How to sell furniture to order. The basics of retail sales in furniture stores

Unprofessional seller, unable to answer not only objections, but also simple questions a customer about the cost, equipment and discounts on goods is a fairly common phenomenon. Also, there are often overly intrusive and illiterate “specialists”, from whom, as if from a cornucopia, product characteristics are pouring in that are uninteresting to the buyer and do not meet his needs.

The main disadvantages of sales training

Furniture selling is one of the areas where employees go through a lot of training that is out of touch with the real thing and learn skills that only scare away customers. Intrusive and aggressive sales assistants make them want to refuse cooperation. The buyer needs clear answers to his questions, therefore incompetent consultants who do not understand the advantages of their product and have not studied its elementary characteristics are also unlikely to be successful in their business. The best way to get the necessary skills is through experience, studying the product and working with customers. It is also important to communicate with experienced successful employees and learn from them the technique of sales on real examples.

Who should ask questions

For effective sale furniture, there are many techniques, but their study does not guarantee the appearance of professionalism when working with people. Success depends primarily on the seller himself and his activity. It often happens that the client himself throws questions at the consultant, and he only answers, and often inappropriately. But the one who asks the questions controls the conversation. Therefore, if a consultant or furniture sales manager himself does not ask a potential buyer anything, he is unlikely to be able to make a good deal.

The situation on the market is constantly changing, so the seller does not have to wait until the client himself makes a decision to buy. because of a wide range, constant sales, promotions and discounts and the opportunity to purchase used furniture on free ad sites at lower prices, it is becoming increasingly difficult to motivate a client to make a purchase. What can be done? What does a furniture seller need to know in order to manage his behavior himself, and not leave him alone with the goods?

Why you need an individual approach to the buyer

Today, when working with a buyer, there are no universal schemes that would be suitable for everyone and work regardless of the nature and preferences of the person. The approach to the client should be individual, and the behavior of the seller should change depending on who he communicates with. To understand how to sell furniture, on initial stage As a consultant, you need to learn the main types of customers, sales techniques and work with objections. At present, the usual sale of a product with a story about its benefits is ineffective, the seller should learn

Customer focus: basic steps

The customer-centric approach consists of several steps, which must be performed sequentially, one after the other:

1. Training.
2. Making contact with the client.
3. Identification of his needs.
4. Product presentation.
5. Work with objections.
6. Deal.

The first step is preparation. It consists of the following items:

1. Product knowledge.
2. Customer insight.
3. Studying competitors.
4. Appearance.
5. Sales skills.
6. Planning.
7. Appearance.

The basic principle of customer-oriented sales is: "Don't sell a product to a customer, but help him buy it." To do this, you need to understand the desires of the client and be able to put yourself in his place. But how to do it and learn how to help the client with the choice of the product he needs?

The Importance of Product Research

A seller who wants to figure out how to learn how to sell furniture, first of all, must thoroughly study the product with which he works. It is important that the consultant could answer any question about him immediately, without hesitation and without asking anyone again.

The most common questions from customers when buying furniture:

1. Complete set - what items are included in the price, and what needs to be bought separately. For example, is a mirror included in the cost of the hallway.
2. Color scheme - the furniture is chosen for the interior, so it is important for the client to know if it is available suitable shade and if not, can it be ordered.
3. Manufacturer - most people prefer well-known companies that they have heard a lot about and can trust, as well as domestic brands. If the firm is unknown, they want to know more about it.
4. Possibility additional equipment- Is it possible to add or change something in the furniture set. For example, for sofas can be sold various options covers that the customer is willing to purchase in the future, if color design its interior will change.

Discounts as motivation to buy

When making a purchasing decision, the cost of a product is not as important as it might seem. According to the marketing research, the average buyer is able to change his mind about the acceptable cost of goods up to + 20%. The cost is always on the same scale with the goods, and the seller's task is to make these scales swing in the right direction. But the client must clearly understand why he should pay more in this particular case.

