The primary focus of this podcast episode revolves around the effective handling of one-leg appointments in residential HVAC sales. I elucidate the strategies and techniques that empower sales professionals to close deals successfully even when only one decision-maker is present. By engaging with the customer in a manner that fosters trust and understanding, we facilitate a deeper exploration of their needs, subsequently leveraging this intelligence to advocate for our solutions. I emphasize the importance of calling the absent partner during the appointment to secure their involvement, thus transforming the single-leg scenario into a collaborative decision-making process. Ultimately, this episode seeks to equip listeners with actionable insights that enhance their sales efficacy and reputation within the HVAC industry.

When you’re trying to sell to a couple, the sales process tends to get pretty standard. However, dealing with just one half of a couple can be a tricky task. It’s difficult to close at a single leg appointment, but it’s not impossible. Sam Wakefield teaches you how to make the most of these notoriously uncertain situations with gusto. Soon, you won’t even have to worry about single-leg appointments at all. Let Sam show you some of the best techniques to employ in order to make sure you close the sale because, after all, the logical conclusion to any well-executed sales process is a sale.

The discourse elucidates the intricacies of engaging with clients in HVAC sales, particularly focusing on the phenomenon of the one-leg appointment, wherein only one decision-maker is present during the sales interaction. I expound upon the strategic methodologies employed to successfully navigate such scenarios, emphasizing the necessity of thorough preparation and adept communication. The discussion underscores the importance of establishing rapport and trust with the present individual, thereby paving the way for a more fruitful dialogue regarding the needs and concerns that the absent partner may have. Moreover, I explore the psychological dynamics at play when dealing with a single decision-maker, noting that this configuration can often yield richer insights into the client’s motivations and pain points. By employing a comprehensive questioning strategy, I advocate for delving deeply into the client’s issues, which can later serve as persuasive ammunition when it comes time to present solutions. The conversation further highlights the art of transitioning from a one-on-one dialogue to a collaborative decision-making process involving the absent partner, advocating for the use of technology, such as three-way calls, to facilitate this transition. This method not only enhances efficiency but also strengthens the position of the salesperson by providing a united front with the client. Ultimately, the narrative culminates in practical advice on how to close the sale effectively during these interactions, stressing the significance of aligning the solution with the emotional and practical needs articulated by the client. The episode encapsulates the essence of building a relationship with clients while ensuring that both decision-makers are engaged in the process, thus enhancing the likelihood of a successful sale.

Welcome to Close it now, an H Vac sales training podcast with Sam Wakefield.

Here we'll build your reputation in residential H Vac sales to be the expert influencer in your market.

You'll get insight into the top minds in the industry as they share their skills and hacks to help you on your journey.

This podcast isn't just about selling more.

It's about understanding your customers needs and building efficiencies behind the scenes so you can sell more but work less while being top of mind when people think H Vac.

Now let's get started with your host of the Close it now podcast.

This is Sam Wakefield.

All right, welcome back.

Close It Now.

Sam Wakefield here.

Today's topic is a ton of fun.

I absolutely love to do this.

How do you handle the one leg appointment?

Is it possible to close the One Legger in the house?

And I'm here to tell you absolutely yes.

I do it all the time.

I've sold hundreds of systems like this and I'm here to tell you how.

So this is the situation where you show up to the appointment.

Typically it's midday, but it could be evening or weekend and one or the other of the partners is there, but not the second one.

That's what we always call the one leg appointment or the single legger.

Because in order to make any sale you have to imagine that there are typically there's two decision makers or one main decision maker and you.

So it's like a three legged stool.

If only two of the legs are there, it's going to fall over.

You can't sit on a two legged stool.

What do you do?

How does this work?

Well, one through the conversation of course you're finding out because your process is the same.

Obviously there's quick disqualification.

There's a whole school of thought out there that you find out right at the very beginning if they're the decision maker or not.

And you also find out, and then some people just instantly reset the appointment.

You'll find out if they're the only decision maker.

Some of the common questions you hear in sales programs for heating and air or just basically anything are, wow, is there anyone else interested in the results of our evaluation today?

Okay, well, great.

They really turn the pressure on and I don't believe in this.

I think there's a million ways to do it without doing this.

They'll turn the pressure on and they'll say something like, well, would it be more convenient for you if I just came back when you're both available?

Well, no, it wouldn't you're there right now.

They blocked off hours of their day for your appointment.

