Transcript
Speaker: Welcome to the Solarpreneur Podcast where we teach you to take your solar business to the next level.
Speaker: My name is Taylor Armstrong.
Speaker: I went from $50 in my bank account and struggling for groceries to closing 150 deals in a year and cracking the code on why sales reps fell.
Speaker: I teach you to 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.
Speaker: What is a solarpreneur you might ask?
Speaker: A solarpreneur is a new breed of solar pro that is willing to do whatever it takes to achieve mastery and you are about to become one.
Speaker: What to do when your customer calls and cancels.
Speaker: One of the worst feelings we can get in solar is a customer calling saying they want to cancel and seeing that commission check go down the drain.
Speaker: But don't worry, we're going to talk about that and how you can turn it around.
Speaker: Welcome to the podcast.
Speaker: My name is Taylor Armstrong.
Speaker: We're here to help you close more deals, generate more leads and referrals, and have a much better time in the solar industry.
Speaker: We're going to be jamming on some cool stuff today.
Speaker: Welcome back to the show.
Speaker: Thanks for making it the first listen of every Tuesday and Friday.
Speaker: We are free and available on Apple Podcasts, on Spotify, on
Speaker: on iTunes, wherever you listen to podcasts.
Speaker: And I actually have a very special announcement today because we are actually free and available on one more platform now, and that's YouTube.
Speaker: Okay, so if you like YouTube, you're going to love tuning in the podcast on YouTube.
Speaker: We're going to be switching up the format a little bit.
Speaker: It's not always going to be the direct correlation between the podcast episode released and then the one on YouTube.
Speaker: We're going to, you know, cycle it.
Speaker: So hopefully that gives you a reason to
Speaker: still tune into the podcast, the audio version, but we're going to be dripping out new content on YouTube and some exclusive things that you're only going to be able to see on YouTube.
Speaker: So with that being said, I actually have a special announcement and that is we are doing a giveaway.
Speaker: Hey, and actually something that is super dope.
Speaker: We're giving away some solar tap cards.
Speaker: If you don't know what that is, it's actually made by the creators of RepCard, our friend Brad Mortensen, our friends over there.
Speaker: If you don't know what RepCard is, that is a digital business card.
Speaker: which everyone should be using in solar.
Speaker: These top cars though are how you can take it to another level.
Speaker: It's these cars, they have a QR code on back, they have on the front, it's a little kind of promo thing about solar, captures the attention and I've been using them.
Speaker: They're great.
Speaker: It's just different than your typical business card.
Speaker: People are more likely to keep it and these things are insanely high quality.
Speaker: So don't miss out on your chance to go in a whole box of these things.
Speaker: And they're not cheap either.
Speaker: Box these things goes for $129.
Speaker: So we're giving away two of them, maybe more if we get a lot of entries.
Speaker: So that giveaway is going to go till I believe it's June 25th.
Speaker: about a week and a half after the release of this episode.
Speaker: So go.
Speaker: The requirements are you got to leave a review on the podcast.
Speaker: You got to follow myself and Solar Printer Podcast on Instagram.
Speaker: My handle is Taylor J Armstrong.
Speaker: And then anything else I'm missing here with it?
Speaker: Oh, of course, you got to subscribe to the YouTube channel.
Speaker: Okay, so most important thing reason we're doing the giveaway.
Speaker: Yeah, but those three things and that's it.
Speaker: And then there's going to be a post about it.
Speaker: So you can just let us know when those things are done and you're going to be entered in to that raffle.
Speaker: Anyways, enough about the announcements.
Speaker: Let's jump into the meat of the show today.
Speaker: What we're all waiting for.
Speaker: And that is how do you handle these customers that call in to cancel?
Speaker: Hey, I had a customer last week.
Speaker: I faced this exact scenario, closed them up.
Speaker: They were good to go.
Speaker: They're excited about it.
Speaker: Seemed like everything was kosher.
Speaker: No concerns, really.
Speaker: And sure enough, I get a call the following day.