Discounts are of last interest to customers, since most of the promotions can be repeated in other stores, so they have ceased to be an advantage. But they can serve as an additional motivation when buying, if all other factors, except for the cost, are satisfactory. Having studied the product, the seller needs to learn how to find out the needs of his client and become familiar with the basic sales techniques in order to learn how to plan communication with potential buyers. Next, you need to study what similar positions competitors offer and how they work with buyers.

Dress code for a furniture sales assistant

At the next stage, even if the organization does not have a dress code or corporate uniform, the consultant himself must bring his appearance in line with the standards of business attire. When entering the store, the client should immediately understand that he is in front of a specialist who can be contacted with a question, and not the same potential buyer like himself. As a representative of the company, the seller must look appropriate and stand out, causing his appearance client's trust. furniture, if you yourself look unpresentable at the same time? business style clothing makes you feel more confident and comfortable.

How to get in touch with a client

Working with a client begins with a greeting. Here it is very important to choose the right form for it and not to use hackneyed phrases that make everyone nervous, for example: “Do you have anything to suggest?”, “Have you already chosen?”, “Is there anything to help you with?” etc. At best, the buyer will laugh it off, but more often than not, such greetings cause everyone negative emotions and a desire to respond in a rude manner and leave the store. For typical questions, the client will always find a typical answer that does not encourage the continuation of the conversation.

"Hot" and "cold" clients

According to one theory, out of the total number of people, those who are ready to make a purchase right now will be no more than 5-10%. Such clients are called "hot". Trivial questions will make them immediately decide not in favor of the seller who asks them, and look for someone more professional. Doubting customers who want to buy, but have not yet decided on the desired characteristics of the product or its cost, will make up about 25%.

The rest of the people are “cold” customers who either wander aimlessly around the stores or are simply not ready to make a purchase right now. A separate question is how to sell furniture over the Internet, when the client simply views the offers, and does not communicate directly with the seller. Thus, most potential buyers are “cold”, but they are able to bring maximum profit to the store when correct work sales consultant. Therefore, if they are asked a question to force them to make a purchase decision that they are not ready for, this will only scare them off and seem like pressure to customers.

How to greet a customer

The seller, addressing the client, must first of all greet him and introduce himself. Next, experienced salespeople can act in different ways, for example, not to offer help in choosing right now, but to inform the client that they can be contacted with questions about the product. Sometimes consultants continue to obsessively follow the client on the heels and tell him about the characteristics of the product without waiting for questions. But in this case, the potential buyer will still not remember most of the information, and the sensations from communication will be unpleasant for him. People prefer to buy, but they don't like to feel like they're being sold. Even customers who are ready to make a purchase are likely to leave the store without listening to the seller. Excessive intrusiveness and information flows make you feel obligated to buy something, which causes discomfort. A conversation with a client should be a dialogue, not a monologue of one of the parties.

Identification of customer needs

Before selling furniture, the seller must find out the purpose of the client's arrival and in no case leave him unattended. Friendly communication without pressure and negativity is the optimal behavior strategy. Unfortunately, very often, before selling furniture, instead of identifying the values ​​of the buyer, sellers begin a thoughtless presentation of goods or begin to dryly list specifications. Efficiency and obsession are two different things. The client should feel comfortable and be able to walk around the store without the close attention of the seller. It is important to use an individual approach, speak the language of a potential buyer and talk about what is relevant to him. The conversation should be about the client, their goals and needs. With a negative attitude, the seller needs to back off.

How to ask the right questions

When working with a client, it is important to ask him the right questions. They can be of two types - open and closed. In the first case, a detailed answer will be required from the buyer, and in the second, confirmation or disagreement. Both options help to identify the needs of the client and are one of the important components of the sales technique. For example, before selling antique furniture, you can ask about what antiques the client already has. This will allow you to suggest an option that will be combined with them.