Don't be a jerk.

Don't be a douchebag and reschedule the appointment right then.

Not how we like to do it.

There are so many better ways because what you're doing there is.

You're in.

This is the recon mission.

This is the intelligence mission.

This is the fat finding mission.

Because I guarantee you the answers that you will get when you ask the questions to one or the other of the partners, if it's spouse or whatever it is, when the other person is not there, are different than the answers that you will get when they're both there.

The answers they give in front of the other person will absolutely be different.

However, once you have those answers, then they will hold their.

It's almost like they line up with you and you're side by side, shoulder to shoulder with the ammunition firing at the other person, they don't hardly stand a chance.

But to say yes, once you've gone through the process properly with the person who's there, and absolutely love this process because it's super powerful.

So what do you do?

How does this work?

Right?

Say, Raise your hand, say, sam, what the heck are you talking about?

Let's get to it.

Okay, so the visit is the same.

You go in, you do your.

Just exactly as you would.

You do your introduction, you introduce, you get their confidence and set the credibility pieces about your company.

You get their confidence up and you set their credibility pieces about you.

It's exactly the same.

They're getting used to you in their space.

Especially if so many people in our industry, you know, we've got male salespeople.

And this situation I'm talking about a lot of times is the housewife, the female person who's there.

So you have to overcome that initial level of guard being up, that uncomfortableness.

You've got to give them time.

And it could be any other way around, too.

I know a huge hats off to all of my female project managers out there.

You guys are awesome.

You're crushing it.

I love it.

We need more women salespeople in this industry because you absolutely rule the world.

So.

But getting into the situation, you're giving people time to get used to you show that you're not a threat.

It's not going to be weird.

This is just a professional conversation.

But you've taken control of the conversation.

You're running the process like you know to do so.

You've done those two introductions, you've set those Credibility pieces, you move into the questionnaire as normal.

But here's where there's some magic that really, really happens.

And if you're like me, and I've experienced this thousands of times, literally when you're in that type of situation, the person has more time.

When there's one person versus two, there's typically more time to answer the questions because one person is talking versus two.

So 99 times out of 100, I'm able to go a lot more in depth into the questions on the questionnaire, really ask the deeper layered questions.

Follow up with, when you ask the questions about room temperatures and questions about allergies and asthma and the noise level of the equipment, all those things follow them up with, oh, how so tell me more about that.

What's that?

Like those uncovering questions to really get them to talk about their hot buttons, their concerns, their big, big issues.

Because every bit of this is your ammunition when it comes to the end, when it comes to the clothes, because we can absolutely close it in the house.

I've done this so many times.

So you go through this process and the reason that this is important is you've done that, you've investigated, then you've come back around and you've shown them what's causing their problems, what we're going to do to fix it.

And you've really dove into the emotional side of, wow, imagine what it's going to be like when you're not having to experience that allergy issue anymore, or when little Johnny's room in the corner of the house, he doesn't have to sleep with that unsafe space heater in his room, when it's going to be the same temperature as the rest of the house, when he's going to not wake up with bloody nose from the low humidity because we're going to humidify the house, whatever it is, and you've covered that.

Then it comes time for the clothes.

You've gone over the different levels of equipment and all of this stuff, right?

But at this point, it's not about the equipment, it's about everything else.

It's about having the temperature even.

It's about all of the things.

And then when you're like, okay, well, now you mentioned, here's the important part of this podcast.

Now you mentioned that your partner is good.

Obviously, you know, you've got to compare everything, go over it all with them.

Well, is it possible to get them on the phone right now?

And you just ask, could we just three way on it and put them on speaker And I can go over all this with them.

That way it's more efficient, it saves you guys time.

And I will tell you that so many times, if it's the man or the woman or whatever, they'll say, yeah, no problem, I would love that.

That would be great.

And I'm like, that way I can answer all of your questions together and it's more efficient.

And that way you don't have to take a ton of time out of your schedules and the other time.

And it works really great this way.

So when they're willing to call the other person up, or sometimes they're like, okay, wait, great, before you get to the numbers, let me call them anyway.

Because they knew you were coming and he was going to be ready or she was going to be ready for me to call them.

So we could go over this anyway, so ask, do not be scared to say, well, let's just call them up and put them on speaker.

And when that happens, you get them on the speaker and do a quick recap.

But basically, let's get it.

Go on.