Speaker: Wife calls up, says, Taylor, we just want to cancel.
Speaker: Cancel it out for us.
Speaker: So I'm going to walk you through what I did.
Speaker: And this is going to be part one of two.
Speaker: I actually got an audio recording of some footage of this happening.
Speaker: So I'm going to release that next episode.
Speaker: Keep you on your toes.
Speaker: But this episode, I'm going to tell you what I did.
Speaker: And disclaimer, I did not save this deal, unfortunately.
Speaker: So maybe this is a bad example to be doing it.
Speaker: But these steps that I follow, it has allowed me to save dozens and dozens of deals in the past.
Speaker: Over the past, I haven't done these exact things, but seven years now I've been in solar.
Speaker: I've saved a lot of deals by implementing pieces of this.
Speaker: And now I implement all the steps I'm going to give you right here, right now.
Speaker: So tune in, even though I didn't save the deal this time, I have saved a lot of deals following these steps.
Speaker: So let's jump into it.
Speaker: Specifically, it's three things you got to do when you get that call.
Speaker: It's a terrible feeling.
Speaker: But here's what you do.
Speaker: Number one, you got to prevent the cancel.
Speaker: Okay, hopefully you can get to the point where you don't have people calling in to cancel.
Speaker: Luckily, I have not had many cancels lately.
Speaker: I've been fortunate.
Speaker: I've been blessed.
Speaker: But part of it is because typically I'm doing things to prevent these cancels.
Speaker: So hopefully you don't have to get this call because if you're doing a good enough job at preventing the cancel.
Speaker: then they're not going to call to cancel, right?
Speaker: And so that's a topic for another episode.
Speaker: We've done episodes on this, on how you can prevent cancels, but just a shorter version and a few pieces of advice with that are as much as possible, try to not sit in soft clothes, people.
Speaker: I know us in solar, a lot of us get in a bad habit of being like, oh,
Speaker: You can cancel later.
Speaker: We're just sending our checks out to see if the homes even qualify, but you don't need to commit 100% right now.
Speaker: These people should know that they're having pretty high level of commitment when they sign these documents.
Speaker: You should never be getting in the habit of saying, oh, we can sign it up, you can cancel until the day of the install.
Speaker: I've heard surprisingly many, many reps say this, even experienced reps.
Speaker: So get that soft close out of your head.
Speaker: And I'm not saying you need a hard close people every time.
Speaker: There's a push and a pull, there's a balance, right?
Speaker: But before you walk out of that house, people should know that you are not doing with the intention of them canceling the next day.
Speaker: Okay, so do everything you can to get them locked down.
Speaker: Before you leave the house, throw on lines like, hey, anything short of like a nuclear meltdown, do you guys see any reason that this wouldn't be a good idea?
Speaker: You're not going to call me tomorrow and tell me you change your mind, right?
Speaker: Lock those bad boys down.
Speaker: Figure out what you need to do to get them secure, to get them feeling good about the decision.
Speaker: Great thing to ask them if you're seeing uncertainty on people's faces as you're signing the deal.
Speaker: Don't shy away from it.
Speaker: Ask them, hey,
Speaker: Mr. Homeowner, how are you feeling about this?
Speaker: You guys excited to get your solar up there?
Speaker: Don't just leave hidden concerns.
Speaker: Figure out what it is and resolve those concerns in the home.
Speaker: Okay, so we'll do more episodes on this.
Speaker: We've done some in the past, but that's the first tip.
Speaker: Do everything possible to prevent the cancel in the first place.
Speaker: Tip number two, when you get that call from the customer of them canceling, I got the call the other day and the first reaction or your first instinct is to freak out.
Speaker: Be like, no, please don't cancel.
Speaker: Why are you doing this to me?
Speaker: We spent so much time together and guilt trip them.
Speaker: Don't do that.
Speaker: Get that gut reaction out of your habits.
Speaker: And when they call a cancel, don't react with panic.
Speaker: React with calmness and react as if you don't care if they cancel.