Clients with high incomes prefer products created in a single copy. Identification of such a desire will be one of the answers to the question of how to sell furniture self made. If the client answers a question with a question, the consultant can give a short presentation and talk about the benefits of the product, moving from the general to the specific. Then you need to take the initiative again and ask an open-ended question. When a salesperson knows how to ask questions and uses this skill effectively, he can quickly find common ground with buyers and respond to their needs. If you show initiative and activity, then there will be no problems and questions about how to sell furniture.

Product presentation

Product presentation is an important part of sales technique. Having identified several needs of the client, you can move on to it, or you can first find out the details. Only laudatory reviews about the product cause distrust of the buyer. Before selling upholstered furniture, the seller needs to look at it through the eyes of his client and find out what questions he may have. A need-based presentation, not a feature-based one, generates more customer engagement. Talking about new furniture, used furniture or just a project should be in a certain sequence. First, its properties are described, obvious characteristics that do not raise questions from the client.

How to describe the benefits of a product

Before selling cabinet furniture or another product, the consultant needs to carefully study both their and non-obvious characteristics or advantages that distinguish the product from others. At the end of the presentation, the seller should talk about the benefits that the client will receive if he purchases this particular furniture. The properties of the product tell the buyer what exactly he is buying, the benefits - why he does it, and the benefits - what he gets as a result of the purchase. It is important not to forget that the customer is looking for a product that can solve his problem. The seller only needs help in solving this problem.

In this case, Maslow's pyramid and focus on the needs of the buyer can help. For example, before selling old furniture, among its characteristics can be mentioned natural materials from which it is made. This will satisfy the client's basic need for security.

Work with objections

Common mistake sellers - disputes with customers instead of finding out what is behind their objections. But real work The professional begins exactly when the buyer says: “No”. In order to understand how to quickly sell furniture, the consultant must understand how to deal with objections and not be afraid of them. After listening to them, it is worth thanking the client and giving additional arguments in favor of buying your product. If you use Maslow's pyramid again, then it is worth considering that when working on this system with a complex client, you need to transfer him to a level with higher needs. This will allow you to sell furniture more expensive. For example, from the basic need for safety and health, switch his attention to the need for belonging. If the client is not particularly concerned about his own safety, he will definitely think about the safety of his loved ones.

Make a deal

The final stage of the work of any seller is the conclusion of the transaction. At this time, you need to act decisively and not overdo it, repelling the desire of the buyer to purchase the product. Completion of the sale and payment important point when you can't be wrong. The seller should pay attention to the client's signals about the readiness to make a purchase, stop the presentation in time and take him to the checkout. After confirming the order amount, you can offer additional products and services, such as an additional guarantee. It's also important to get the paperwork right. Then the seller should thank the client for the choice and spend it with a friendly goodbye.

If the customer is not ready to buy now

Another common mistake made by unprofessional salespeople is to lose interest in a client if they are not ready to make a deal right away. At this point, you can lose not only the future reward for work from one person. Offended by an inattentive attitude, the buyer will definitely use word of mouth and will share his dissatisfaction with relatives and friends who are unlikely to decide to purchase something in this store. Thus, the seller loses several potential clients. A professional will definitely give you time to think, tell you about additional discounts and bonuses in the future, so that the buyer leaves with pleasant impressions and returns again some time later. You can ask the client for a phone number and offer to call him back later if a better offer appears. For an effective sale, the main thing is to do everything right, to solve the client's problem. Then he will definitely come back again and recommend the store to his friends.

Any changes in the company are stressful for the staff. Especially when it comes to something that employees desperately resist. Vitaliy Dubovik, business coach and managing partner of the ACTIVE SALES business school, shares a case study on how to teach sales to furniture designers who are used to creating, not selling.

I’ll tell you how we implemented changes in the Chef-Kitchen company, retail network for the sale of kitchens and furniture in Belarus and Russia.

I note that when the company decided to change and contacted us (it was 2012), the kitchen market was not that ready - many players simply had no idea what and how we were doing. Therefore, when the work with this company was completed, it turned out that in terms of the processes set, in our opinion, they were ahead of the entire furniture market by a couple of years.

But we had to work hard. We have been working with this company for about 2 years.

