We needed new windows at our house, so I called up a rather large window retailer to come by and give us a quote. Being a business owner, I tend to love these sales interactions. I'm always looking for little nuggets I can add to my own sales process.
As a part of the pitch, the salesman pulled a full-size, double hung window out of his car and stood it up on my dining room table. He talked to me about their materials, compared them to their competitors, as well as the windows I had currently. He demonstrated the insulation and allowed me to see for myself the superior quality. And you know what, I could see it, this was one hell of a window.
However, when he gave me the price of the windows plus installation, I almost threw him right out of my house. There was no way I could afford the price tag, and though he offered me a ten-year financing package, there was no way I could justify the cost. I told him, this was just way out of budget, I would have to go with crappier windows for now.
He thanked me for my time, and right before he left, he asked me an interesting question.
"After everything you've seen today, taking price out of the equation, is there any doubt in your mind that these windows are the best possible windows you could buy?"
I thought for a moment and told him, "You know what, I do believe these windows are the best." I was being honest. After seeing competitor windows, and feeling this window for myself, there was little to no doubt in my mind that this was the best window on the market. In fact, if I had the budget, I likely would have gone with them.
I thought about that question after he left and what it meant. It showed that he was OK to lose the deal as long as the reason was the price. The fact that I knew I was going to be getting a lesser window at a lower price was an OK way to lose. And this taught be a lesson for my own business.
People can often buy the thing that we do at almost any price point these days. For me, this is software and website development services. I've seen prices as low as $5 per hour and as high as $800 per hour. If you want to compete on quality and value, you have to be OK losing deals on price. The best question you can ask your prospective clients after a rejection is, taking price out of the equation, is there any doubt in your mind that my service, quality, and expertise is better than anyone else's? If the answer to that question is no, then you've done your job.
As it turns out, I couldn't settle for the crappier windows after all. I ended up buying just the windows and installing them myself. The money on the labor allowed me to get the best, and that's what mattered in the end. As they say, you buy cheap, you buy twice.
As a part of the pitch, the salesman pulled a full-size, double hung window out of his car and stood it up on my dining room table. He talked to me about their materials, compared them to their competitors, as well as the windows I had currently. He demonstrated the insulation and allowed me to see for myself the superior quality. And you know what, I could see it, this was one hell of a window.
However, when he gave me the price of the windows plus installation, I almost threw him right out of my house. There was no way I could afford the price tag, and though he offered me a ten-year financing package, there was no way I could justify the cost. I told him, this was just way out of budget, I would have to go with crappier windows for now.
He thanked me for my time, and right before he left, he asked me an interesting question.
"After everything you've seen today, taking price out of the equation, is there any doubt in your mind that these windows are the best possible windows you could buy?"
I thought for a moment and told him, "You know what, I do believe these windows are the best." I was being honest. After seeing competitor windows, and feeling this window for myself, there was little to no doubt in my mind that this was the best window on the market. In fact, if I had the budget, I likely would have gone with them.
I thought about that question after he left and what it meant. It showed that he was OK to lose the deal as long as the reason was the price. The fact that I knew I was going to be getting a lesser window at a lower price was an OK way to lose. And this taught be a lesson for my own business.
People can often buy the thing that we do at almost any price point these days. For me, this is software and website development services. I've seen prices as low as $5 per hour and as high as $800 per hour. If you want to compete on quality and value, you have to be OK losing deals on price. The best question you can ask your prospective clients after a rejection is, taking price out of the equation, is there any doubt in your mind that my service, quality, and expertise is better than anyone else's? If the answer to that question is no, then you've done your job.
As it turns out, I couldn't settle for the crappier windows after all. I ended up buying just the windows and installing them myself. The money on the labor allowed me to get the best, and that's what mattered in the end. As they say, you buy cheap, you buy twice.
Michael Rispoli
Software Engineer & Creative Technologist
Software Engineer & Creative Technologist