Become a Home Based Travel Agent

When Being Sold is a Good Thing!
By Joanie Ogg CTC, MCC

Sometimes it simply feels good to be sold.  I had this epiphany this month when buying a new bed. You are probably thinking what does buying a new bed have to do with your customer buying a holiday from you?  Read on, and I will share the value of being a good salesperson and the joy a customer can experience when two come together.

Tom and I finally succumbed and realized after approximately 58,400 hours of sleeping mileage on our bed, it was time to make the purchase of a new mattress and box springs (called boxes these days).  It seemed it would be an easy enough task to simply go into one of the many stores specializing in beds and pick one up. I came to find that buying a new bed is bit more complex and my knowledge of the products available was dated at best. I began my search online, just like so many travelers do today. I certainly did not intend to buy my bed online, but I wanted to get some basic information and pricing. Armed with some basic ideas, much like travelers today are, I headed out to buy the bed.

I went to a couple places that made claims such as selling more beds in San Diego County than the competition and another who claimed to be the Costco of beds. Each experience left me less then satisfied and I started to become discouraged with the whole process. I started asking myself; maybe I can do this online and not have to deal with the “sales” techniques being used on me. 

The first salesperson claimed to know everything and anything about beds and made sure to tell me I had come to the right place. That in fact, they sold more beds in San Diego County because they had the best beds and service guarantees. The know-it-all approach was not working for me. I had done my research.

The second stop at the bed warehouse was actually a bit scary. I mapped it on my iphone and found myself in front of a large warehouse with no signage. I called the phone number. Men answered after about 8 rings, telling me to just park somewhere on the street and make my way around the loading dock to the door marked “private”.  It was broad daylight so I went into the warehouse, curious to see what might be in store for me. It was just that, a big shell of a building filled with beds covered in dusty plastic claiming to be the lowest prices on name brand bedding. The one-guy-does-it-all, Mark, gave me the pitch on the beds and quoted me on one at about $1,200 delivered. I left feeling not only a bit dirty from the dust but also wondering if these mattresses were indeed new or used or stolen perhaps. I left and continued on my quest.

My next stop was the final one and what I experienced during the process is what prompted me to title this article “Being Sold is a Good Thing”.  I entered the Mattress Discounters establishment, which is one of eight sister stores in San Diego county. I have to admit I was not looking forward to what might be ahead of me as I was in no mood to be sold anything at that point in time. I was frustrated and ready to sleep on our old mattress for another twenty years. As expected, the salesman approached me with his greeting. However, this one said just what I needed to hear. He said, “Hi!  Glad you stopped in. My name is Nick, and if you need any questions answered just let me know. The store is laid out this way…”. He gave me a simple description of how the beds were labeled soft to firm and left me alone to explore the comfort aspect on my own. The prices were all listed clearly, so there was no need to tell me much more right then. I so appreciated this approach. Soft sell is what I need. Mind you, not everyone responds to that buy it is kind of a San Diego resident trait. We tend to be a bit laid back here, which could be a good or bad trait based on personal opinion. It was obvious to me that he was a local based on his demeanor. He knew how to read his potential client and he worked me based on that. I respected that and became more at ease right away. He did ask my name.

After taking several power naps on the beds and obvious to him, was honing in on two or three, he reached out to me. “Joanie, how’s it going?” he said. I replied that I was just in the looking stage right now. To which he replied, “Cool, that is smart, you want to be sure about a bed. We spend lots of time there and it should be a personal decision” and he left me alone.  He was allowing me my space but I knew that the next move was mine. I would either get into dialogue about pricing or I would leave and continue the quest. I stayed and the sale began.

Nick and I sat down at his desk and we talked about the beds I was leaning toward and he guided me through the buying process. He gave me details about the warranty and worked a price for me that brought the cost down to a reasonable amount and what seemed to be fair value for the purchase. I guess the name of the store Mattress Discounters had something to do with the discount. The funny thing is I do not think they really discount the prices; they simply mark them up so they can discount them. This is when I began to realize I was being sold and I liked it.  I was no longer concerned too much about the price anymore because I liked Nick. Nick is 26 years old and has worked there for 5 years while attending college. I predict Nick will go far in any sales career he takes on. I handed over my credit card and set up delivery for 10:00am the following day.

Here is what Nick taught me to remember when making a sale.

1. Look, Listen and Learn – While many travel sales are completed without ever seeing a client face to face and the look does not work, the listening skill can be just as useful.

2. Respect – Your clients are likely knowledgeable to some degree about where they want to go and how they want to spend their vacation. If they are, then allow them to share that with you and guide them to what you know will be the right buying decision for them.

3. Be Confident – Nick’s confidence in his product knowledge instilled confidence in me. When you know your product cold, be proud to share your knowledge without being a know-it-all. It is all about how you say what you know.

4. Make it enjoyable and easy – Buying something be it a vacation or a bed, should be enjoyable experience.  Use a warm and sincere approach to sales process and make it easy to buy.