Problem

In this market segment, the functions of a designer and a seller are usually combined - a furniture designer must also be an active seller at the same time. But in fact, we saw that it is easier for a designer to draw projects than to sell furniture.

Therefore, the main problems of the company were that:

• Designers couldn't sell
• Discipline was not really high level
• The average check was lower than expected for both kitchens and appliances (which the chain also sold)
• Everyone was selling “as it turns out” - without adhering to any sales techniques

Of course, the company's management understood that something urgently needed to be changed, to do something useful for sales. The furniture market simply did not use all the tools for effective sales at that time.

But it was not easy to convey the problem to the employees, and even more so to solve it on our own. There were quite a few points of sale, constantly going around everyone and each time explaining how to sell - it was challenging task. Supervise all staff - even more so. Therefore, the company's management decided to contact us.

What goals have we set

After analyzing the preliminary situation in the company, we set ourselves several goals:

1. Increase the average check. To do this, it was necessary to teach sellers not only sales, but also upsells. We started with the simplest - we taught sellers to say: “This dining group is suitable for this kitchen”, “Usually they immediately buy a sink and a mixer from us.”

2. Influence the quality of the incoming stream. We controlled the conversion: we tracked and accounted for everyone who came to the salon from the site, listened to the presentation, made a drawing, measured it, and created a design project.

3. Increase the percentage of closing deals.

We were convinced of the correctness of these goals by visiting several salons of the company. After the first round in Belarus and Russia, the first results of the assessment appeared and new standards of work were outlined. It was decided to transfer them to the heads of the salons, and at that time the trainer began the process of evaluating and monitoring sales skills.

Preparing for change

Before we started implementing new customer service standards, we did the following:

1. Created a kitchen sales checklist. It had about 40 items. Among them, for example, a sales script, 6 detailed competencies and even examples of phrases that designers should say to clients. For example, finding out
customer needs can use questions: “How do you imagine your kitchen?”, “What is important to you when choosing a kitchen?”, “How many people do you have in your family?”, “How often do guests come to you?”, “What salons have you already been to?”

2. We went “to the fields” to measure the level of sales from designers and edit our standards. After evaluating each designer from Minsk to Volgograd, our checklist was overgrown with new items, words, expressions. For example, how to negotiate the next step: a meeting, phone call, etc. with every client.

3. Told all designers that we now have the best described sales experience.

We have formed new standard- a list of actions that should have led to the successful sale of the kitchen as soon as possible. And brought it to the staff.

This standard ruled out the previous principle: it is enough to let the client into the kitchen salon - let him look, if he likes it - he will buy it. Now designers had to first learn how to sell.

Sales training for designers

We used several methods at once.

1. The work of the coach. At first, he sat in the salon and watched how designers serve clients. Then I filled out the checklist and provided feedback to the seller-designer.

• Ability to establish contact and identify customer needs
• Kitchen Presentation Mastery
• Work with objections
• Closing the deal

In addition, the qualities from the checklist were measured: the ability to win over and clearly name competitive advantages, the ability to ask correct and open questions, translate all negative reactions into agreement, agree on the next step - measuring the kitchen, drawing the project.

3. We compared TP estimates with those of field managers and compared with actual sales. Based on the results of this analysis, we understood what and where to tweak in order to increase sales.

4. Once a period (quarter / half a year) a training was held on sales of kitchens in the salon.

We have been using this system for over 2 years.

The difficulties we faced

Now I can say with confidence that the most difficult category in sales training is furniture and kitchen designers to order. I confess that I have not met with stronger resistance. Feedback was the hardest part of the learning process. During our work, we managed to create and implement all possible sales standards: a sales book, coaching, certification, sales scripts, an assessment center using the Assessment Center method for top managers ... In general, almost the entire set. But putting it all into practice was not easy.

