When
the Customer Brings up Quality
Clearly, one
of the more frequently heard and valid
concerns a client can bring up during a sales
call is that of quality. Every
customer who is of sound mind and body is concerned with ensuring
that the product or service they are purchasing meets the highest
standards. Poor quality
products and services ultimately can have a detrimental effect
on a company’s productivity and profitability and can put a person’s
job on the line. An inferior ingredient purchased by a nutritional
company ultimately makes their product inferior. A poorly designed
machine component can cause a component of an assembly line to run
inefficiently or break down too often. When
customers bring up quality, it is important for you, as a sales
person, to reassure them
on the quality of your product/service as well as your company.
When quality
is brought up as a concern, it is imperative that you ask
questions. Why does a customer feel your quality isn’t up to
snuff? Is there some standard that they’re trying to achieve? Gathering
information on the customer’s needs enable you to then respond
with a benefit statement. This will enable you to acknowledge their
concern and respond
with appropriate information.
Customer:
- “I’m concerned about the
safety of your products on the factory floor”
Sales Rep:
- “Why is that?”
- “What leads
you to believe our products are unsafe?”
- “Have you
had a problem with the safety of other products?”
- “Are there
safety issues on the factory floor?”
Customer:
- “I read the quality report
on your DuraTrust XLS component and its high failure rate. We
can’t afford that here.”
Sales Rep:
- “That report
was based on a discontinued product that was only available in
limited release. Once the problem
was identified, the product was pulled from inventory and
discontinued. The XLS-A has gone through rigorous testing standards
and meets all quality regulations, as defined by the industry.
That makes it the highest performing component currently available
from any manufacturer. This means your team will be able to operate
at maximum capacity using a product that is both safe and
efficient. If that answers your concern, I would be glad to draw
up a proposal on the XLS-A for use in the Sacramento factory.”
Often, questions
will uncover
misunderstandings, bad information, unreasonable
concerns and other items that can easily be handled. Assuming
your products and services are of high quality, dealing with this
objection is easy. In instances when
your quality isn’t as high as a competitor, it helps to determine
if a competing product or service is oversold. Is the customer buying
more than they need? Could they receive the same results with a
different type of product? Of course, don’t sell your product as
lesser quality but as the
right fit for their needs.
|
