TALKING IN TERMS OF “YOU”
A splendid thing it is, and a needful part of every salesman’s make-up, to have loyalty for his house and a firm conviction in its high standard of business character. On the other hand, in his relations with the customer he should always remember that there is in the customer’s mind just one question and that is, “In what way will this thing be of benefit to me?” He is interested in the honesty of the house and the guarantee behind its word, he is interested in the salesman who serves him, he is interested in the style of the shoe, in its fit and wearing qualities only in so far as they are to be of special benefit to himself. It is for the salesman to appreciate and to take advantage of this fact in his treatment of the customer.
This same idea has been expressed in another way, as follows: “The man who is to be a success in selling must learn to ‘put the buyer in the picture.’” This is just another way of saying that the salesman, in his effort to serve, must convince the customer, at every turn, of the special advantages the goods hold for him. If the customer is a stout woman she is not interested to know that the shoe would look exceptionally well on a tall slender person, nor does she care especially that there are some very nice shoes in stock at twice the price she has to spend. From start to finish talk shoes for stout women of her height and around the price she has to spend, bearing in mind, of course, that she may be able to increase her idea of price.
In selling women’s suits and dresses, and men’s suits, too, there is a little trick of the trade to get the goods on the back of the prospective customer as soon as possible. The salesperson might show the customer a fine picture of a slim young miss wearing a similar pattern of dress as the one in which the woman expressed an interest, or the man might be shown the picture of a college boy wearing the same model as the one he inquired about, but the experienced salesperson knows better than to waste time that way. The moment he finds a suit in which the man, for instance, has shown an interest, he asks him to slip on the coat “just for the size,” and then leads him over to the mirror. What he has done, you will notice, is to place the customer in the picture, which is just exactly what appeals to every buyer.
Follow this cue from the experience of the clothing salesman. Plan the whole effort to please the customer from the moment he enters the store until you bid him “Good-by,” by showing him himself as the central figure in the picture.