Designers are creative people, they know how and love to draw, not to sell. Their right hemisphere works more and better than the left. Therefore, to convey to them why they need to learn to sell and, as a result, teach them was the most difficult thing.

results

Nevertheless, in 2 years we saw a significant growth of the company - in all measured indicators of the level of service and sales. The main thing is that we wrote down all the processes, conveyed them to the sellers and managed to convince them of the need to sell, and not just draw. As a result:

• The level of development of competencies according to our checklist has risen: for individual designers in Russia and Belarus - up to 93%, on average - by 76%
• The average check increased by 14%
• Discipline has gotten much better.
• Increased KPI
• Designers have become like sellers!

It is clear that a rare Belarusian company can say that each of its employees has a clear understanding of all the processes of the service standard in their heads. Although all processes are prescribed and regulated.

But in my example, the processes are constantly being adjusted, which means they work in a real business.

Director's opinion:

After the work done, we understood a lot and changed. We tried to take into account all the findings. During the audit of our company, we began to improve every process in sales and after-sales service kitchens.

For example, now designers, finding out the need, began to communicate even more closely with the client before drawing the project. Gradually, but things are moving forward. And as a result, we see that at the output the client gets what he wanted. The degree of satisfaction is constantly increasing - the growth of orders on the recommendation of designers-managers after the work done amounted to 24%.

Consulting managers often have a hard time, so I would like to highlight a few key points on the issue of how to properly sell furniture. We hope that this will help you in the future when communicating with customers and will help increase the level of sales. How to communicate with buyers?

First of all, you need to imagine yourself in the place of the client. Furniture is an expensive commodity, regardless of financial well-being, buying furniture is not done impulsively. Often, the very fact of purchasing furniture is a significant event or is associated with it. In this regard, customers have a lot of anxiety and doubts, because with a new acquisition they will have to live side by side for more than one year. Very often, the client needs to take into account when buying not only his opinion. There are many reasons why people buy new furniture and they are usually typical: repairs, moving to new apartment, the birth of a child, the need for life changes.

Knowing these typical situations helps to identify the needs of the client, and you can ask a number of clarifying questions about them. Sometimes even the client himself does not think about some points, which can later be very important. And the manager, with the help of his leading questions, helps to make the right decision. It will be much more comfortable for the client to communicate with a manager who will quickly understand his desires and needs. After all, not everyone immediately clearly understands what kind of furniture they need. In addition, furniture is a product with many characteristics, so often people have superficial ideas about design features furniture or have high expectations regarding this product. You must know absolutely everything about the products and present information simply, clearly and concisely.

How to meet a buyer? This question is also very important. After all, this is the first impression about you, about the company, and we all know that people are greeted by clothes. To meet a buyer correctly means to observe his preferences, listen to what competitors offer. Be sure to say hello, this is not only a way to attract attention, because each of us would like a friendly attitude.

Offer quality products and always warn about the presence of marriage, because people can return to you. Always invite the client to study the contract so that there is no doubt about the reliability of your organization. By knowing how to properly sell furniture, you will ensure a good reputation for yourself and your company.

It is better to show the product with its “face”, if it is a sofa, then it is better to offer to sit down and lie down, point out its ergonomics and functionality. When presenting children's furniture, it is better to focus on environmentally friendly pure materials, voice the characteristics of materials, say about the strength of the frame, the absence sharp corners. It is better to approach the issue of price when you have already discussed the advantages in terms of quality and properties of your furniture.

Be sure to smile and make eye contact. Nothing is more conducive to working with clients than a frank desire to help. We hope that these simple tips on how to communicate with customers will help you in further work. Good luck!

Therefore, perhaps the main task of any furniture showroom is the work of "retaining" the visitor and leading him to the decision to make a purchase in this salon. Even confident in the quality and low prices I don’t want to let the client go to other salons, in the hope that he will establish himself in this opinion. There, the buyer can simply be persuaded.

And since the desire of the buyer to visit several stores when choosing furniture is a matter of consumer psychology, then its solution lies in the field of sales psychology. As well as the area of ​​​​transferring visitors to buyers is the responsibility of the sales staff, subject to its preparedness.

