Pitching Big-Ticket Products: 3 Tips from a Custom Home Builder

Matt Doyle is the VP and Co-Founder of Excel Builders, a truly unique custom home builder, creating homes that make every day easier.

Closing a sale is hard, and its really tough when you’re trying to sell big ticket items. Clients are anxious about large purchases, even when they’ve already decided they’re ready to buy.

Due to that anxiety, sales techniques you’re used to can backfire. Humor can alienate nervous people, hard selling will get shut down fast with the stakes this high. You need a new strategy.

This is a subject I've had a lot of time to think about as someone who builds custom homes. My team may take several meetings to develop a good relationship with a client, and there is a lot to be considered before anyone signs a contract. I find that the following strategies can help you get past this early, shaky ground.

Lead with Real Stories

If you’ve had customers who have had amazing experiences with your products, that’s the first place you should begin. As an example, clients seem to enjoy when I talk about the most interesting ideas I've been asked to build. I mention features people planned for themselves that I’d never seen in a home before to give my clients something new to imagine.

When using examples, help clients imagine themselves in the place of someone else. Use stories that are what pollsters might call a demographic match. If you’re talking to a young couple, your examples should be stories about young couples. Naturally, the same would apply to families with teenagers or to retiring couples.

Tell them about people in their situation who have made positive changes by using your product.

Listen for What Matters to Them and Put the Benefits in That Context

If you’re listening carefully while you’re pitching to someone, you should be able to hear them communicate what would make the biggest difference for them.

Talk about the coolest things you love about your product, and listen for clues. For example, I would listen for things like “I always wished I had a home that…” or “My family does have a problem with running out of space”, “I’ve always wanted a yard that was safe for a big dog”.

These are all clues that the client is warming up to the idea of purchasing from you. They’ve put themselves in the frame of mind where they’re offering you a chance to make an argument about how they can get some of the things they’ve always wanted. They're waiting to see if you're listening, or just running through your lines.

Now, you need to focus on the things they identified as the most important to them, and work that into your pitch. Instead of just talking about people who were in the same position as them, start talking about people who wanted the same things they did, and how you helped them.

Use the Past Tense to Make The Decision Feel Less Stressful

Put clients in the mindset of being owners by presenting your examples as if they’re from the future looking back. Many decisions seem far less stressful when you imagine looking back with the matter already settled. It's a good way for getting people over the fear of making a substantial purchase as well.

Discuss topics like what they want to use the product for in 5, 10, or 20+ years. If your product is one that can be collected or passed on, ask them about their plans for either a later sale or future generations.

Ease the Most Common Worries about Big Ticket Purchases

Selling big-ticket items involves a lot of anxiety. By using the right approach, you can help ease that anxiety and keep your clients focused on the future possibilities. Do that by leading with real stories, keeping the conversation on what matters, and helping your clients imagine the next step by using the past-tense.