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Don't Sell Yourself Short When Negotiating
173 Plays15 days ago
In this episode, we'll be breaking down one of my recent sales where me and the homeowners went back and forth as they haggled for a lower price for the deal. This sale was a very important lesson in taking control while putting the customer's interests first.
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Transcript
Introduction & Journey
00:00:03
Speaker
Welcome to the Solarpreneur Podcast, where we teach you to take your solar business to the next level. My name is Taylor Armstrong. went from $50 in my bank account and struggling for groceries to closing 150 deals in the year and cracking the code on why sales reps fail.
00:00:19
Speaker
I teach you avoid the mistakes I made and bring in the top solar dogs of the industry to let you in on the secrets of generating more leads, falling up like a pro, and closing more deals.
00:00:31
Speaker
What is a solopreneur you might ask? A solopreneur is a new breed of solopro that is willing to do whatever it takes to achieve mastery and you are about to become one.
Analyzing Sales & Lessons
00:00:41
Speaker
Hey, what's going on solopreneurs? Today we're going be going through some live footage of yours truly and I'm to be detailing some mistakes I made, some things I did well in a recent sale that I made, specifically some mistakes made during the negotiation of this deal. So welcome to the podcast. My name is Taylor Armstrong. We're here to help you close more deals, generate more leads and referrals, and have a much easier and better time in the solar industry. Hope you're doing awesome and closing lots of deals, building up the moment or momentum for the summer or whenever you're listening to this. And a reminder, we are free and available on Apple, YouTube, Spotify, wherever you find your podcasts. So please spread the word and please leave us a review if you have not already. Would be much appreciated. Before we get into the topic of the show, if you have not checked out one of our Blitzes or hopped on a call with me or someone from our team, we have the link so you guys can inquire about joining us on a
00:01:41
Speaker
upcoming Blitz. Come hang out with yours truly and some of the top producers in the
Challenging Sales & Strategies
00:01:46
Speaker
industry. Okay, so let's jump into this. This was actually a deal I made today, the day of this recording. So fresh on my mind here. And i did close this account It actually turned into a two for one. We had a two houses on, it was one they had like an ADU, which is you know just a part, a separate house. they ah converted a section into a separate house on their property.
00:02:11
Speaker
We ended up closing both the deals. But ah these people, they were definitely haggling us. The wife, she was just asking over and over and over, hey, give me a better deal. What can we do to get a better deal?
00:02:22
Speaker
We did end up giving them a better deal, but I think I made some mistakes. Just sold this one a little less profitably than I could have.
Tools & Apps for Success
00:02:30
Speaker
yeah So I'm going to play some live footage, but just wanted to give a quick shout out to our sponsor. but You've heard us bring them up on the show before, but Ciro, they've had some ah things they've added, updated on their app. If you've not used Ciro, it's the easiest tool for a recording your customer conversations, your presentations, and getting real-time AI feedback. And then even better, sharing it with people on your team, with your managers, with other reps and getting feedback, which makes it extremely simple. And I'm just blown away about the features that they include in this.
00:03:05
Speaker
So I was just going through a few of them and They have a metrics tab now, and it breaks down the conversation time, the percentage of the conversation that you're speaking during, pacing, how fast you're speaking, the control, and pretty eye-opening. It compares you to top reps. So for example, in this recent sale I made, it says I was in control 13% the time, which it says top performers target 30% or higher.
00:03:31
Speaker
it shows me I need to do a better job about taking control, about ending my statements with questions. So I'm the one in control, right? The person who asked the questions is the one in control. it Goes through a whole bunch of other stats, but ah pretty cool, pretty eye opening. And then, of course, you can ask AI within the app things that you could have done better, which it already gave me several things that I know i can work on.
00:03:54
Speaker
okay And so let's jump into part of this recording here. so I'm going to play and where the negotiation starts. We're getting towards the end of the cell. We've gone through numbers and I can tell they're just wanting the in their head. They expect the number to be better. They're wanting better. pricing. So let's see what they bring up here.
Negotiation Strategies & Reflections
00:04:16
Speaker
and then so and the next year i'll to up yeah cause i don't see so really have this What can we do to save more? Oh, fundamentally.
00:04:30
Speaker
um yes open
00:04:36
Speaker
mean way and see italy what can we do to say what one that wire
00:04:47
Speaker
me give you less far listen and you know then you still get an sdg need bill but you'd you'd rather be paying us than paying sd z and paying the fee down when they do that any double being tax and We're trying to get up off grid, but then... brandy south inch new there So,
00:05:08
Speaker
oh the Okay. So you can hear what's going on. We've gone through everything and the homeowner's like, go what can we do? We want a better deal.
00:05:19
Speaker
i was with um the person who set the appointment and he jumps in. He reiterates because I already told him multiple times that, hey, look, we can lower the monthly bill. Just use less panels and get less power.
