Costco Connection - July 2007

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From ordinary customer to special GUEST

CHANGING YOUR perception of the people who approach your business can lead to more sales. This is the recommendation of Costco member Kelley Robertson, a sales expert based in Burlington, Ontario.

“A simple word such as ‘guest’ versus ‘customer’ can make a dramatic difference in the way we perceive the people who pay our salaries,” advises Robertson. “A customer is someone who makes a purchase. A guest, on the other hand, is someone we welcome with open arms and look forward to interacting with. A guest is more of a friend, someone we will treat with dignity and respect.”

Robertson suggests incorporating the acronym GUEST into a company’s sales method, creating a five-step process.

1. Greet your “guest.”

2. Uncover his or her needs and wants.

3. Explain the product or service.

4. Solve objections.

5. Tell the guest to buy.

The GUEST method replaces the nonactive, passive role or aggressive sales tactics utilized by most salespeople. Rather than waiting for guests to ask all the questions and respond to objections, salespeople should

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be proactive and raise questions to discern actual needs. This will allow them to adapt their presentation, mitigating objections and showing they’re prepared to solve the problem rather than simply make a sale. The key is not action but interaction.

Robertson stresses, “Stop treating your customers like a paycheck and view them as guests to your business. This may sound

awkward and initially difficult to comprehend, particularly if you have been accustomed to using aggressive selling tactics in order to close a sale. However, you will soon notice a difference in the way your customers respond to you. In return, they will be more willing to part with their hard-earned money.”

For more information from Robertson, seewww.RobertsonTrainingGroup.com. C

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