic shots. In the game of soccer, scoring is called “finishing”. The Crew finished twice and the Sounders didn’t. Game over.

I’ve seen sales calls go the same way. The sales person spends most of the time talking, says all the right things, presents a good proposal, responds to all the objections...and doesn’t ask for the sale. Not asking for the sale is the same as not finishing.

A famous sports figure once said, “You miss all the shots you don’t take.” Make sure you ask for the sale. The customer expects it and everyone in your company is depending on you to do it. Just do it.

Having your head in the Clouds is a good thing

We are hearing a lot these days about the “Cloud”. This is a terms that has nothing to do with aviation. The Cloud is the new and evolving method of delivering software to end users. The Cloud offers major benefits to a mobile industry like ours and in fact IT Departments of major corporations are now spending 30-50% of their budgets on implementing the Cloud in their companies.

Cloud computing is a general term for anything that involves delivering hosted services over the Internet. Many of us have experience with using cloud based data backup storage where our valuable data is backed-up and stored remotely via the Internet. Another term commonly used to better define one of the primary Cloud type systems is Software as a System (SaaS) cloud model where the vendor supplies the hardware infrastructure, the software product and interacts with the user through a front-end portal. Because the service provider hosts both the application and the data, the end user is free to use the service from anywhere - which is ideal for a mobile industry like the HVAC industry.

The advantages of Cloud based or SaaS based options are many:

User Device and Location independence – access to the system from any device anywhere there is Internet access – computer, smart phone or tablet that is ideal for use at the kitchen table
Lower Cost – both initial investment and ongoing maintenance costs compared to conventional models are reduced due to cost sharing of the infrastructure and that it is user device independent (use of specific computer, smart phone, tablet is flexible and no special hardware is required)
More reliable and secure – resources are maintained in professional, secure and staffed facility. This level of security and reliability is typically only found at larger companies and not typically afforded to small businesses.
Because the data is stored centrally, additional support from the supplier of the service can be available to help upload and manage the data

TRUST PRO® online is a cloud based or SaaS service design specifically for the Residential/Light Commercial HVAC Contracting Business. It offers all the advantages listed above plus many more. For more information and a free demo of how to use TRUST PRO® online on a tablet in the home log onto www.trustproonline.com.

YOU HAVE ARRIVED

Consider how you feel when you have scheduled a technician to do some work at your own home. What are your expectations regarding his arrival time and what are your thoughts as the technician parks his service vehicle and knocks on your door. Is there a proper sequence we should be following on every call? (Click here to see the TRUST ® Technician Training video for more information.)

When parking on the street in front of the home (to avoid the possibility of leaving an oil drop on their driveway or blocking the customer in any way with your truck), you should complete a quick “preflight” check of yourself in the mirror, gather all appropriate paperwork and basic required tools and head up the to the front door, giving it a firm knock. You have arrived.

While waiting for the homeowner to answer, you step back a bit from the door and prepare to greet your client with a warm smile. Using their name, you introduce yourself and confirm the reason for the call. As you enter the home, you hand your client two business cards and mention one card is for them and the other card is for them to pass on to anyone who they may think may require our services. Politely tell them that you really appreciate all referrals.

Following these basic steps every call immediately insures you are seen as the trusted technician they expect and more importantly they deserve. Next week we will continue on and discuss engaging the customer. Until then, practice these important fundamentals and create the future you desire.

Tye Leishman has serviced, installed and sold HVAC systems for more than 20 years. He is the founder and President of Tempco Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Ltd., a full service HVACR/Electrical contractor located in Powell River, B.C. Canada. He is also a certified sales trainer with TRUST® Training and Consulting. Tye can be reached at tye@tempcohvac.com 1-604-485-5352.