00:05:33
Speaker
um But of course, they don't really want to do that. He reiterates it. You know, I think we could have maybe made the focus a little bit more on, hey, there's two options. You guys can live more comfortably or we can give you as much savings as possible. it just means you guys still need to be a little bit conservative. So what's the priority for you? Is it living more comfortably or is it saving as much as possible?
00:05:54
Speaker
And then, you know, emphasize that they're the ones in control the price. They can control it. So we already had stated this multiple times, but you know I think we could have been maybe a little more clear on that they they have those two options. And so mistake I made, i think I jumped in a little too soon. mean, I was just like, I really wanted to get this deal for this um the guy who set the appointment. And so I jumped in and started a negotiation. That's the first...
00:06:21
Speaker
I think small mistake, because you'll hear once I start talking, I made it clear that, hey, we probably can control some of this price. And um I think a smarter strategy would have been, hey, this is the numbers. mean, you guys have, this is the this third rate that you're getting, which is extremely...
00:06:38
Speaker
good rate. It's saving you 20% off your bill, which they already had a discount with the utility. So they were getting a really good deal already. And um if anything, maybe I could have said, hey, this is the rate, but if we can get it in, then ah they'd be willing to you know give them something in exchange to cover um maybe the first three months of their bill.
00:07:02
Speaker
So that way it's not really starting off the negotiation. Because once you go down that road, you're in it. And they know that, hey, this guy does have some control over the price. So let's squeeze as much as we can out of him.
00:07:13
Speaker
But if you can make the homeowner believe that that is the best offer you have, you've gone to bat for him, and This is just the rate. That's what they qualified for. Can't control. you have no control over that rate, but you can control maybe yeah covering the first three months of it.
00:07:30
Speaker
think it gives you more of the control, right? It makes the customer not feel that it's going to be like an endless negotiation. So in hindsight, I think I could have done a better job about yeah just keeping it control more like that instead of opening up this can of worms. So you'll you'll hear what happens next here.
00:07:48
Speaker
program one here
00:07:53
Speaker
one solution it fifth wait's for anyone you guys Referrer, they'll give you 500 bucks. Where's that? But maybe, don't know, I can make a call. if they'll, sometimes they have one or two exceptions they can make a month where they can redirect. We'd have to tell them that you guys are open to giving a referral. Besides ADU, is there anyone else you guys know that might be open that but to something like this? Solar, but that's... your last of them are teachers, yeah. only referal, I'm gonna get a stand to you.
00:08:24
Speaker
Well, yeah, mean... that's a separate action yeah Yeah, let me. You can really give it to me, instead of 25 cents. I can make a call, but.
00:08:35
Speaker
Yes. Yeah, I think that's all. Okay. So if I can get I can get him, Dave, agree to go down, don't know, give you guys an extra, don't know, 10, 15, don't even go 130, but.
00:08:47
Speaker
um thirty
00:08:54
Speaker
get both applications in. $15 a month. eighteen dollars a month a For how long? most So that would be on both houses. So that'd be like $30 off between two pieces for all alone life well the life. sha but but but In years, that dollars is be, it's just one,
00:09:18
Speaker
site yeah game its fifteen team as just understand you yeah they're already getting a yeah life prince sal bo is real time secret
00:09:28
Speaker
everything So you hear him jump in again. and this is the other mistake I made. i set the number on what they think the discount going to be. A good thing I did was you want to make sure you get an agreement from them. Because if I get them a better deal, then they better be signing up, right? They better not be playing games.
00:09:48
Speaker
The last thing you want is to go and make a make a call, do the manager close, and then then be like, okay, great. Yeah, let us think about it. We'll get but gap get back to you. No, you need to make it clear that if you are negotiating something, whether it's covering their first three months, whether it's an extra panel, whether it's whatever it is, make it clear that, hey, I'm doing this extra favor, but it comes with terms, right? The terms are we need to get applications in for both homes. We need to get the ball rolling.
00:10:17
Speaker
We need to take time out of the equation because that's you're doing extra work for them and you're cutting down your profits. So that is one thing that I made sure I did.
00:10:27
Speaker
i got the agreement from them to get everything going right away.
Advanced Negotiation Techniques
00:10:34
Speaker
So let's see what happens next. I can ask them.
00:10:39
Speaker
So here, why don't I this? I'll make a call, but the only, yeah, they would just, I just have to tell them, hey, we're going to get full to them starting today. I can say that, then there's a chance. 130, the only way. Yeah, mean, that would only be if we took panels off. No, no, no taking panels. Yeah, so I can ask them, possibly around 140. I'll give you $10 a month. Yeah, sorry.
00:11:02
Speaker
look
00:11:08
Speaker
That's when you knew the husband's on my side. the wife, she's pushing for like an extra $25 than the original number I showed her. I'm like, no way, that's not happening. If you want to use less power, then we can make it happen. And then she's like, no, no, no, give me this. Luckily, the husband steps in and kind of quiets her. He's like, hey, I'll give you $10 a month. like Let's just do this. That's when I knew they wanted it. These people, they wanted it.