When you've spent so much time talking about how we're going to solve the problems in the House that that person we've been interacting with, building a relationship with, is concerned about, we get on the speakerphone and scenario number one, which happens most of the time, the person there says to the other person, and it's usually her to him, she says, man, I love this project.

She's they're going to tell them, I don't care what system we go with, but we absolutely have to do this air purifier thing they're talking about.

And we absolutely have to do, we've got to fix the temperature, they're going to fix the temperatures in the room.

They're going to do this, they're going to do that, they're going to do that.

I don't care what system you pick, but we have to do this other stuff.

Now.

Do you get an impression of the power of that?

Because now they're your advocate with the partner.

Basically, the partner doesn't have a choice now but to A, go with your company and B, she's already included all of the system enhancements, this accessories, the iaq, the additional duct work or whatever it is, the humidifier, the dehumidifier.

She's already included it in the package.

It's not an optional thing now because when she tells the partner, I don't care what system you pick, but they're going to fix this and they're going to fix this and they're going to fix that.

We have to do this part of it.

There's so much power there, it's a done deal.

The rest is just figuring out the details.

So of course the partner says, okay, well what do we got?

And so that's when you're prepared.

Of course, before you call them, be prepared with and give the quick nutshell of the different systems that are available and just tell them say, okay, well great, I can.

I've already got this other stuff that you're, you know, your wife, your partner or whatever just mentioned.

Here's the details of the different equipment.

And then be prepared with all of the prices bundled together with the system for a total.

Be prepared with your cash discount.

Be prepared what your financing options are.

So it's going to be this much a month, this much a month, this much a month or this much a month?

Which one works best for you?

We've got Tuesday or Thursday available.

The person there has already decided and it's so powerful, I will tell you, I've sold dozens and dozens and dozens and dozens of systems this way because now the rest is just figuring out their schedule and how they're going to pay for it.

They've already decided they're going with you.

They called you because they needed something anyway and because you are a professional.

Your deep dive into their issues and solving their actual concerns.

Those are the emotional drivers that cause people to take action immediately.

Remember, logic is the steering wheel, emotion is the gas pedal.

So that is how you can close the deal in the house.

With a single leg call on a three way and throw it on speaker.

Now are there some times when that's not available that doesn't happen?

Yes, of course there are.

Of course there are.

So that's when you don't again, you don't present pricing.

You say now, miss homeowner, Mr.

Homeowner.

This is a whole lot of information to remember.

Would it be easier for you if I came back?

I can come back tonight maybe after dinner and just go over all the details with your partner or when would be a good time?

When y' all can both be together, when we can get this knocked out.

We could go over all the details, answer your question.

I could compile everything and put it together in a nice presentation with pricing for you.

You know, easy to break out, easy method there.

When would be a good time?

Well, I don't know.

I'm not sure what their schedule's like.

Oh, well, can you text them and find out or call them real quick and we don't have to spend any time on the phone, but just find out and then we can reschedule that.

So that's the time to reschedule that second visit.

The go back, so to speak.

That's when you go back.

And then of course you're going to recap everything.

When you're recapping, it's really important too say, okay, now ask permission, say okay, I know we went all over all this before, but would you mind if I recapped for your partner here and then go back over the exact same intro, setting the confidence for the company, the confidence for you, and setting those credibility pieces for you in the company and then going through with them.

Say okay, now here's the questions that I went over with your partner here.

She mentioned or he mentioned that this room was hot and it was dusty over here and we've got this allergy issue and we've got high bills or whatever it is.

Recap it all and ask their opinion of all those things.

Then when you have them together, ask the all important question.

Did you guys have any concerns besides what we've already talked about that you would like me to know about?

Just asking what that question is.

That last question is going to tie them together and put them psychologically on the same team with you now to make this decision together.

And so it's just really powerful psychological things here because now that ties them together and they're everybody's unified at this point.

So you're like, great, well then, okay, well, if you don't have any other questions or no other concerns, I've put together a presentation to show you the pricing.

Would you mind if I show that to you now?

So then you're still going to go through the same process and go over all of the different levels of equipment again, just like you did with the one person.

And you know, several times throughout there, A lot of times what I'll do is I'll say, I know you've heard all this before, but it's important for you both to get the full explanation.

That way you can really make a good educated decision together.

So in essence what happens is you basically end up going over the whole process again, over the whole presentation almost again.

