The bottom line? Have the right people on the inside of the counter. Make sure they are properly trained with the latest in product knowledge, are asking the right questions and most importantly, they're confident in their ability to guide customers to the right tool for their job.
D. Michael Tramontin, director, marketing and distribution, Pacific Laser Systems
Your customers are primed for laser sales
Before too long every professional contractor will have some type of laser in his or her toolbox. The advancement of laser optics for tools has enabled manufacturers to design smaller, more durable and high utility alignment tools to suit the needs of a wide variety of professional building contractors.
The dealer serving these professional contractors needs to accept the premise that the majority of his customers can use a laser tool. The key for the dealer to open up laser sales is to know which laser is right for the trade he serves.
For example, a concrete form contractor is primarily interested in square and level reference outdoors. Therefore, the best laser is likely to be a product that can be used with a laser receiver, is fully self-leveling, and also has the range and accuracy to meet the needs of longer length projects.
An electrician may only want to establish vertical point-to-point reference indoors and so his laser will have different features than those lasers used outdoors. Inside salespeople should ask key questions that will help identify which laser tools are best for his customer, including:
- What is the toughest alignment task for that contractor?
- How often does the contractor encounter this alignment task?
The answer to these questions will spark debate, identify which features are required and help to outline the costs required to address the task.
