8 Worst Kitchen Designer Sales Mistakes

Want to close more kitchen sales? It's time to stop making the most common mistakes designers make.

According to Hubspot.com the Design Remodeling Industry’s average closing rate is 22%. That’s a win rate of about 1 out of 5 proposals. FYI that's not a great rate.

With an average of 16 to 20 hours investment of your time to create a kitchen design, that means you work for 80 to 100 hours just to make 1 sale. With those kinds of numbers, you are only able to sell 2 projects a month. So how does that math out for your success?

Let’s say you do 10 design proposals and your average sale is $ 25,000. If you sell 2 projects a month for a total of $50,000, your pay is based on $ 50,000 a month, or $ 600,000 a year.

If you could sell ONE MORE KITCHEN, your gross sales for the month is $ 75,000. That’s a 50% increase. How does that affect your value to the company? Would it positively affect your hopes for the future?

The difference between $600k a year and $900k is the difference between a valued designer and an expendable one. Your goal should be at least $ 1 million a year.

The easiest way to generate higher income & value is by avoiding the traps most designers fall in to.

So what are the 8 Biggest Blunders designers make during their sales process?

8 Most Common Selling Mistakes:

1)  Talking Too Much – Many designers are nervous when talking with potential clients. That nervousness vents itself in the form of being too chatty. Excessive talking is not what makes sales. It can easily come across as being self-focused and less than confident. Confident people are slow to speak and are interested in others, allowing them to talk.

2)  Not Really Listening – The Golden Rule in Sales is 2 to 1 for listening. It says you should be talking only 1/3rd of the time and letting prospects talk 2/3rds of the time. You want to ask great, open-ended questions and simply let prospects talk about their vision, hopes and ideas. Clients feel validated when they are listened to. It also creates a powerful feel-good hormone. Learn to Listen better.

3)  Not Differentiating – To the average consumer, most kitchen companies look alike. Failing to CLEARLY differentiate how you, your company and your offering are different than your competition is a massive mistake. Buyers look for comparative differences between companies and their offering. What makes you different than the other choices they have in the marketplace? It’s less about your design, than it is about your difference. Make clear why your proposal is unique and valuable for them and you will enjoy greater sales success.

4)  Poor Rapport – Having great rapport with your potential client is one of the most powerful ways to make sales. I’m frequently amazed when I watch designers sitting with prospects talking, but not creating rapport. Talking about things, features and yourself don’t create rapport. Become highly skilled at making rapport quickly. Study proven methods that create genuine rapport. And not from the old 1980's tactics!

5)  Not Establishing Expert Status – This is a hard one for new designers because you have little track record to tread on. It is imperative to be seen as an expert in your field. That’s why you must take the time to craft presentation tools and conversation points that establish you as credible and capable of getting it right. You don't need to have a decade in the trade to be able to be seen as an authority. It helps, but there are ways to create the presence of a knowledgable expert with some study and forethought.

6)  Making it All About Design – The Kitchen Design Industry is not solely about design. It's about people, and making their lives better. Truly successful designers know this. The truth is, people don’t buy designs. They buy hope for a better life and they do that based on feelings. Position yourself as the best choice for a great lifestyle. Focus on their better life because of the design, and not so much, the design.

7)  Not Understanding the Power of Emotions – Emotions sell kitchens. Think about the last sale you made. Odds are, they chose you and your design because of the emotional appeal of what you offered. The more you understand emotions play a key roll in making sales, the more success you will enjoy as a designer.

8)  Lack of Confidence – When you are confident, you are attractive to buyers. Everyone wants what everyone wants. Expressing true confidence without arrogance is an essential key to closing sales. There is no more important time in the sales process than when you are presenting your price. Think about how you can come across with stronger confidence when you present your price. When you don't feel worth it, they hear it in your tone. You have to KNOW the value of your offering is well worth the price. Nothing sells like confidence.

Bonus Tip: One of the worst mistakes designers make is Failing to Focus on the prospect. When we focus on our design, our client becomes secondary. When you focus on them, the design is a means to an end. The end is an enhanced life.

When you stop and listen to buyers talk about their kitchen, they talk about the lifestyle they will enjoy because of the design. The focus is on the lifestyle, not the design.

Kitchen Designer Success is about more than just doing a great design. You’ve also got to be able to sell it. Are you ready to stop being a starving artist with your designs? Want to take your career to the next level quickly, take the time to plan to hone the skills you’ll need to succeed. Stop making everything about design, because it’s not. It's about them.

Be the person who can make their life better. Because if you do, your close rates will soar.

If you want to take your sales team to the next level, think about planning a dynamic One Day sales training event for your sales staff.

Kirk Heiner has over 35 years experience in the Kitchen & Bath and Home Construction Industries. He’s taught seminars for the NKBA (National Kitchen & Bath Association) Lowe’s, Ferguson Plumbing, Stock Building Supply, and over 1,000 kitchen and bath dealers and showrooms. He can be reached at KBShowroomSales.com