In order to effectively sell furniture and resolve all customer doubts (without additional customer bypassing other stores), the seller needs to take into account in his work a number of specific features, both the behavior of buyers when choosing furniture, and the furniture itself as a product. And more importantly, not just to know, but to be able to use these features in working with a client, to gently lead him to a purchase decision.

The specific features of buyers when choosing furniture are set by the product characteristics of the furniture:

1. FURNITURE BELONG TO THE CATEGORY OF GOODS OF HIGH COST.

Therefore, in the sale of furniture distinctive features are:

1.1. Increased demands of customers (both to the product and to the service).

In fact, the sale of furniture is always a VIP sale, regardless of the client's income level. In part, this is due to the fact that when selling an expensive product, every customer is important. But the factor of customer expectation is much more significant:

In sales practice: Taking into account these expectations in a special way, when establishing contact, accompanying the client and presenting the goods, the seller creates and maintains in the client a state conducive to making a purchase. The seller receives the attention and disposition of the client, and hence the opportunity to work with him (including with his doubts).

This is especially useful, since the high cost of the goods causes a state of doubt and increased anxiety in most customers.

1.2. Increased anxiety (doubts).

For most buyers, furniture is one of the important and infrequent purchases that he cannot afford often. And therefore, the client treats the purchase with special responsibility (after all, he will give a lot of money for himself, and he will have to live surrounded by this furniture for several years).

The natural reaction of the buyer in such conditions is doubt and increased anxiety, which to a large extent encourage the client to go around many stores before making a purchase.

In sales practice: The client, of course, can resolve his doubts himself ... But, perhaps, already in another store ... Or the seller can competently and imperceptibly help him in this. Since, his task is to keep the client in his store and bring him to the decision to buy in it.

1.3. Price factor.

When selling furniture, cost is one of the main limiting factors to making a purchase. Therefore, in the issue of cost, there are always objective and subjective limitations.

Distribution of credits and various forms payment by installments, in many ways resolve the objective limitations of the buyer, significantly expanding the range of goods available to him.

In sales practice: In sales practice: If, in addition to providing loans, there are sellers in the furniture salon who are able to expand the subjective restrictions of buyers regarding price and availability, then only then the credit policy reveals its full potential.

2. FURNITURE IS A MULTI-FACTORY PRODUCT.

Furniture as a product has many characteristics:

External (style, design, color, dimensions, etc.);
ergonomic (configuration options, usable space, ease of use, etc.);
quality (materials, fasteners, coating, etc.);
and much more.

And when making a purchase, the client also takes into account the characteristics of the room (space, geometry, colors, etc.), the furniture already available and the elements of the interior present, as well as their personal preferences and the preferences of those around them (relatives, friends ..., business partners), from on which this choice sometimes depends.

So a large number of factors that need to be taken into account - makes furniture a "difficult purchase".

Therefore, most buyers, when choosing furniture:

Does not have a clear, established idea of ​​the desired product and its characteristics and goes to the furniture salon with vague ideas or separately highlighted requirements for the product. This is what opens up great opportunities for the seller consultant (more on that later).

Has idealized expectations (more on that right now)

2.1. Idealized expectations

The client's expectations are often at odds with reality, namely with the available goods or the financial capabilities of the client himself. This requires the seller to be able to smooth the differences between the desires of the buyer and the available assortment, coordinating it with the expectations of the client.

In sales practice: A satisfied customer is the goal of any trade organization. But often, the client, coming for the product, has idealized expectations (and wishes) in relation to the product.

In the selection process, such a client "descends from heaven to earth" and still acquires the real product he needs, and not an idealized dream.

However, at the same time, he can “go down to earth” already in the next store, where unsatisfied expectations will lead him and where, having seen the same assortment, he will let go of his ideal and descend to considering the existing real product. He will buy the goods exactly ... But the store will be different.

And even after purchasing this product, the client will have a "residue" ... "Residue" in relation to the store where the purchase was made. Will the next time the customer start searching for a product from this store...? Hardly! And you probably don't want this to apply to your store?