00:11:32
Speaker
So long story short, just to keep this podcast on the shorter side today is I went, I made our manager call. Okay, for me, I stepped out of the home and then the reason I stepped out is because I had calculate the numbers myself and make sure we could even do this. If you have your numbers figured out, then great. and It is a good idea to call someone who can act as a manager.
00:11:52
Speaker
Really, this could be any person, right? um Let your teammates know, hey, if I call and I say, hey, ah we're with the homeowner, then you know they need to act as your manager and they need to give you a hard time a little bit, check the address,
00:12:07
Speaker
and ah give you the permission to cut that deal, right? Or cut whatever you're giving them. But in this case, I stepped out. I think it still works well. steps out Step outside the home, tell them I'm going to make a call, calculated my numbers, and then ah came back in and just made the decision, hey, we're going to take a lower commission on this one.
00:12:27
Speaker
The second one, we're going to make it a little more profitable. It essentially turned into the two deals we made you know, a little bit more than we make on one deal. So i ended up being basically like a deal and a half because we took a yeah lot smaller commission on the main account for that house. So yeah, we'll take we'll take the loss for the greater good, right? We still win. We gave the customer a great deal. But just remember, you don't have to give up the farm, right? Make sure you're negotiating and make sure that yout you don't just instantly give them whatever they want. hey I think I could have done a better job. i think I rushed too quick into giving them the control and letting letting them feel like they could have all the price and control that, which I could have controlled it better. But um even worse,
00:13:15
Speaker
There's also reps that would just give them what they want and ask for nothing in exchange. Remember, you need to always ask for something in exchange for whatever they're asking. Okay, a weak negotiator will give up everything and then your closing rate is going to go down. Makes you look weak, makes you look like not in control.
00:13:33
Speaker
and it lowers your authority. So don't be that guy. Control the process. If you do want to master negotiating, I'm going through the book, Never Split the Difference, one of my favorite books on negotiating, but it's by Chris Voss.
Recommended Resources
00:13:46
Speaker
So I'm listening to it, i think for the maybe third or fourth time, Audible.
00:13:50
Speaker
Might be on a Spotify too, if you have Spotify. But go listen to that book. So many great nuggets from that book that'll help you become a much better negotiator when it comes to situations like this. So I hope that gets the gears turning in your head. i hope that helps you on the next deal you need to close out there this week. Keep grinding out there. Send us your guests and topic suggestions for future episodes and click the link below if you want to consider joining us on a future blitz. Thanks so much for tuning in today and we'll see you on the next
Promotions & Special Offers
00:14:19
Speaker
podcast. So some of you already know that I run my own door-to-door sales team here in San Diego.
00:14:24
Speaker
And as we are gearing up for the summer, I realized if we do the same thing we always did, we're going to get the same results. But if I want to increase my deal flow, I need to do something different to get an advantage.
00:14:35
Speaker
Then we discovered an app called Solar Scout. But it's not a door knocking app. It's a data platform that shows us who is likely to go solar in our market. It shows us who has previously applied for solar but later canceled the deal, who has moved in recently, and even how much electricity the homes are using in a given neighborhood.
00:14:54
Speaker
It's been working for a lot of teams across the country and now I'm on board too. I'm going to be one of the first to use SolarScout in San Diego so I decided to partner up. But I told them, hey, I'm going to talk about SolarScout on my show, you need to give my listeners a great deal. And they did.
00:15:09
Speaker
So go to solarscout.app forward slash Taylor and book a demo with them and you'll get 10% off your first month when you sign up. That's solarscout.app forward slash Taylor.
00:15:22
Speaker
Okay, back to the show. What's up, solopreneurs? Hope you enjoyed the episode. Before you run out and start selling more solar yourself, wanted to let you know about an exciting new cheat sheet we created it specifically for you in mind.
00:15:38
Speaker
One of the top questions I get asked on Instagram, on Facebook, by our listeners is, Taylor, where should I start? What episodes should I listen to in the podcast? You got too many podcasts, man, because now we have over 200 episodes.
00:15:52
Speaker
So what we've done, we created the top 10 most downloaded, most listened to, and i would say widely accepted, most useful podcasts that we've done here on Solarpreneur.
00:16:05
Speaker
We put them together all in one sheet so you can go, you can hit the ground running, especially if you're new, you do not want to not have this sheet. So go download it right now. It's going to be at top10.solarpreneurs.com. Again, that's top10, the number 10,.solarpreneurs.com. Don't forget the S on solarpreneurs.
00:16:28
Speaker
We will have that in the show notes. Go download it right now. And especially if you have not listened to them, go listen to them and you can re-listen to them. That's going to show you how.
00:16:38
Speaker
So go download it and we'll see you on the other side.