Speaker: Because the same thing in the deal, the same way you want them to feel like there's hundreds of people doing this program that you don't really care whether they do it or not, you want them to feel the same way as they're calling to cancel.
Speaker: If they sense that you're desperate, if they sense that commission breath, if they sense that, oh, this guy's doing everything he can to beg me not to cancel.
Speaker: Most people are going to want to cancel even more when you're doing that stuff.
Speaker: So knock that off.
Speaker: Respond with calmness.
Speaker: Respond like you got a dozen more people that are doing this.
Speaker: And hopefully you are in that situation because then people cancel and shouldn't matter that much.
Speaker: right?
Speaker: But even if you're not, even if that's the only customer in your pipeline right now, react as if you are fine if they cancel.
Speaker: You've got 20 other people signing up today.
Speaker: Okay, don't act needy.
Speaker: If you act needy or pushy or upset, it's only going to validate their decision more.
Speaker: But if you act with calmness and talk them through it, then you're going to have your shot.
Speaker: Okay, so that's step number two.
Speaker: Don't freak out.
Speaker: Don't panic.
Speaker: And step number three, and this is in my opinion, the most important piece of all this, figure out a way to get back in front of these people.
Speaker: I have very rarely saved deals over the phone.
Speaker: In fact, I can't even remember the last time I saved a deal over the phone unless it was like, there might've been a few times where it was like something extremely ridiculous they're canceling for.
Speaker: But in most cases, you're going to h ave a very low success rate saving deals over the phone.
Speaker: So what do you do?
Speaker: You get back in front of these people.
Speaker: You get back in person.
Speaker: You go back to their home.
Speaker: But the problem is most people, if you say, hey, let me come back, convince you why you should still do this.
Speaker: They're going to say no because people are smart.
Speaker: They know if you're going back in the home, they know it's just going back to try to convince them.
Speaker: They don't want to come back.
Speaker: They don't want you coming back, listening to another sales pitch and having to go through the whole thing.
Speaker: They just want a quick, easy process of canceling.
Speaker: So here's the secrets and here's what you must do.
Speaker: You got to give them a reason to come back.
Speaker: And what's the reason?
Speaker: The reason that works for me almost every time is you say, hey, so there's a form we have to fill out.
Speaker: I come back and fill that out with you just to start the cancellation process.
Speaker: Okay, and technically, yeah.
Speaker: Can they email that in?
Speaker: Of course, they can email in their cancellation form.
Speaker: But a lot of people, they don't know how to do that.
Speaker: Hey, and either way, you're going to use that reason to get back in front of them.
Speaker: You're not lying to them.
Speaker: You are legitimately going back to help them fill out the cancellation form to start the process.
Speaker: If you say it that way, if you frame it like that, 90% of people are going to be like, okay, yeah, come on by.
Speaker: And then you're using that to weasel your way back inside the home and get another conversation with them.
Speaker: Okay, so those are the steps.
Speaker: Very important.
Speaker: You must follow these steps if you want a chance at saving these people.
Speaker: And next episode, you're going to hear the live footage of me actually going back to a home.
Speaker: Me trying to get these people to stick with their solar agreements.
Speaker: I failed.
Speaker: I was unsuccessful.
Speaker: But you're going to hear why next episode.
Speaker: Okay, but that is the steps you need to follow.
Speaker: Number one.
Speaker: Do everything you can to prevent deals from canceling.
Speaker: Number two, don't panic over the phone.
Speaker: Respond with calmness.
Speaker: And number three, tell them you got to fill out a cancellation form.
Speaker: Explain to them that you need to come back with both husband and wife, right?
Speaker: To fill out that cancellation form to get this process started and then set a time that you're going to do that.
Speaker: Okay, and I think it goes without saying, again, just like the affirmation, just like you should be telling yourself, I got a dozen more of these people, I don't care if they cancel, you should have hopefully that same situation going on in your cells.
Speaker: Okay, the top producers in solar.
Speaker: I know a lot of top producers that they they actually don't even follow these steps because they don't have time.