Currently, there are more and more such clients. And they are very "attached" if they find what they want in their ideal.

And what is very important: Any salesperson can work well with such a client if he uses the technique of advanced presentation. A technique that allows the client to imperceptibly reduce his idealized expectations to real ones without destroying them. What creates a strong emotional attachment to this product, and hence customer satisfaction.

2.2. Doubts in the selection process.

Uncertainty, due to the many characteristics of furniture and the desire to take them all into account, cause the client to be uncertain and doubtful in his choice.

Exactly this feature encourages the customer to go around many stores and explains the psychology of the "customer-walker":

To resolve these doubts, the buyer, not yet having an idea about the furniture he needs (its characteristics), goes shopping and makes a decision on the spot.

And here, everything is the same as in matters of cost:

The client can decide on the characteristics of the desired furniture himself (the only question is "when" and "where" this will happen), or the seller can gently help him in this (and thereby lead the client to the decision to purchase a model available in the assortment of this store ).

Whether such a potential buyer goes further or becomes a client depends on the seller ... and characterizes the professionalism of the seller.

In sales practice: Such a client is an ideal object for the work of a sales consultant. The buyer does not yet have an established opinion and he easily lends himself external influence(provided that the seller owns the technologies for managing a client request).

2.3. Exposure of the buyer's opinion to external influence.

The buyer, not having an established opinion, intuitively feels that he can easily succumb to external influences and creates a "protective barrier" around him.

His typical behavior is detachment (isolation), and a typical response to an offer of help or recommendations from a sales assistant is a refusal or a typical phrase: "I'm just looking."

In sales practice: If the seller can get around this barrier through soft and unobtrusive contact, then he will receive an "easy" buyer, and the store will have a satisfied client. And if not, then another store will probably get that customer.

2.4. An individual way of making a decision (lack of a single purchase logic).

The multitude of factors influencing the buyer's preferences when choosing furniture, in turn, give rise to many individual strategies for making a purchase decision.

In sales practice: Template presentation models in the process of selling furniture show themselves as little effective. This makes the mastery of individual presentation, based on the personal characteristics of the client (values, key criteria, decision-making style) - the main working tool for effective work seller with any buyer.

3. MULTIPLE PERSONS ARE OFTEN INVOLVED IN BUYING FURNITURE.

3.1. Furniture is purchased, according to the needs of several people.

This is especially important when selling "home furniture". When the buyer takes into account not only his own opinion, but also the opinion of his loved ones, who may not be around at this time.

In sales practice: The ability of the seller to work with the client - to take into account the interests of other interested parties, allows you to expand the range of models offered, and reduce the likelihood of returning goods.

3.2. Several people (family or company) are involved in the furniture selection process.

In this case, the seller has to work with a group of people, and the opinions of these people may contradict each other.

In sales practice: To make a successful sale, such conditions require the seller to be able to establish and maintain group contact, identify a leader, coordinate disparate expectations and opinions, leading them to a compromise.

4. ADDITIONAL STRATEGIES.

In addition to the basic skills that every salesperson needs:

Establishing contact and trusting relationships;
collecting information about expectations, values ​​and opportunities;
managing the client's emotions (creating useful states: trust, interest, confidence, etc.);
use of speech impact strategies;
application various techniques presentation and objection handling.

In the sale of furniture, it is worth highlighting additional strategies:

4.1. Working with product catalogs

Not all products can be exhibited in the salon, and not all sellers are able to successfully make a presentation using catalogs. This significantly reduces the ability of the store to sell products, limiting it to only a visually presented assortment.

In sales practice: The ability of sellers to work with catalogs reduces the dependence of the sales volume of the salon on the presented selling space, significantly increasing the profitability of the store.

4.2. Double Selling Technique.

Furniture provides a great opportunity for a "twin selling" strategy: the strategy of selling additional accessories by linking them with a common buying logic to the purchase already made.

In sales practice: A simple but effective technique that allows you to significantly increase sales, because it increases the purchase amount (ideally, the purchase amount of each client).

