In his blog entry Do You Listen to Your Customers?, Skip Cohen stresses one rule: Use qualifying questions to help your customers tell you what they want.
Does it work? Here are two examples:
When Bambi Cantrell asks a bride to tell her about her bridal gown, she immediately picks up two invaluable pieces of information. First, the brand of the gown tells her how much the bride is willing to spend on something she feels is important. Second, because Bambi knows gowns, the type and design of the gown will relate to the style of photography, being more traditional and conservative or more contemporary.
Then there’s Doug Box, who does a great demonstration about defining what you’re customers are really asking. If a customer calls you and asks, “How much are your 8×10s?” What will you answer? Most photographers just put a price out there. Now, pretend you’re a baker and somebody calls and asks, “How much are your cakes?”
Your answer is going to be preceded by a series of qualifiers: “How many people do you want it to serve? What flavors do you want? Do you want anything written on top of the cake? Do you want it delivered or are you going to pick it up? Does anybody have a peanut allergy? Do you want an ice cream cake or…and the list would go on and on.
Skip stresses asking customers qualifying questions. The answers serve two purposes. 1) You get to dig deep into your basket of products and services to serve up the right one, and 2) Chances are you will not only delight your customers, but exceed their expectations.
So when you get that call about the price of your 8 x 10s, be confident! Take the time to think about your product line, your skill set and the vendors that make up your unique inventory.
You have so much to offer. Work it!
