A Tale of Three Plumbers

It was a rainy, and cold spring Sunday evening. I was busy doing (happily) nothing. As I was engaging in this blissful activity, I heard a strange and terrifying gurgling sound in my laundry room and found the floor covered in the worst smelling foulness I had seen. The main drainage (sewage and other awful stuff) pipe from my house was clogged. Sh*t. (literally).

I immediately called several plumbers who had "Emergency 24-Hour Service" and begged the one who answered the one to come over. A local plumbing franchisee eventually appeared, got things moving again and told me that "most likely the "trap and the lateral were shot." Not knowing what this meant, he educated me that the "trap (the U joint 10 feet down at my curb) is a major fix" and if the lateral (the pipe that goes from the curb to the street and the main sewer) is bad...”well, you know its expensive.” Translation: BIG BUCKS. I asked him what I was looking at and he said: "I'm not the sales guy, you need to have them come out.". (Cue my scream)

The next day I called two excavation plumbers recommended to me, and they both answered - a good sign. The first plumber who came over was perfectly nice and professional. Took a quick look at the situation and quoted me " $2,500 for the trap and $12,000 for the lateral". (Cue my tears). The second plumber came out and placed a camera into the trap and spent close to an hour explaining and showing me what had happened. He also told me that “they would not know the lateral is bad until they dug to replace the trap.” He quoted me "$2,500 for the trap and would have to get back to me on the lateral price". Later that day the franchise sales guy appeared and without doing a thing quoted me " $8,000 and $22,000 respectively. I asked, “why the difference,”? His answer was to bash the competition in a lame attempt to convince me they would all do terrible work. A few hours later the second plumber called me back and said the lateral would be $14,000. He also explained every detail of WHY and he humanized the entire process.

Who do you think earned the business? Plumber two was the best salesperson. He educated me with patience and empathy. He spent time with me and made me the most comfortable. He just did his job, and every interaction with him was a selling moment. He conveyed a trusting buying image. Plumber one was perfectly fine, and I am sure that he would have been an excellent choice. The franchise rep? Do you have to ask? He assumed the deal, supposed I was a victim of rogue plumbers and presumed the close because they had been there the night before.

It was not about price. I was not a victim.

It was all about presence, approachability, humility, and credibility. All selling skills. How each plumber “showed up” was why I made my decision. 

They practiced E.L.S.A. in varying degrees.

Sales are everywhere and present in every single conversation. “Every conversation is a selling moment.” Every conversation and every action conveys the images, and those images are what leads to a successful outcome.

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Todd Cohen, CSP is an accomplished and sought-after international keynote speaker, sales culture expert and author of “Everyone’s in Sales” and “ STOP Apologizing and Start Selling"

Todd’s dynamic and motivational keynotes and workshops are based on the foundation that regardless of career path or position, everyone is a salesperson. Since 1984, Todd has led sales teams to deliver more than $950 million in revenue for leading companies including Xerox and Thomson-Reuters. You can also see Todd’s articles on Sales Culture in many magazines, trade journals and the Huffington Post.  

For more information or to book Todd Cohen for your next meeting please visitwww.ToddCohen.com