Buying new appliances - How to communicate with your sales associate.

Are you ever annoyed by all the questions salespeople seem to ask? Have you ever wondered why they seem to be giving you a quiz, instead of helping you make your purchase?

Here's why this happens: Appliance sales folks work in an environment where there are many brands, many categories within the brands, and many products within the categories. Vastly different products perform different functions across a wide range of prices. When you bounce in and say you want a washer, the sale person has to ask a number of questions to help you find the product that most precisely fits your needs.

It's impolite and impertinent to just jump in and ask a customer how much she can afford or how big her family is, so a series of questions related to the size of the washer that might fit your needs and showing a couple of examples in different price ranges might help narrow the field. Of course, the sales person might also want to know whether your interests are in a front-load or a top-load washing machine.

One issue is that “you don't know what you don't know”. As a buyer, if you don't know the advantages and disadvantages of a front-load washer vs. a top-load then it's the sales associates job to help explain this in order for you to make a determination of which product will work best for you. The more you learn, the better informed you are, and the more likely you are to make the proper decision, yes? Well…yes, this is true up to a point.

Decison-making is about broadening the scope of the decison so you have a good spectrum of choices- an inductive process. A sales person should make sure that you have an idea of the range of possibilities that exist. BUT, there is also a time to switch from the inductive process to the deductive process. There is a “cost of additional knowledge” that becomes too great, and the decision-maker (buyer) needs to limit the alternatives and start narrowing the field. You and your sales associate should know when this transpires. You might even ask each other, “Have we looked at enough options here to begin zeroing in on the best fit?”

Maybe the most frustrating part of the sales process for both buyer and seller is to keep switching back and forth from the inductive, “let's look at what's out there” process to the deductive, “let's start making the best choice”. As a customer, you should be comfortable with the process and timeline, but you should also recognize when you are spinning your wheels. Don't waste your time and the sales person's time by moving from the inductive process of examining the alternatives to the deductive process of narrowing the choices and back again. By the way, sales people are at least as likely to switch back and forth this way as customers are, so you need to keep each other on track without being overbearing.

So, here's a good general rule for both customer and sales person. Set a couple of easy ground rules when you start working with each other. Customers need to briefly explain their situation, let the salesperson know where they are in the purchase process, and what their needs are. Salepeople need to explain their role and make sure that the customer is comfortable with their questions, direction, and guidance through the sales process.

The sales people at Universal Appliance and Kitchen Center are extremely knowledgable, yet they're also very efficient. They can give you all the information you need on products and prices to help make the very best decision that suits your specific needs without wasting your time. Call or visit today.

Universal Appliance and Kitchen Center
12025 Ventura Blvd. Ste B-105
Studio City, CA 91604
PH 877 696-2987
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