Accounting for the above characteristic features furniture sales process and form success in working with the client, allowing not only to significantly increase sales, but also increase customer satisfaction.

Director of the Center for Business Development Technologies "ABION",
business coach, Alexey Skvortsov.

For owners, directors.

Attention! This free article is not part of the Uncensored Furniture Business course.

I hope for your understanding and forgiveness...

The fact is that I am writing from the standpoint of a person who works in furniture business, has been in furniture retail for more than one year. And it seems to me that I have the right to act as a person who has an idea about the furniture market.

Precisely because I have an idea about the state of affairs in the furniture market, I constantly write in my articles that “it’s difficult now, that it’s hard, that everyone owes everyone, that everyone survives” ... Forgive me for being blunt.

Those people who read more than my first article will confirm: I do not offer everyone universal “miracle solutions”, “instant results without effort”, “101% guarantee” and so on.

This would be equivalent to the fact that I would guarantee a person who decided to lose weight "to lose 20 kilograms in a week with absolutely no consequences." Believe me, I've lost weight, my maximum result- 10 kilograms per week (from 105 kg to 95 kg). At the same time, I simply didn’t eat anything all week, and by the end of the week I was falling down from weakness. This is not a healthy situation, but a health problem. Don't lose weight so fast. It will not work.

As you have noticed, I do not offer you a miracle remedy for overcoming the crisis. I just communicate with people of my circle, I try to be something useful to these people. In 99% of cases, the solutions I offer for certain tasks have been tested by me at my own furniture stores, so I do not offer you a pig in a poke, but only proven and workable strategies, promotions, and events.

Russia is a big country. And what works great in one region may not work at all in another. We understand this. Therefore, in almost every article I warn: experiment, do not immediately pump a lot of money into one unverified event, no matter how great this event may seem.

And then, I really want to believe that more and more normal people is doing business. Precisely normal, adequate, thinking. And not those who were born on time, cut down a lot of money on the transition from scarcity to satiety, and now they feel quite comfortable. I'm just happy for these people, God bless them. But among these people there are those (and quite a few) who do not develop, who are stuck in the nineties, who are still the “red director”, who have not worked in a competitive environment and will never learn. Competition touched these people only from one side: having earned on the transition from a shortage to an excess of money, these people stopped producing, stopped trading; now their business is commercial real estate, renting out space (the most best business). And you yourself know what is happening in this market segment now - everyone is building and leasing everything. Hard workers, like you and me, are simply not able to pull this strap of 500-1000 rubles per square meter. And now these people have begun to fuss, secretly offering both 300 and 100 rubles for renting a square meter. This is no longer a business, but a barryzhniye. And in fact, a business without competition is always a barry. And in the era of the rise and prosperity of these people, there was just no competition.

Well, why philosophize? I repeat, I want to deal with thinking and adequate people. It is for these people that my articles, my case, it is with these people that I am ready to communicate and cooperate.

And it is these people, I am sure, who understand best of all that no matter how sweetly and beautifully you wrap a piece of shit, it will still remain a piece of shit. But strawberries from the garden, no matter how dirty they are, will be washed off and remain juicy and tasty strawberries.

You have already managed to make sure, and those who have not yet managed to, will have time, that in each article we will definitely present you with a certain amount of really useful tips about the furniture business. This is not even advice at all, but simply we share our experience. Believe it or not, apply it or not - your right. We have checked everything for ourselves.

Here, in this article, we emphasize the usefulness of competition, the importance of the brain of a business owner, the trend towards change in the commercial real estate market, and most importantly, below you will find three important components for improving a business in a furniture store:

We did not invent anything, did not leaf through any textbooks, working through these three points. We just tried to analyze the obvious and hidden reasons for not buying furniture in our store.

Of course, you yourself understand that in order to fulfill especially the 2nd and 3rd points of the table, you will need a decent amount of working capital. Nothing to do about. And with this in our business now it is very difficult.

Good luck to you!