Do you remember when you purchased your first vehicle? You probably did a lot of research to find the perfect car just for you. Then you probably determined your budget and calculated the monthly payment you could afford before heading into the dealer. People have come to expect payment options to help them improve their quality of life.
USE FINANCING AS A SELLING TOOL
Contractors are increasingly set up to offer financing, but do they use financing as a selling tool? It’s great to have a payment option available, but you’ll close significantly more deals by offering that payment option upfront. How many times have you left a quote with a customer and never heard back from them? They probably didn’t fuss about the cost in front of you, but as soon as you left, they immediately tried to figure out where to get the money. Not everyone has an extra $10,000 lying around, and even if they do, using someone else’s money for a while is a great option!
Like we mentioned earlier, when a customer walks into a car dealership, they aren’t usually thinking about the total price of the car. They’re thinking about how much they can afford per month. It’s no different when a customer is looking at getting a home improvement project done. Let’s face it, we aren’t talking about $500 jobs. We are talking about a house full of windows that are running them $10,000 or more. Typically, $119 a month is a lot more appealing to a customer than asking them to write you a check for $10,000.
I will leave you with this one last thought. When you’ve written up the quote and handed it over to the customer, did you tell them the price? Or did you offer a payment option upfront? What sounds better to you: $10,000 upfront or $119 a month?
