Question

This case study present you with sell scenarios that require you to apply the critical skills and give you training through simulation, role-playing and practical learning situations.

Case 12.2- "I Must Check with My Spouse" Charlie Brandon had been selling home furnishings for 8 years. He had worked for high-end c and discount outlets. And throughout his career, he had encountered more objections than even he had t possible. Some people wouldn't buy leather furniture because they thought it felt hot; others thought it felt (The truth was that leather always conforms to room temperature.) Charlie had worked out responses to mos objections. It didn't mean that all customers actually bought, but Charlie never blamed himself for being to help most customers make a buying decision in their own interest. But there was one objection that stumped Charlie nearly every time, and that was some variant on, "I must check with my husband/wife. ompanies There were, in Charlies experience, two problems with this objection. In the first place, it could often be used to mask a more important, yet hidden, objection. And second, by invoking the privacy of the marital bond, customer could thwart probing questions that might be considered offensive. Moreover, whenever this objection surfaced, Charlie knew that a customer rarely returned with spouse in tow. Even if they did return together, the second spouse was often grumpy and usually found some pretext to veto a purchase: the merchandise was al the wrong color," "the wrong size," or "too expensive." It just never worked. Now that Charlie had accepted a new position with a mid-level retailer, he thought he would attempt address the problem again. Perhaps Tanya, his new manager, could shed some light on how to handle the spousal objection. Having explained his previous difficulty with this objection, Charlie complained, "I just dont know what to do, Tanya. Now, every time a customer raises this objection, I just freeze. "Well, Charlie, I have two suggestions for you" Tanya replied. "First, you need to qualify your customer more carefully and earlier in the process. When a man or woman comes in alone, find some way to ask who the merchandise is for, who is involved in the selection process. If another person must be consulted for what reason, then make just enough of a presentation to keep the customer in front of you interested and pres definite appointment so they can be assured of your full attention "What's the second suggestion?" asked Charlie. "The second suggestion applies later in the process, when your attempting to close after having made a presentation. Perhaps you couldn't qualify the customer for some reason. But now, you need to probe whether this is a real objection on its face or whether it masks some other concern," answered Tanya. "You need to come n with a list of gently probing, inoffensive questions Ok,I'll try" Charlie responded, somewhat apprehensively. Knowing what you've learned from Chapter 12, what sort of questions should Charlie ask? When should h

Answer 1

Question no 1:the sort of question Charlie should ask customers:If Charlie can follow suggestions of tanya, it would be more helpful. But he can do something more to raise sales. By following tanya's suggestion, if he asks the customers for  whom they are purchasing the merchandise for , then he can continue much further by asking about the tastes of person whom the customer is purchasing merchandise for.if the customer says if it  is for another person , then it is not enough if he knows about the tastes and purchasing pattern of customer. he should  ask about the intrests and behaviour and tastes of the person  for whom the customer Is purchasing the merchandise for. The details can be like their profession , age ,their passions etc.after getting a basic idea of the person for whom the product is purchased, then he should get a basic idea of the customer also since the customer is the person who will be buying the product. so in this case it is not enough the customer is satisfied .the person for whom the product is being purchased should also be satisfied since he is the ultimate user of product. If he or she is not satisfied, then the customer may return the product. So basic questions here should start with  preferences and tastes of the person who will be using the product. If a customer tells that Charlie they have to check about the purchasing decision with their spouse or family members, then Charlie can ask basic questions about the tastes and preferences of the spouse of the person. Because here the product must satisfy not only the customer but also their respective spouse .so if Charlie knows about the taste of both the customer and their spouse then he can come up with the product that satisfies both of them if the customer returns to the store with their spouse . He can take contact information of customer if they tell they have to check the purchasing decision with their spouse and gently ask the customers if they want the   products which the customer wants their spouse to choose from to be kept aside because there will be another customers coming to the store and the product which this customer may wish to purchase when they come with spouse may be out of stock if the customer takes more time. Saying reasons like this Charlie can take the customers contact info and remind them of the product they wish to buy. If there are clearance sales discounts,season sales discount, etc then Charlie can persuade the customers who tell they will have to check with their spouse telling them they will lose the advantage of discount if they come with their spouse after the end of discount season. During this situation , he can ask the customers question about when they will return precisely with their spouse so that he can call the customers if they do not show up on time. Instead of making presentation about a product a one way conversation, Charlie must make the customer a part of presentation. He can ask the customer to criticize or appreciate about the product he I'd presenting so that he will know in more detail this aspects of product the customers like and which they dislike.then the customer will be able to interact freely without masking their concerns about buying of the product.this will make it easier for Charlie to make sure that customers are not masking their concerns and now since he knows in detail which aspects of a product the customers like and areas of product the customers want improvement. Then he can come up  with right products for the customers which the customer can't deny to purchase. Question no 2:when Charlie should stop asking customers:charlie can ask their contact info by gently saying he  will inform them about any updates about discounts , clearance sales of the company if they wish to. If they seem like ignoring it and skipping to other topic , it would be advisable not to stress much on that as they don't seem interested. If the spouse of customer is not intrested in product anyway, saying it is not right colour etc , Charlie should stop persuading and start showing product that he thinks which will satisfy both the customer and spouse .