What do your prospective customers see when you walk in the door? Are you tracking mud into their foyer and looking like a random person off the street, or do you look like a professional they would welcome into their home? You can capture or lose your next wood flooring installation within the first few minutes or even seconds of contact with a home owner, so make sure that you use the time to your best advantage.
Your potential customers probably have their first contact with you by telephone. When they call, is the phone answered promptly in a professional sounding manner? Do employees come across as helpful and friendly, or do they sound annoyed and rushed? "Good morning, Frank's Wood Floors. How can I help you?" sounds a lot more pleasant than a harried "Hello." Customers shouldn't have to wonder if they dialed the correct number or not.
If customers call after hours, does a service or answering machine pick up the call, or does the phone ring endlessly until the customer figures out that you aren't there? A person who can't get a response from your company on the first try may be a person who never bothers to call back. On the other hand, if you answer messages promptly, you make customers feel like you really welcome their business.
Your first meeting with the customer is equally crucial. The image you project should be one of a professional businessperson. To begin with, be on time. No one likes to have his or her time wasted, especially prospective clients. If you know that you will have to be late, call ahead to let them know.
Even if you are coming straight from another job, take time to think about your appearance. Wearing clean clothes, especially a shirt with the name of your company on it, gives a good impression. Dirty jeans with holes in them and a ratty-looking T-shirt with a beer logo do not. The truck, van or whatever vehicle you drive should give the same impression as your dress — a clean van with a company logo makes your company look a lot more reputable than a rusted-out vehicle with a noisy muffler pulling into the driveway, drawing the attention of all the neighbors.
If you are meeting at your office or showroom, take a moment to look around and imagine how your customers see it. Does it look clean and organized? Just like your clothing and your vehicles, your office or showroom should lend the impression that your business is prosperous and modern.
Your number-one priority during your sales presentation is simple — listen. To effectively sell and install the right floor, you need to be tuned into the prospect's needs. People who feel like they are just getting talked at are not going to turn into customers.
Once you have figured out what the person's needs are, you can guide them through the products that may work for them. The most impressive way to do this is to have actual samples. For solid products, you should have samples available not only for different grades and species, but also the various finishes you offer. Seeing the actual products eliminates the guessing game for the customer and increases the chances that they will end up with the look they want. Making samples available for the customers to have for a few days as they decide also makes their lives easier. As you discuss the options, be honest about expectations as far as wear and maintenance for the different floors.
The best way to impress upon the customer what you are capable of doing is to show them your portfolio. A professional portfolio with goodquality photography can be your best selling tool, especially for upselling. It is much easier to discuss added features like a border, feature strip or inlay when the customer can see what you are talking about.
To further that evidence, having references available for the customer is essential. The best bets are your professional references such as distributors, designers, contractors and even your banker. You can also ask clients if they would consider being a reference. Even better are past clients who will welcome people into their homes to see your floors.
If the floors the customers want are typical of what you do every day, you probably can estimate a bid for them on the spot — the faster, the better. Make sure you are prepared with your tape measure, pencil, paper and calculator. If the job is more complex, let the client know when you expect to have the bid ready, and deliver it on time. As you go, leave any appropriate product literature, samples, references or other information (such as the sheet on the following page) for the customer. Make it clear when you will be following up on the meeting. If you've made the best first impression — that you're honest, knowledgeable and professional — it should be your first meeting of many. . – K.M.W.
KNOW YOUR WOOD FLOOR
Picking a Contractor: A How-To Guide
So you've decided that you want wood floors. That decision seemed simple enough, but now you're faced with choosing the wood flooring contractor to do the job. You open the Yellow Pages, and there is a seemingly interminable list of people and businesses claiming to be wood flooring experts. How do you know which one will give you the wood floor that fits your needs and is the best value for your money?
As with anything else, you want somebody you can trust. Your first step should be to ask family, friends or coworkers for recommendations of contractors. You also can check out the companies' reputations with the local Better Business Bureau. Find out how long they've been in business and if they've had any complaints registered against them. Find out if the companies have a license (in areas where required by law), and if they are a member of professional trade organizations, like the National Wood Flooring Association.
You can tell a lot just by a phone call to the business — is the person who answers friendly and helpful? If you have to leave a message, does someone answer your call promptly? From a preliminary conversation, you can probably tell if the contractor is geared to what you're looking for. If you're hoping to have a high-end installation with marble inlaid in the wood floor and the contractor tells you that almost all of their business is engineered or prefinished strip floors, it's probably wise to look elsewhere.
If it seems like your job is compatible with the contractor's business, your first meeting can give you a feeling of how it will be to do business with the company. First of all, is the contractor on time for your appointment, whether it's at the future job site or at the showroom? Does he listen carefully to your needs and give you straightforward answers to your questions, or does he seem uncomfortable when he has to diverge from a rehearsed sales pitch? Beware the contractor who seems to tell you that any product and finish she has can withstand any kind of wear while being practically maintenance-free. The characteristics of different hardwood species, finishes and other products vary greatly — an honest contractor will want to install what works best for you in the long run.
Logistics of the project such as scheduling backlogs and duration of the project can affect which contractor will work out best for you, and intangibles such as the personalities involved also can be a factor in your decision. When your bids are collected, beware of simply going with the lowest one. Taking knowledge and quality into consideration over price may be your most economical choice down the road.
The following checklist can serve as a general guideline for selecting a wood flooring contractor, but keep in mind that it should be just one tool in the decision-making process.
Checklist:
âś“ Does he return phone calls promptly?
âś“ Are employees friendly and polite on the phone?
âś“ Does he answer questions in a straightforward, honest manner?
âś“ Is he neat in appearance, with clean, professional-looking clothing?
âś“ Does his van or vehicle look new, clean and well-maintained?
âś“ Is the showroom or office clean and well-organized?
âś“ Is he on-time?
âś“ Does he have samples of different species, stains and finishes readily available for you to choose from?
âś“ Does he have a professional portfolio, with photographs of his work? Are the photographs recent?
âś“ Does he have informational literature to leave with you about the different products?
âś“ Is quality emphasized over price?
âś“ Does he get a bid to you in a timely manner?
âś“ Does the business check out with the local Better Business Bureau?
âś“ Does he have a list of professional references (such as distributors, designers and contractors) for you to call?
âś“ Is the business a member of professional trade associations, such as the National Wood Flooring Association?
âś“ Is the business a member of local business associations, such as the Chamber of Commerce?
âś“ Does he have a license (in areas where required)?
