Many BKBG Shareholders complain about the Internet. They believe that the reason most customers don’t buy from their showroom is because their customers can buy for less someplace else. Sales Guru Bob Phelps argues that a lost sale is never about price or the product. A sale is lost because the sales professionals do not allay buyers’ fears. Phelps argues, “When you can remove risk or regret, your shopper is likely to buy.”
Finding and retaining top talent remains one of the greatest challenges in the kitchen and bath showroom business. BKBG members may be able to greatly increase their recruitment and retention rates by framing the services that they provide to clients in a different light. A kitchen and bath showroom does so much more than build new spaces in homes. BKBG members help to improve quality of life for their clients. They make a positive difference, providing endless opportunities for family members to better connect with one another and build stronger relationships with neighbors and friends.
Apple retail stores generate more dollars per square foot than any other retailer in the world. Scott Galloway points out in his new book The Four that Apple differentiates itself from other tech giants Google, Facebook and Amazon, because Apple is a luxury products company. Consumers spend eight to ten times more for an Apple iPhone than a Samsung Galaxy, because they are infatuated with the brand. Apple products connote a status that makes consumers feel good about their purchases.
Follow this four-step recipe to make your showroom a destination of choice:
First, understand your customer’s goals and showcase why your showroom is best suited to meet those goals.
Positive reviews and word-of-mouth referrals are gold to kitchen and bath showrooms. Imagine what your bottom line would look like if every one of your customers posted a positive review on Yelp or raved about the quality of your service and products to friends, neighbors and coworkers? Referrals can happen naturally or you can create them. Consider the following:
Think about it – you and your team spend an inordinate amount of time either preparing, reading or responding to emails. Imagine how much more productive you and your team could be if you could email under control.
Step one, determine what you will do with each email that you receive. That does not mean you respond to each email immediately. There are three main options:
It’s the time of year that many people consider making a resolution to improve their life, business, relationships, health or a host of other reasons. However, the odds say that most resolutions won’t be successful. According to one study, only 8 percent of New Year’s resolutions are kept.
Change is one of the most difficult tasks for most people. It becomes even more challenging if the change involves subject areas that bore you or tasks you don’t like. However, change does not have to be painful writes Dr. Barbara Oakley, in her new book, Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential.
An interesting article in Scientific American shed light on “Why Smart People Do Foolish Things.” Author Heather Butler relates that there is a disconnect between how intelligence is measured and making smart decisions. The Intelligent Quotient (IQ) test is often the barometer of intelligence. The test evaluates ability to solve visuospatial puzzles, math problems and vocabulary questions, recognize patterns and conduct visual searches. Butler understands that being intelligent offers significant advantages. Intelligent people generally do better in school, have better jobs and careers and are less likely to get into trouble (e.g., commit crimes) as adolescents. However, Butler notes that being intelligent does not necessarily predict other life outcomes such as well-being. Research shows that most intelligence tests fail to predict one’s decision making ability, and that helps to explain why smart people sometimes do foolish things.
A University of Southern California Business School professor study of 1,000 sales identified the distinctive characteristics and habits of top performers. He found that 15 percent of those surveyed had exceeded their quotas by more than 125 percent. Here are the key findings of the study:
