A sale is a transference of enthusiasm. It sounds so simple, but the problem is that as we stay in our industry, time and rejection whittle away at our enthusiasm until it is so weak that the loss can cost sales. I recently realized how important product enthusiasm is to facilitating sales.
My wife and I moved into a new condominium, and the first thing we did was put in an RO system. After a few weeks of enjoying the system, the handle on the faucet broke and we had no access to RO water. The experience was powerful. I was surprised to learn how much I took my RO system for granted.
Coffee Dilemma
The first morning I had coffee made with tap water, I saw the oil slick on top and it wasn’t appetizing. After 20 years of drinking RO water, I had forgotten about the oil slick. My wife and I found that the same coffee we love made with RO water tasted weak and bitter with tap water. We began to use more coffee grounds and cream to compensate for the bitter taste although it didn’t do much for the oil slick. Purchasing more coffee and cream added about $5 per month to my grocery bill, but the added expense was worth it to get rid of the bitter taste. I’ve since learned that the average person spends about $50 per month on take-out coffee, probably because he or she is not happy with the taste of coffee brewed at home.
Hidden Costs
After having my bitter coffee, I had to decide what to drink while at work. Before the RO faucet broke, I always brought four one-liter bottles of RO water to work with me every day. After the faucet broke, I tried bringing bottles filled with tap water but couldn’t get past the chlorine taste, so I started buying soda instead. At our offices one can of soda is $1, and I bought two per day. As a result, without RO water I spent $40 more per month just on soda. Research shows that the average American drinks 800 cans of soda per year, which is just over two cans per day. At home, I usually drink about two liters of RO water over the course of an evening. The first night at home with nothing but tap water, I had a strange desire for iced tea. I realized that my craving for iced tea was probably caused by my desire to mask the taste of the water. I started buying jugs of iced tea, which added another $5 per week or $20 per month to my grocery bill, plus I was ingesting even more caffeine.
Side Effects
Aside from the added costs, the most significant side effects due to the absence of RO water were physical. I started to feel unpleasant during the day and sleeping poorly at night. Drinking two caffeine-packed sodas each day caused the sleeping problems, and the blah feeling was caused by poor hydration. As a result of the RO being broken, I spent at least $65 more that month on replacement drinks. Worse yet, my body was working overtime to filter out the colors and chemicals in these new drinks.
Believe to Sell
If you had to live without your RO or other water treatment system, you would realize how many hidden costs there are, and you may have a different reaction when your customers say they can’t afford or don’t need an RO. So, I advise you to shut off your system or conditioner for a week or two and document the difference it makes to your life and your wallet.
In my experience, salespeople who don’t believe in the equipment they sell usually say things like, “We work the wells because it’s easier to sell,” or “I can’t sell in this area… the water is too soft.” Whenever salespeople make those statements it means they don’t value the equipment enough. Sure, some areas have water that is less hard than others, but almost all areas have objectionable chlorine. Just the extra costs I incurred by not having an RO are enough to pay for an RO and conditioner over a period of time.
Final Words
Sometimes we don’t appreciate the equipment, and the savings until they are gone. Again, I challenge you to shut off your equipment and see how it affects you and your family. Give it a try and let me know if it revives your belief in the equipment you sell. You can send your comments to davidson @carldavidson.com. wqp