Speaker: They literally have five more appointments to go to that day and they know they're going to sign up two or three of them.
Speaker: So someone cancels not a big deal.
Speaker: So maybe I should say that before I even start the episode.
Speaker: But I am not to that point.
Speaker: Hey, hopefully you can get to that level.
Speaker: And if you do have a bunch of people lined up, maybe you don't even attempt this.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: But I think some things you got to consider.
Speaker: How big is this system?
Speaker: What's the commission on it?
Speaker: Do you have appointments stacked up?
Speaker: Because if this is a deal you're only making a grand or two on,
Speaker: and you got more appointments coming up, then yeah, forget about it.
Speaker: Go close your other deals and it doesn't even matter.
Speaker: But if this is like a $20,000 commission, you best be going back to try to save that, right?
Speaker: So you got to weigh your decisions.
Speaker: Your time is valuable.
Speaker: We can make so much money in solar.
Speaker: So you got to be super picky with your time.
Speaker: So make sure this is worth your time and recognize, are they canceling?
Speaker: Figure out why they're canceling on the phone, right?
Speaker: I forgot to mention this.
Speaker: But when you're responding without panic, say, oh, sorry to hear that.
Speaker: What made you guys decide to stick with the utility?
Speaker: I'm just curious.
Speaker: And then most people will tell you over the phone, right?
Speaker: It's rare that they won't tell you.
Speaker: You spent time with them.
Speaker: So they're at least going to give you the reason.
Speaker: So figure out what the reason is.
Speaker: If it's something simple, try to handle it.
Speaker: But if it's more complex and they're going to need more convincing, that's when you go into saying you need to go back to their home to help them start the cancellation process.
Speaker: So figure out what that reason is and then that's going to give you the ammo when you go back and recognize is it a condition or is it an objection?
Speaker: A condition is a legitimate reason that they can't go solar.
Speaker: Maybe their husband died.
Speaker: Maybe their wife was diagnosed with cancer.
Speaker: Maybe they decided they're going to sell the home next month.
Speaker: Those are conditions.
Speaker: Those are legit reasons.
Speaker: Cases like that, probably not because those are conditions.
Speaker: They can't be solved.
Speaker: But is it an objection?
Speaker: The specific scenario for me last week is they had their realtor recommend to them that they shouldn't put the panels on their house because they were thinking of moving in the future.
Speaker: So in my head, I'm like, OK, that's kind of a condition, but not really.
Speaker: They don't have a exact time frame that they're going to move.
Speaker: I'm going to go back, see what I can make happen with this deal.
Speaker: And unfortunately, it didn't work out.
Speaker: But recognize that.
Speaker: Make sure you are not wasting time going back.
Speaker: If it's 100% going to cancel and you know that if it's for a very legitimate reason, then yeah, don't follow those steps.
Speaker: Just move on.
Speaker: Five more appointments.
Speaker: Close them up.
Speaker: But hopefully that helps.
Speaker: Send this to someone that has had their deals canceled lately.
Speaker: We're going to be diving into it.
Speaker: even more in depth hearing some live footage on the next episode.
Speaker: So I hope that helps you go close some deals today, continue to improve every week, every day, every hour, and we'll see you on the next episode.
Speaker: Peace.
Speaker: Hey, solopreneurs, are you sick and tired of spinning your wheels every month and not seeing your sales increase?
Speaker: Well, so was I. And the truth is I was never able to improve it until I figured out what was going wrong.
Speaker: So that's why I'm excited to announce for a limited time.
Speaker: We are doing a free sales diagnostic.
Speaker: We'll break down your sales process, figure out the holes in your business and see how we can help you improve.
Speaker: So at now we have six bucks for this month.
Speaker: So book a call now.
Speaker: Don't miss out.
Speaker: What you're going to do is send an email to taylor at solarpreneurs.com.
Speaker: That's taylor at solarpreneurs with an S dot com.
Speaker: I'll send you out a calendar link and we will figure out the time that works best.
Speaker: So shoot that email and let's increase your sales.