You can abbreviate some aspects of it, of course, you can nutshell some things, but if at any moment you miss some of the highlights and some of the key value points that your company does that, that they get with working with you, because there's a lot of Benefit to working with you directly versus working with somebody else.

They get you as their resource.

So going over all that, if they, if you miss or gloss over those value items when it comes time to show the price, your stack of value is not bigger than their stack of dollars.

Because that is the whole goal in the sales process.

The logical conclusion to a well executed sales process is.

And presentation is a sale.

That is the logical conclusion.

You don't go to a restaurant and order a meal and have a really fantastic service and not expect to pay the bill.

It's the same thing.

So we've got that well executed sales, presentation and process.

Show them all their options.

Then you show the pricing because.

And that's the reason for taking the time to go through all of the steps that we do.

That's the reason for the psychology.

That's the reason for doing things in the order that we do them.

Because it is your job, it is your mission as a sales professional to build your stack of value so tall that by the time you get to your pricing, their only thought is, oh my gosh, I hope we can.

We just hope and pray we can afford this person.

We hope we can afford this company.

So when that happens, you actually show your pricing.

It's almost always less than they expected.

Which is fantastic because then.

And then when you go any further and say, and look, we can do this really fantastic financing or here's how we can handle this and oh my gosh, you're going to realize part of this in the savings or can imagine what life is going to be like.

Let's go ahead and get on the calendar.

And once you do that, that is when everything will change for you.

Because it's that whole process.

Don't be scared of the process, don't be scared of the system.

It works.

It's powerful and it works in the right order.

The coolest part with this is if you do it over the phone.

And that's my favorite way to do it is over the three way call.

When you just wrap it up right then say, okay, cool, no problem.

We'll get a signature here.

You're like, okay, let's.

Great, let's get a signature.

Let's get it on the board.

Here's the details.

The next steps are.

That's my favorite close.

The next steps are.

It makes it so simple.

It's not a pressure, it's not asking for this high pressure.

Will you trust me with this project, which I love that one too.

But the next steps are, let's do this let's go ahead and get a signature here and we'll talk about how we want to pay for it.

And it's just so simple.

But that's my favorite.

I love, love, love to do the clothes at the kitchen table.

First visit, because we were able to.

To get the partner on speakerphone and go through the process.

So powerful.

Do not be scared to ask them, well, can we talk to them now?

Call them up.

Let's get them on speaker.

That way we can go over everything together and then it's great.

And so.

And every now and then they'll take you out speaker and they'll, you know, they'll walk into the other room and they'll, they'll.

And they always come back and say, okay, we decided to go with system B, system C, system D. Whichever system, it doesn't matter what system they go with.

At the end of the day, it's a sale.

At the end of the day, it shows us that's it.

I mean, we don't need a single person.

Never chase any one person.

We need people.

We don't need a person.

So your goal is to not be emotionally connected to one specific cell, but to be emotionally connected to all the cells.

Go into every house expecting that you're going to close it there then, right then.

Because your energy introduces you before you ever knock on the door.

And if you don't believe that, just go anywhere into a crowd and watch people, and you will feel the difference of people as they walk by.

Just have that vibe about somebody.

That's exactly what I'm talking about.

Have high energy.

It doesn't mean you have to be crazy.

It doesn't mean you have to be super outgoing, necessarily.

But having a high vibration, a high happiness, those moments where you feel like that nothing can stop you in the world.

And every single thing you attempt to do is get it, be a success.

Those are the moments that you get on that roll and you just keep closing deals.

I went on a roll one summer and did 20 in a row.

It was amazing.

I loved it because I just knew that every single person, every door I knocked on was going to close.

Because that's what people do.

It's not about becoming a good salesperson.

You have to just right now decide that, you know what?

I am a great salesperson.

And when you decide that, that's just what you do.

I close deals.

That is what I do.

It's in my being.

It's what my core belief is.

I close deals.

I am a closer.

Then you get the coffee.

You don't have to put the coffee down when you decide to be a closer.

So that's my extra for this recording.

I hope that was helpful.

Shoot me a message if you got some value from this.

Go to the website at close it now.net and check up with that big news.

We've got a YouTube channel coming.

I'll keep you posted with that and exciting things happening in this future.

So thank you for listening today.

I will talk to you guys soon.

Remember, you are saving the world one heat stroke at a time, one frostbite at a time.

Go out there and make a difference.

Thanks for listening to Close it now with Sam Wakefield.

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