From closing borders to shuttering schools, the current viral outbreak has a lot of people worried. In the roofing industry, the sales process is still a personal one. What are the implications for roofing salespeople, and the roofing industry as a whole in the coming months? We’ll discuss the possibilities, and some solutions, in this week’s blog.
I know, I know, you’ve seen enough news about the coronavirus to – ahem – make you sick. But as the news cycle swirls and the world continues to react to the spreading disease, I can’t help but wonder how all this might affect the roofing industry. Especially as spring approaches, this pandemic may result in some very real economic effects. In today’s post, I’ll ponder how our industry might be impacted by the virus if it continues to spread. I’ll also offer some ways that you can ready your business and sales team to deal with the evolving situation, and continue to grow.
(And before you ask, no, I’m not a doctor. So take all this with a grain of salt, and maybe a chill-pill.)
Selling without Getting Sick
“Coffee is for closers,” screams Alec Baldwin in Glengarry Glen Ross. But coughing is definitely not helping anyone close in the coming weeks. If your company still has people out knocking on doors, they’re likely to get more cold shoulders than usual this spring. As schools are closed, conventions are canceled, and surgical masks sell out, close contact with strangers is going to be avoided like the plague (sorry.)
Your sales team may see more cold shoulders this spring.
We’d suggest strategizing with your team and coming up with ways to add some personal space to the sales process, while still keeping things personal. Using flyers or ads to collect leads rather than door-knocking might be a more effective business practice overall, not just during a pandemic. And a quick call from your sales team may help qualify your customers before you try to schedule an on-site appointment.
When your sales team does need to interact with customers, safety should be at the front of their minds. Hand-washing, avoiding unnecessary physical contact, all basic, common-sense measures should be taken when meeting your clients. Consider instructing your estimators or sales team to have meetings out-doors whenever possible, and definitely consider streamlining your sales process with some software. We’d be happy to help you with that.
The Wuhan Shake may not be the best way to greet your customers, but it’s one way!
When your sales team does need to interact with customers, safety should be at the front of their minds. Hand-washing, avoiding unnecessary physical contact, all basic, common-sense measures should be taken when meeting your clients. Consider instructing your estimators or sales team to have meetings out-doors whenever possible, and definitely consider streamlining your sales process with some software. We’d be happy to help you with that.
The Real Questions
We can talk about pandemic best-practices all day, but the real impact on our industry remains to be seen. If responses to the pandemic start to include business closings, travel restrictions, and general societal breakdown, we may start to see slow-downs in every industry, not just our own. If, however, this blows over like a bad hangover caused by too many Coronas – or Buds, or Heinekens – then we may not see any effect at all!
In the meantime, it’s a good idea to take a look at your sales process and make sure that it’s not only safe but efficient. If you can save travel time and costs with say, a fully-remote measurement software, then you may want to take a look at our software’s features even before stocking your doomsday cellar. We offer online demos all week long, so schedule some time with us today!
Stay safe out there, and as always…
Happy Snapping!
