Make sure you keep reading for point number 8 as it will blow your mind!

People love to hear the sound of their own name, and after being at the Sofitel, I’m convinced there is no excuse for saying you have a hard time remembering people’s names.

When we walked down to breakfast every morning, they greeted me with “Good morning Mr Benson, room 3412?” Wow! There was over 700 people staying in the resort but they took the time to remember.

Remembering and using people’s names is so important because it shows you are listening and you care about the person, not just the sale.

They are for free and don’t cost you anything! It seemed like everyone loved working at the Sofitel and therefore it’s a place you want to be!

There is plenty to be happy about so SMILE!

When we walked down the corridors of the hotel, we often walked past a few of the room service staff attending to other rooms. They always greeted us with a big smile. In fact, every staff member that walked past us, whether they were doing the lawns, cleaning the pool or assisting other guests, they always acknowledged us.

In your dealership, make sure you acknowledge everyone you see. If you don’t know if they are being assisted, offer assistance. If you do know they are being assisted, but are standing alone, offer a refreshment. 

They say happy wife, happy life, but I think it’s happy kids, happy parents. 

If it was just greeting them by name, making them origami whilst we were waiting on our dinner, or giving them high five’s our kids thought the staff at the Sofitel were there best friends.

In your dealership, take an interest in the kids, have a lolly jar, give them balloons and get them comfortable in the kids area… This is your number 1 priority for a family looking to purchase

Everything was “no problem”… In sales when a customer makes a request we don’t know if we can answer, instead of saying, “well I’m not sure what we can do there” I encourage you to use, “no problem, let me find a solution to that for you"

This is a great line to ensure you are really looking to assist the client. When you answer a question, or at the completion of the customer visit or phone call always ask, “Is there anything else I can help you with today?"

People buy from people that take an interest in them. At the Sofitel, we were continually asked by staff what I would describe as their “go to” icebreakers.

They were "Where are you from?” "How long are you staying?” "First time to Bali?” "Where have you been in Bali?” “What’s the highlight so far?"

As sales people, we all need “go to” icebreakers to make a customer feel comfortable. Some of my favourites to use that are always positive (don’t talk about the bad weather) are, “have you visited our dealership before?” “why did you choose this car?” "what are your plans for the rest of the day?” “have you got some time off work to be here today?” “Did you hear about our sale?” 

I was blown away by this one… After having a great experience at the Sofitel, we went to stay in Legian for another week. When I was in Legian, I wrote a TripAdvisor review about our wonderful stay at the Sofitel. Within 24 hours of the review going live, I get a call at the hotel in Legian from the General Manager of the Sofitel. He was giving me a call to thank me for my wonderful review on TripAdvisor and express his pleasure that we had a great time. While on the phone he offered us a special table at their Brunch the next Sunday if we would like to return for it, as well as a car to pick us up from Legian!

Wow what a great idea! Let me ask you, when a customer leaves you a perfect CSI score do you personally ring them and thank them for it, and can you offer them a gift to say an extra thank you? How much would this do for your repeat and referral business. I think this is untapped as we often only call the customers that are unhappy instead of the customers that are happy.

 

If it was a reserved table for breakfast, continual complimentary beverages, notes and presents from housekeeping, the staff were always looking to make us feel like VIP’s. 

Let me encourage you in your dealership, how do you make a customer feel like a VIP instead of just another customer? 

When we were presented with the final bill upon checking out, i noticed the voice tonality from the staff member softened and quietened. 

Money is always a sensitive issue for people, an when you using a soft, quiet voice you show empathy and understanding towards that.

Let me encourage you when you present pricing on the vehicle to do the same all while assuming the sale.

So there you have it, 10 lessons I learnt in customer service from the Sofitel Nusa Dua in Bali. I bet you want to go now…!

Great selling !

dave@davebenson247.com

0427 384 774

davebenson247.com