Flooring Sales Tip: When the Customer Says, “I Want To Think About It.” - Stalls

Buddy Wisdom is the author of Selling Retail Floorcovering - A Humanistic Approach (2015 Edition) See link below.

https://www.lulu.com/shop/buddy-wisdom/selling-retail-floorcovering-a-humanistic-appropach-a-complete-10yr-write-over/paperback/product-22165170.html

Occasionally, I get responses from some of my linkedin readers.  Here is a good one from Christopher Rice of 50 Floor in Orlando, Florida.

 The question:

 “One of the most popular situations sales reps run into is not really an objection but a "stall". The "I need to think about it" or “need 3 quotes before I move forward". These are phrases that all reps will hear time in and time out... UNLESS they can eliminate the stall from the beginning. Why does a customer say these things? What did I do wrong? They seemed to love everything and really liked me so why aren't they buying? From my experience when you get these "stalls" you did not do your job properly.

“You overcome these stalls by eliminating them from the beginning. BUILD RAPPORT! BUILD VALUE! When you are meeting with a client for the first time, they don’t know you. They don’t know how long you have been with the company, if you are going to rip them off, will the installers do a good job? Who are the installers?

“When I first meet a potential client, I sit down with them and talk. Talk about why they are looking to change their flooring, what did they like about their old flooring? What didn't they like about it? How long have they been thinking about making this purchase? All these questions will help you to know what to show a customer. She doesn't like the stains? Show her a product with a no exclusion warrantee. She has urine stains from pets, show her pet proof carpet. Her carpet is crushed? Show her something with a great texture retention warrantee.

“Next, you need to get on a little bit of a personal level... find something in the customers house that they are interested in and talk about it! Sports fan? Talk about it, why do they like that team? How did they get into it? Fishing? Where do they go fishing? What do they enjoy the most about it? Tell me about the one that got away? Everybody has a story about the one that got away!

“This rapport building builds trust and will assist in eliminating the stall when it comes time to close. When a customer "needs to think about it”, they don’t trust you. When they say "I need more quotes" means, they think you are priced too high. You may have mentioned the features but you NEED to explain the benefits.

“I would LOVE to hear how other reps overcome these statements, sorry if I went on a little bit of a rant there. Once I get started on talking sales I'm really hard to stop!”

Reply from Buddy Wisdom

Thanks and bravo Christopher!  I could not have said it better myself.

Stalls!  We all use them so why shouldn’t we expect to hear it from others when we are on the selling end.  “Let me think it over.”  “This is the first place I’ve shopped.”  “Let me check with my husband.”  La de da—the flake out of an order. The customer is trying to delay the sale and too often, customers will think themselves out of a purchase until a skilled salesperson knows how to close them.  The modus operandi: obviously, you must find a way to get past a vague stall to a concrete objection.  Some customers just need reassurance that they are making the right decision.  A slight nudge may be all it takes to put things in motion.

First, you mentioned, “They liked everything.”  Of course, in the presenting stage, it is important that you have narrowed their selections beyond “everything.” Flooring is one of the few industries that can essentially be all encompassing for a majority of customers. That is because with a well-merchandised showroom, you can create an extensive selection within a relatively small space.  Therefore, as you search through the vast array of colors and styles in the showroom, narrow down the possibilities by tilting samples upward on an angle on the waterfall and then, simply put the strongest likelihood’s on the floor.

Every possibility should be left for greater reconsideration.  On the other hand, once a possibility has been completely ruled out, put it away.  This will make it possible for your customer to go back and easily review all of her potential selections without feeling lost or confused. You are selectively creating an atmosphere of high fashion and tremendous selection.  She wants choices without feeling overwhelmed. Therefore, you are systematically taking a large showroom and customizing it to fit her design needs.

Additionally, with salespeople and samples there is something called the 80-20 rule.  It means that most salespeople sell 80% of their collection from only 20% of what they have to sell and present.  We all need to know our showrooms, but interestingly, even the veteran salespeople determine significantly different versions of what they consider their top 20% of values.  In other words, we are often guilty of pushing our fashion and value decisions onto the customer.  Realize each customer is individual and unique, so allow her to be distinctive.

Further, we should not assume that the customer understands or even hears every important point we make. A stall may mean you did not get complete agreement on all-important points during your presentation.  Thus, after an explanation of a question asked you might conclude with, “Does that make sense?” or “Does that answer your question?”  These questions put you on common ground and make you the trusted advisor while constructively controlling the direction of the sale.  This selling technique is part of a deliberate closing process.  We focus on finding out what is necessary to do business, from beginning to end thereby avoiding stalls at the end.

