Why Should a Customer Choose You? Tips for Selling Your Handyman Services

Are you looking for a way to win more bids without dropping your price? Ok, good. Me, too.

Do you know WHY your customers hire you? If not, you may want to give this some serious thought.

Understanding why customers hire you instead of the other handyman businesses in town can give you serious leverage when bidding on jobs.

In this post, I’ll discuss the importance of getting inside your customers’ heads to find out exactly why they are hiring you. I’ll also provide some tips for selling your handyman services that will add to your bottom line.

Why do people choose Apple?

There’s a reason that Apple stocks have climbed so consistently (well, at least until recently), Apple understands what its target audience wants.  If you take a look at their ads, they DO NOT sell based on RAM, disk storage, and certainly not price.

Instead,  they sell an idea.  The idea that you can have the best product and be the envy of your friends, the idea that nothing else compares when considering quality, and the idea that you are part of an elite crowd.

You too can capitalize on this marketing strategy.

Understanding why a customer purchases your handyman services can give you a huge advantage.  Once you understand the real reason that they are hiring you, you can focus your efforts on communicating these benefits to other customers.  You can also address the concerns at the top of their minds and even concerns they didn’t know they had.

Once you’ve done this, price just isn’t as much of a factor.   

For example, let’s say a customer calls you to come out and repair their door that they had their friend install.  The door won’t’ latch, the customer is feeling a cold breeze when they stand by the door, and they just want it done right.

You can capitalize on this experience to get the sale.  You just need to sell them on the idea of the finished product.  Let them know that when you’re done, the door will work perfectly, with absolutely no draft.

Then, and this part is important, address their deeper desires.  Explain that they will save money on their power bill, the stress will be gone, and their family will be safe.  After all, that’s probably why they bought the door in the first place.

Why you and not him?

Here are a couple of reasons that I can think of.

• Reputation
• Quality of service
• Quality of workmanship
• Professionalism
• Trust
• Expertise
• Availability
• You answered the phone
• You had a professional website
• You came up first on google.
• They need emergency service and don’t have time to shop around.
• Supply and Demand (if you offer a service that nobody else does)
• Price

What is the real reason they are hiring anybody?

There are many reasons that homeowners hire a handyman.  They either don’t know how to do what we do, they physically can’t do what we do, or they don’t have the time or motivation to do what we do.

These are the reasons that they hire us to do the work, but they are not the reasons they want the work done.  Try to understand why they want the work done in the first place so you can leverage that knowledge to your advantage.

Examples:

A customer wants a new door installed because their house is cold and they’re fed up with being cold.  Tell them that when you’re done, they’ll be able to sit comfortably in their living room while watching their favorite show.

Maybe they just want something to look nice.  Why do they want it to look nice?  Most likely to impress their guests and feel better about themselves.  Tell them that when you’re done, they’ll be the envy of all the neighbors.

I’m NOT saying to lie to them or rip them off.  I’m just recommending to illustrate what you will provide for them.

What you are essentially doing by explaining the end result to them is giving them something tangible. Because at the beginning of the interaction, the only tangible item is price. Get their mind away from how much it costs so they can focus on how much it’s worth to them.  The picture that you paint in their minds is that tangible item necessary to do so.

How do you find out?

Just ask

This is the best way to find out why customers hired you. Hopefully, you have already asked how they found you.  Now, all you have to do is say “I know there are a lot of handymen in town and I appreciate you going with me.  So, what made you choose me?”

Survey

Give your customers a survey and ask the question there.  You could either print one out and give it to them with a stamp already on it, or you could go to www.surveymonkey.com and send it to them via e-mail.  Either way, this can be a powerful way to gain insight into your customers’ minds.

Where did they find you?

Use this information to help determine why they hired you.  If this customer is a referral from another client, think about what you did for the other client.  Were you especially friendly, did you do an awesome job, or did you drop your pants?  It’s likely that this customer is expecting the same.

If the lead came from Craigslist, you can be assured this customer is concerned with price.  However, you still have the chance to sell them on other factors other than price.

Did they hire you because of your website?  If so, you’ve probably already established some trust which will make the sale easier.  Make sure that whatever you communicate with them aligns with the content on your website.  After all, that’s why they called you.

Just listen

Sometimes customers will just come out and tell you why they called you instead of the next guy.  I’ve had several customers mention that they chose me because of my website.  Others have told me that the online reviews sold them (even though I have a couple of nasty ones).

Always be communicating

Have you ever heard the sales advice to “remember your ABC’s?  Always Be Closing.”

Michael Port, author of “Book Yourself Solid” recommends another approach that really stuck with me.  Instead of “always be closing”, he recommends “always be communicating.” What he means by this is to constantly communicate what you can offer your customers and how they can benefit from working with you.

I think this is great advice. Not only will you get more business, but your customers will be more excited about your services.

What do you think?  How do you get customers to choose you?  Leave your answers in the comments below.