How many of the men out there have a remote control Helicopter or Car? How many of the women have spouses who have one?
Last weekend there was a new addition to my household: The SYMA S107 Gyro Metal Frame Coaxial 3 Channel Indoor Ready to Fly Helicopter. It reminds me of a Dragonfly -- one that has been hired by the FBI for a reconnaissance mission. It is quite fun.
It was sold before we ever walked into the store, so to be honest, the salesman didn't need any skills at all to convince us to part with our money. However, I thought his sales tactics were worth sharing with you:
- Not once was I addressed as a potential buyer. You notice how at the beginning of the email I didn't ask if any women had their own remote control vehicles? Apparently, toys of this nature only appeal to men...
- There was a lot of mumbo jumbo about batteries, charging, control, thrust, maneuverability and other such manly talk
- I did not get to try the toy out at the store. My "man" did.
You may notice that I felt a bit of gender discrimination at the point of sale. Aside from that, I was astonished to hear the salesman actually DOWN SELL! There were 4 or 5 models with a few different perks and bonuses to each one. As we were scoping out the really cool version with side shift thrusters, the salesman actually recommended a simpler version that was about $60 cheaper. Upon his recommendation, that is the model we went with. (A bit of research told me that the fancier version is used by 12 YEARS OLDS so I was a bit shocked that he didn't think we were up to the challenge.)
So, to bring this experience to a point, I want to ask you: How would you have sold that Helicopter? In hind sight, I would have pointed out all the incredibly fun benefits:
- It's practically indestructible
- It is REALLY fun(ny) to chase your family pets
- It serves as a great supervisor to the chef of the house. (I get a hover friend as I cook every night now)
- It is un-endless entertainment...until the battery dies, that is
I would have also gotten really excited about the perks of the more expensive models. Why not try?
I realize your store probably doesn't sell remote control helicopters (but you may want to consider looking into RC Boats), but that doesn't mean you and your staff aren't making some critical tactical errors of a similar nature.
It is next to impossible to set up your store for every single character description of buyer, but when making a presentation or "pitch", it is important to make every person in the discussion feel welcome and involved, because you never know how much power they have over the decision making process. Even the children!
Every now and then you may get nervous about losing a customer, and think that you have to lower the commitment level to keep them in your store. In reality, consumers want to be sold on a product that will suit them, not necessarily their price. There is line between being pushy and being profitable is only hazy when you are more concerned about your pocket book than your customer. Your bottom line is important, but keeping your customers happy and fulfilled is what will make your sales increase.
Comments
Rick,
The model we got was the The SYMA S107 Gyro Metal Frame Coaxial 3 Channel Indoor Ready to Fly Helicopter. After we bought it though, we searched online and are thinking of upgrading as well! I'll keep you posted. If we get an outdoors one eventually, we'll have to race you out at McCaulay Point one day.
This is funny. I was born wanting a remote control Helicopter so sales are a non-issue. I bought the cheaper one, down sold I guess. Then went back for the more expensive one because I figured Hey! The more expensive one MUST be easier to fly. I now have 2 sitting in a cupboard somewhere with various assorted new and newly broken pieces on them. His original "downsell" has made him twice the money LOL.
By the way, what chopper? I may need to go look because it sounds like they must even easier to fly than my 500 dollar ones! Plus I still have room in the cupboard ...................... just in case ..........