  eople usually base buying decisions on emotion, not logic.
“[Consumers] would like to have you believe that they sit down and logically compare a product’s features and make logical decisions [but they don’t],” says Tom Egelhoff, author of How To Sell A Service Instead of A Product.
“What actually happens is, they make an emotional decision and create a logical argument to justify the buying decision,” Egelhoff says.
The good news is that customers’ decision-making process remains the same whether they’re seeking something tangible (a product) or intangible (a service), says Egelhoff.
The trick, of course, is to get the prospect to agree that it is your product or service that they desire and need.
Experts both inside and outside the swimming pool and hot tub industry say there are two basic steps in selling your company’s services: The first is getting the pool owner to embrace the idea of “service,” and second is getting them to pick your service company for the job.
What are they seeking?
Egelhoff composed a list of the six most popular things consumers look for when they make a purchase, be it a product or a service:
1. Security: freedom from financial worry.
2. Self-preservation: safety and health for self and family.
3.Convenience: comfort, or a more desirable use of time.
4. Recognition from others: social status, respectability, the wish to be admired.
5. Self-improvement: spiritual development, hunger for knowledge or intellectual stimulation.
6. Avoidance of worry: ease of mind, confidence.
“How many of the six items listed are based on emotion and how many are based on logic?” Egelhoff asks. “Every item on the list, except for self-preservation, is not a genuine need, but something to make us feel more comfortable.”
Other factors are at play as well, Egelhoff says, noting that self-image often influences buying decisions. “A large part of the world economy is based on image,” he says. “Clothing, cosmetics, health and fitness — just to name a few [industries].”
In addition, consumers don’t always consider reality when making their buying decisions.
Egelhoff points to the infamous New Coke vs. Classic Coke debacle back in 1980. Back then, the Coca-Cola Co. announced it was changing the formula for its century-old soda recipe. People were outraged: How dare they take away our Coke! When the new version came out, consumers resoundingly rejected it, saying it was too sweet.
But the Coca-Cola people were undaunted. They created a taste challenge around the country, asking consumers to try new Coke and the old version in a blind taste test. When the challenge was complete, Coke executives were vindicated. Results showed that consumers overwhelmingly liked the new Coke better than the original.
However, sales of new Coke continued to lag and no matter what logic and reason the company tried, consumers just weren’t buying, even though they had told researchers they liked the taste of the new version better. Reality was certainly not part of their decision-making process.
“The point is, no one really knows how the customer decides,” Egelhoff says. “Some may be logical, some may be emotional. You have to ask them. Communicate with the customer and get as much feedback as you can.”
Seeking the service seekers
When it comes to consumers who seek out service companies, “money is not usually the issue,” says Tim Connor, president of Connor Research Group in Davidson, N.C., and an author, speaker and trainer in the sales management field.
For Connor, it is people’s personalities that dictate whether they will sign on a service contract’s dotted line — and not what’s in their wallets. (For more on personality groups, and how to tailor sales strategies around them, see “They’ve Got Personality.”)
Connor stresses the importance of knowing the benefits of your services and framing them according to the type of customer you have.
“Phrase the benefits from the customer’s perspective,” he says. “You have to know the benefits well because from a personality standpoint, certain benefits will mean more to some [customers] than others.”
In fact, there may be some pool owners who want some type of service, but still want some chores left for themselves. On the other hand, some may not want to lift a finger, leaving it all for the technician to do.
“We start out to try and determine what level of involvement [the customers] want with their pools,” says David Hawes, president of H&H Pool Services Inc. in Dublin, Calif., and a service business instructor for several industry trade shows. “But always be careful because you don’t want to embarrass them into saying, ‘We can’t even afford your baseline service.’”
Hawes says asking what level of involvement the customer wants will facilitate an opportunity for an orientation session around the pool — and this is where opportunities will present themselves.
“We have different programs catered to [the pool owner’s] level of involvement [based on] time willing to be spent and their knowledge,” Hawes explains. “We have discovered that a lot of clients don’t have time and some aren’t that knowledgeable. Once they realize how much work it all is, we do a hard sell on service right there at poolside and they usually opt for the more in-depth [level of service.]”
Selling yourself
Once you’ve created an interest in pool service for a potential customer, you need to convince him or her that your company is the best one for the job at hand.
Appearance and presentation are important, says Hawes. “Anything you can do to make yourself look professional [will help]. Have nice trucks, nice logos, all with the proper documentation — not written on the back of a napkin.
“And if you are an owner/operator, say so. Some people like that and gravitate to it.”
This professional appearance should extend to any presentations or proposals.
“To the extent that you provide something different in your presentation, you will have a great closing rate,” says Hawes. “I mean, if you act professional, knowledgeable and honest, [the customer] will look at the phone and ask themselves, ‘My god, did I call a pool company?’”
Egelhoff says that sometimes, in a desperate effort to land an account, a service tech will sell himself short by worrying too much about the competition.
“Because service companies are unprepared to justify a higher cost for better service, they often end up giving away services they have every right to charge for just in order to meet the competition,” Egelhoff says. “Instead, if your price is higher, you must show the additional price is justified.”
Ways to do that, Egelhoff says, include showing off your training, certifications, experience and unequaled expertise. For example, you might say, “Well, I know some local service companies charge $15 less a month, but that’s because they’re not NSPI-certified technicians and they can’t match my 20 years in the industry. They may be cheaper, but with me, you will always know your pool is clean and safe.”
Once your professionalism and competency is established, it won’t take long for the rest of the community to hear about it, and that’s a very good thing.
“Referrals are what we find provide the best-quality leads,” says Dr. Mary Jo Bitner, AT&T professor of service marketing at Arizona State University in Tempe and author of the college textbook Services Marketing. “And that is true for anyone, whether you are a doctor, a dentist or a pool man. Word of mouth can be really powerful by building awareness in a particular neighborhood.”
Hawes agrees. “For a service tech, the biggest calling card is a referral,” he says. “It’s in every article and book [written about the art of selling]. If you are doing a pool in the neighborhood, it puts the neighbors at ease when you approach. They figure, if he’s doing [our neighbor’s] pool, he must be OK.”
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