As you said, it is important to realize that a vague stall is different from an objection in that with a stall there is a question (concern) that hasn’t been answered and she is not telling you what it is.  (or she is simply procrastinating.)  You are now dealing with a customer’s hidden insecurity. “Am I making the right decision?”  So, she decides to “think about it” rather than acknowledge her real concerns (if there are any) to the salesperson.  Consider this a new challenge not a frustration.

Keep in mind, stalls happen to the best of us. There are times that she really does “want to think about it,” etc. Some folks just honestly do not make quick decisions (Amiable personality types and some older people especially). However, she could get the process moving such as setting up a measure and yes, I check out samples to well-qualified customers.

Here is an interesting paragraph from Gregory Woodley from Handling Stalls, “Whatever the cause for the stall, handling it isn't just a science, it's also an art. The art is in helping the customer see that you truly accept and understand their hesitation. Acknowledge that you heard them. (Cushion) Ask questions, start a conversation, draw them out. ‘I understand why you might want to think it over since it is a big commitment.’ Probe. Ask questions that might reveal what is really stopping them… ‘Maybe there is something that I was not clear about when I described…’ ‘Maybe I can help by answering your concern now.’ ‘What was it about my estimate that you wanted to think over?’ Your goal is to determine the underlying objection. Often, you'll get a reply that helps you uncover the real objection so that you can handle it… You need to find out the reason now because usually there is no later.”

Complete with cushioning underlined below, here are some other probing questions that I have developed that should help.

“Of course, I understand this is an important decision. Curiously, though, may I ask what reservations you still have?” (Silence)

“That’s completely reasonable.  However, thinking about it sometimes makes me uneasy.  Is it something I forgot to cover?” (Silence)

“Well, I would want to be sure as well.  Even so, may I ask what your final decision will be based on?” (Silence)

“I hear that a lot and that’s very normal.  Still, can you tell me what it is that’s causing you to hesitate?” (Silence)

“Of course, I understand this is an important decision.  Nevertheless, I thought that I answered all your questions and provided a lot of information.  Could you tell me what about these selections you need to think over?” (Silence)

“That’s completely understandable.  Curiously, what are some of the issues that are important as you evaluate your decision?”  (Silence)

“I am glad you told me that.  Since I’m here now, maybe I can help by answering your concerns?”  (Silence)

I cannot emphasize cushioning enough. (IE: Make what the customer said seem important because it is!

Caution: Avoid condescending approaches such as “What’s to think about.”  In other words, never directly challenge a stall with statements that criticize or demean the customer’s statement. This is one of the reasons why cushioning is so important. She is stalling and she doesn’t want to be confronted with the obvious.  Since the customer offered no specific reason for hesitating, do not force her to come up with one by saying something degrading.  Challenging stalls creates conflict, not sales.  Besides their “stock” answer is often “just the whole thing,” and you can’t handle “the whole thing.” 

Ok, suppose she still wants to think about it.  It is going to happen.  Here Is “The Top to Bottom” Method for Handling Stalls: Consider the most common stall, “I want to think about it.”  

1. Cushion(Empathy )

When you cushion, you “soften” or delay her stall.  Many people skip this step, but it is probably the most important shift transferring an unclear setback of a sales transaction to an order.  Cushioning is merely recognizing what the customer is stating is significant.  It encourages dialog and communication.  It builds the customer’s self-esteem.  Cushioning, in this case, is acknowledging the importance of the particular stall to the buyer.

In this situation (a stall), when a buyer states, “I want to think about it.”  Support her concern by saying something like:  “That’s completely normal, if I were going to make an important buying decision such as this, I would want to be sure as well.”  (The cushion.)

2. Bridge (More empathy.)

            “But before you leave, let’s review what we have discussed because I want to be sure we have covered everything that may be concerning you.” 

3. Summary Review

• “Is the exact coloryou need to meet your décor?”  (Be Silent, and if the color isn’t exact, you need to create more choices, or your competition might!)
• “Do you feel that the texture and styleis right for your home?”  (Be silent and wait for her answer.) 
• “Are you convinced the product will perform (Quality) based on your needs and budget?”  (Silence.)

It is essential that you be quiet after each question!  “Silence is golden.”  It is your most powerful weapon.  You have thrown the ball in her court and she must hit it back.  Get agreement, on each question, and support her choices with dialog.

The longer the silence only means she is considering your question very carefully.  Be patient, and wait for her considered answer.  Talk about tactful pressure—there is no pressure that will remotely approach the force of silence.  By being silent, you are forcing her to make the move; she has no other way out.  Don’t speak until she answers.

Remember, we are looking for a true objection that we may have overlooked or she is still pondering. However, if she answers, “yes” to every question listed above and if seemingly, there are no concerns:

1. Ask for the orderor trial close.
   • “Well if everything is just the way you want, let’s go ahead and write this up in order to reserve the sale price.

