Last month I discussed how you need to get the homeowner to commit to a product or service first. If they don’t think they need or want what you’re promoting then there’s no place to go. Once you have a commitment, you need to find out who they are as a prospect.
The key question to find this out is, “Have you ever had an estimate on _____________ before?” (fill in the product or service they’ve committed to)
The majority of the time the homeowner is going to answer the question. The answer is going to be either a Yes or No. In our canvassing world there are only two types of people, those that have had estimates on the product/service and those that haven’t. Until you know which they are, you can’t proceed.
I see canvassers getting shut down and cut off at the door because they’re not using this key question. Pay close attention to this. It’s a simple question. Yet, it gives you tremendous insight into who your prospect is and in which direction you need to go to lead them to saying yes to your appointment opportunity. This question is the key turning point that most people don’t get to.
So you’ve asked the question and received either a yes or no. What does the answer tell you about the homeowner?
If they say “No”, they haven’t received an estimate previously, it tells you this hasn’t been a high priority for them or they haven’t thought about the prospects of getting the work done. If you questioned them further and have asked, “why not?” (which I don’t recommend because it creates a confrontational situation) their response would likely be, “yes, we know it needs done and it’s not perfect and new, but the house isn’t falling down and it works just fine right now.”
So with a “No” answer we need to cast a bright spotlight on that product or service on their existing situation. That is to point out all the problems of their present situation. I will go into more detail in future articles.
What does the “yes” response tell us about the prospect? They’ve recognized the problem and investigated a solution and have had someone come out and give them an estimate. This prospect is serious about changing their current situation. Why they haven’t done it isn’t yet known. My point is you don’t have to focus on the problem or pain; if you did, it would probably annoy them and you’d create another barrier to overcome.
If the homeowner says yes, they have had an estimate, you can focus your energy on showing them solutions to their pain, which I’ll get into in future articles.
This is inside information that many canvassers aren’t aware. A simple question and a one word answer is the key to setting up your entire presentation and can eliminate a lot of resistance and many of the barriers you’re facing on canvass calls now. It’s so powerful you could skip your introduction and walk up to a homeowner, pick out a product on the outside of their home and ask, “Have you ever had an estimate on replacing your windows before?” and you’ll get either a yes or no. I don’t recommend skipping the introduction, but my point is that 99.9% of the time you’re going to get an answer and it will springboard you into your presentation. Unfortunately, most people don’t get this far.
In my system I always use the transition question, “Have you ever had an estimate on _______________ before?” My challenge to you is start using this key question in your presentation and you’ll be amazed at the change in response you get from the homeowner. It can make the difference in getting at least one more qualified lead per shift. The next step is where you go from there, and I’ll discuss that in next month’s article.
If you have questions about how this can be applied to your situation, write me at www.AskTheCanvassKing.com. If you would like to get my entire 5-Step Canvassing System in one complete training program, check out www.canvassking.com/training for information on my Canvassing in the New Economy training program.