Revolution is a strong word; what has happened to the new home industry has been a strong change in a short time; different to what we have previously known.

All new home sales executives are required to step up and consider how the sales revolution is affecting them and what they are personally doing to respond to it.

Change happens to you; market, economy and customers change.  Transition is from within; it requires your personal change for improved performance and success.

Are you operating in a tough market?  The answer is NO!  A tough market is when you are uncompetitive and supply outstrips demand.  You are not in that situation. 

Are you operating in tough economic times?  YES and NO!  Lending is a more complex arrangement these days but people are accessing the funding for a new home and there are more products on the market to assist new home buyers; more products than ever before so again supply is high in response to demand.

Have your customers changed?  OH YES!  Everyone we work with describes customers as being more informed, having done more research using the internet and portals like Right Move.  For the first time ever in your lifetime in new home sales, your customers are not starting at the same point.  Their enquiry is informed and how long they have spent on their research in to buying a new home remains a mystery unless you ask!

All of these elements impact on how the customer presents to you and the impact is, arguably, outside your control.  What is in your control is the transition you decide to make to respond to these changing circumstances – it’s down to you; no one can change you for you!

So, here’s our tip for responding to the sales revolution:

• Decide how you are going to demonstrate a personal transition in response to the market/economic and customer behavioural changes
• Use the meet and greet stage to build relationships with customers
• Get detailed information from customers and add the data into the database
• Successfully achieve control with customers; be in control, not controlling
• Delay giving lots of information away for free
• Tailor information around your customer
• Delay entry to product until you are sure what is right for the customer/why you are showing the product
• Build Value throughout
• Achieve constant commitment throughout the sales meeting
• Deflect discussions about incentives and discounts until you have gained agreement in principle to buy a specific home
• Maintain credibility with customers when agreeing the terms of the sale
• Create urgency to inspire a customer to make a buying decision now
• Facilitate customers and propose actions to secure maximum sales

Quite a list!  Where will your starting point be?

One of the compulsory elements for you to self assess (and one that gets measured in mystery shopping) is how effectively you achieve the personal details/registration of your customer.

We hate seeing people who are in the sales role failing on this basic, basic requirement of the role and understand entirely the frustration of senior managers when customer details are incomplete.  The marketing spend to get people to your site has to have a return and step one on that return on investment comes from knowing who visits your site.

Here are some ways for you to think about how well you get your customer’s details.

1. Ask for the information sooner rather than later.  Leaving it until too late reduces the chance of getting the information you need stay in touch with the customer
2. Make yourself a rule that you will ask for the customer’s details and record these as you talk in the sales office and that regardless of the behaviour the customer shows, you ask for their details 
3. If a customer says ‘NO’ to giving you their details or resists your request, translate this into ‘I am not ready now to give this information to you’ and work on earning the rapport to ask again a little later on
4. Don’t give up, earn the customer’s confidence to be given their details.  Gain the customer’s trust and ask for the details again a little later in the meeting
5. Remember people haven’t come to see you to fill forms in they have come for human assistance and contact.  Use your enquiry form as a prompt, get all the details through a great conversation, making sure that you personalise the experience

Remember you are the only person who can improve how you sell. 

We rarely meet sales people who are doing anything wrong; it’s just that what they are doing isn’t as good as it needs to be TODAY!