Or:

•   “Well let’s do it!  Or “Let’s get started.”  When could we measure?

Or:

• “I am sure you are excited about getting this new floor in your home! Let’s check stock and we can get it ordered and set up a tentative installation date for our installers.”

Or:

• “Well everything seems to be in order. Let’s get this ordered.” (Simply, anticipate the sale without being presumptuous!)

Note: A Trial Close is not a normal 'closing technique' but a test to determine whether the person is ready to close. They are questions that test the temperature of the buyer. They are normally questions that assume ownership of the product. Their response will tell you whether they are ready or not.

The point here is to ask for the order or trial close.  Ask, and you will receive, and very likely double your sales.  Research shows that the most successful salespeople ask for the order or trial close tactfully, several times during a sales interview.  Ordinary salespersons never ask for the order.  What is the very worse that she can say.  Oh horrors, you may get what we are really looking for: a real objection that emerges. 

Suppose she remains committed to the stall:  “I still want to think about it.”  All is not lost.  We must review every possible concern.  She is still hesitating about something and we must uncover the true objection because “be backs” too often don’t come back mainly because a more skilled salesperson solved all of her concerns and finalized the sale.

1. Cushion and bridge again.

          “I appreciate how you must feel.  I would want to be sure as well.  Obviously, you wouldn’t take the time to think it over unless you were seriously interested, but somehow, I suspect I’ve missed something (or just to clarify my thinking…”)

6. Continue your review of store reputation and finally price.

• “Do you have any concerns about our store reputationor the quality of our installations?”  (Silence.)
• (Softly, some people are sensitive here.)  “Mrs. Jones is it the money? (Price)  Did you have a different budget in mind?”  (Silence.)                          7. Ask for the order (trial close) again.  (If there is no resistance or objections.)

“Well it seems like everything is in perfect order.  Let’s at least get the process moving so you won’t have to come back!”  I am going to ahead and set up a measure for you. Come and sit down and I will set the measuure up for you free of charge. (Don’t speak until she does and don’t over push.)

• If no (If she is going to walk, you may want to ask this.), “Mrs. Jones, did you see something somewhere else that you preferred?” (Silence.)

Ok, suppose she still says no.  It’s going to happen.  You might reply: “We have covered all the basics that I can think of, I am just confused about what is concerning you?  (Remain silent and wait for a genuine objection!)

The last time this happened to me (she till says no) the lady said to her husband: “I like that, at least we got total agreement on every point.”  The next day they came back in and bought!  They probably shopped some more, but probably nobody achieved total agreement on all-important issues.

This technique, done discreetly, naturally and disguised in such a way that the customer doesn’t feel cross-examined, will be sensed by the customer as genuine empathy for her needs and concerns.  Consider embellishing your dialog slightly after each answer to augment conversation and then ease into the next question. It is okay to add dialog to your steps but once you finish, remember to be silent and let her answer the question. Hopefully, you will reduce any uneasiness to the ludicrous; or better yet, you will receive an authentic objection that can be handled with corrective information using good product knowledge or design skills.

Handle other stalls in exactly the same way.

Example: “This is the first place I’ve stopped; I want to shop around some more.” 

1. Cushion: “I understand whyyou might want to shop around since it is a big commitment.”

2. Bridge: “But before you leave, I want to be sure we have covered everything.”

Etc. Just follow the same steps above.

Here is another one; “Let me check with my husband.”

1. Cushion, “If I were going to make an important decision I would want to check with my spouse as well …

2. Bridge, “But before you leave…”

3. Summarize, Get agreementand support

If this technique seems like a lot to memorize, really the questions are essentially based on the basic steps and in the order of: color, style, quality, store reputation, and finally price, discussed many times in other articles.  They are only worded differently.  The important thing to remember about common stalls is that it is essential to  review in your own words what has been discussed and trial close.

Moreover, please do not overly pressure, or in any way annoy your “be-backs.”  Inevitably, part of your income will be due to “be-backs” (less than 20%) with whom you have made a friend and become their trusted advisor.  If you have done your job properly, you have hopefully covered all of their concerns.  Your customer will be much more likely to return to you rather than your competition.

Very few salespeople know how to handle stalls and consumers know it!  Customers know that these “excuses” work, and you now have what we in the industry call a possible “be-back.”  Stalls occur because you have probably missed something.  Sure, stalls happen to the best of us, but don’t count on their business!  You must isolate their real concerns because the majority of alleged “be-backs” (more than 80%) don’t actually come back.  

Good selling to you.

Buddy Wisdom, Sales Author