The Perception Changer
As you learned in the earlier article, when a canvasser knocks on 30 doors per hour you should expect at least 1 lead per hour from that canvasser. And if 40%-60% of the appointments generated by those leads fall-out between the appointment set and confirmation stage, what then can you do to decrease this fall-out number?
What does everyone want; incentives, something for free, or at least a discount. I’ve found that to decrease the number of appointments falling out you must provide the homeowner with an incentive not to cancel their appointment. Not a bribe, but an offer that’s so irresistible it’s in their best interest to keep the appointment and receive the product demo. These incentives are not necessarily giveaways or profit killers, but rather incentives that can keep the homeowner’s dream of completing the improvements that they know, deep down, they want
My system introduces the incentive immediately after the appointment has been set. In fact, all the incentives I’m offering the homeowner are provided and summarized, but not completely explained, on the backside of the appointment reminder.
The very sheet upon which you give them details regarding their demonstration is where you give them the very reasons why they don’t want to cancel. The reason I include them on the back of the appointment reminder rather than a separate page is because they’ll keep the reminder. Incentives on a different sheet will get separated from the reminder and will not be in front of them to keep them focused on keeping the appointment.
Why Do Homeowners Cancel Their Appointments?
The biggest reason a homeowner will cancel their appointment is because of their perception. Not necessarily their perception of the appointment, but rather whether they can afford or complete the project. In many cases the homeowner has the wrong perception, or more accurately a false perception of whether they feasibly can complete the project. If they have even a doubt that they can’t, they’ll cancel their appointment.
I’ve found three reasons why people cancel their appointments:
The Spouse Kill:
This is when the ‘other’ spouse learns of the appointment for the sales demonstration and quickly determines ‘they’ can’t do it, can’t afford it, or don’t have time for it, whatever the excuse. Often this occurs when the homeowner who set the appointment (the person with whom your canvasser spoke) tells their spouse of the upcoming presentation, but is unable to completely articulate the benefits your company, the product and improvements will mean for the homeowner. Most people will only think of price first, and this is true when the only information available to them is regarding price.
Their conclusion is often based on a lack of, or misinterpreted information.
Change of heart or mind:
This is when the homeowner who originally set the appointment has a change of mind and decides it might not be in their best interest to proceed with the presentation.
People are afraid of professional sales people and sales presentations because they’re afraid they’ll be sold something they don’t want, don’t need, can’t afford or can’t use. All of it is based on misinformation, lack of information or jumping to a conclusion without the appropriate information. It’s not that people don’t want what you have to offer, it’s often they don’t want to be sold. People love to buy, but they hate to be sold.
The difference between buying and being sold lies in who makes the decision. The homeowner will happily buy when they have all the facts. They will buy when they can decide for themselves that the product, the service or the program is affordable and perfect for them.
They feel ‘sold’ when the decision is made for them and they don’t have the necessary facts to make the decision for themselves.
The objective of the incentives I’ll show you are designed to “Sell The Dream.” People know they need a new roof, new windows, siding or gutters. What limits them is their belief in being able to attain them, most often with the money, or the perception of their lack of it.
The fourth feature of the Appointment Reminder offers them alternatives. The incentives you offer the homeowner can change their perception from a, “We can’t afford to do the project” to a, “Maybe there’s a way we CAN do the project.”
There are three programs included on this example.
The first is the “Exposure Home Program”, or “Advertising Home Program”, or the “Model Home Program”.
Whatever you call it, this program is designed to use the work you’re doing on this owner’s home as a advertising vehicle to promote to other homeowners, through neighborhood canvassing, fliers, advertisement mediums or a job sign posted in their yard for 30-days.
In exchange for the homeowner letting you use the work you do on their home you’ll offer them a savings on the work you perform by using their home as a reference in your advertising efforts.
I often tell homeowners that, “By letting me use your home as an advertisement I don’t have to spend the money on TV commercials, print ads or other mass media. I’d rather give you the money than them.”
Some home improvement companies don’t offer this type of program. If your company does not, then you wouldn’t want to use it on your appointment reminder. I offer these programs to you only as concepts or ideas. Though I’d highly recommend you consider using them because I’ve seen the results they make in the number of appointments that are seen through to a demonstration. You can’t make a sale on a demonstration that is never given.
The next program on the sheet refers to a “Guaranteed Price Program.”, or partial program. This offers the homeowner the opportunity to start small on their project and have the work done over a period of time. The incentive to the homeowner is that the price on the product and/or service will be locked in for a specified period of time. They can complete the work at the pace their budget will allow without the worry of increasing prices.
For example, a window company can use the program like this; “The homeowner can start with 2 or 3 windows, or a bow or bay window and price-freeze the remainder of the uncompleted windows for two years.”
The final program depicted on the sheet is the “Great Financing Programs.” It refers to various financing options; low monthly investments, credit cards accepted, no interest no payments for 1 year. Alternative ways the prospect may be able to afford the work.
The incentives are intended to sell the dream and keep it alive. It gives the homeowner hope that they may be able to afford it, they can get the work done based on their situation or circumstances. It increases your odds of getting the homeowner to keep their scheduled appointment and gives you a fighting chance to make another professional sales presentation and ultimately a chance at closing a sale.
It’s a numbers game. You know that the homeowner doesn’t have all the facts about the products and services you can offer them. Nor do they know of the alternative options you have available that will help them complete the work.
The incentives you offer, which must be included on the back of the appointment reminder, are not designed to be an exhaustive presentation of the programs, but merely a tool to plant the seed and increase the percentage of appointments that stick.
If you’d like to learn more about how to improve your appointment ‘stick’ percentages, call me for a brief, inexpensive phone consult. You can contact me directly at (216) 588-1337.