Vendors Using Fear to Sell You!
My Joke starts...A friend of mine walked into a Vendor's Hideout the other day, looking for a price. She had an idea of exactly the service she wanted, and how much she should pay for it.
As the door struck her in her brains she realized she'd just signed on for $400 more than she had budgeted for that Vendor, and she still wasn't quite sure what she was getting - she had no better mental picture of the Vendor at work than she did one hour before!
She had bought out of FEAR! Fear is an amazing Sales tool, a grand motivator.
Ever be in the market for a TV? The salesman will saunter over, help you find a price, rattle off some info until you settle on a model. "Can I wrap it up?" he asks as the sweat drizzles onto his collar, all the time thinking, "did I say that with too much gusto? Dammit, that'll cost you. Who is this guy anyway - here to buy a TV (or Photographer, Caterer, Venue or DJ) yet not knowing anything about any of the TV's. Look at him thinking - UH-OH! - thinking is the Opposite thing I want! No, Don't let him say it!!!
"I'll have to think about it!"
DAMN! Quickly, Car Salesman 101! Say it Say it!..."Well, we're selling lots of these, and it might not be here tomorrow!" (even though there are 6 more in boxes right under the shelf in plain sight! Idiot!).
Man walks to door, pauses, and turns back. "Okay, I'll take it!" Booyeh! Just slammed another one!
It happened to my friend at the caterers. It has happened to me and you. Let me ask you, in shopping for a Vendor (say, a DJ, for instance, or photographer), have you ever heard any of these phrases?...
1) Can someone else guarantee you that you'll at least HAVE a DJ on your Wedding Day? What if he dies?"
2) I wouldn't take the risk of ruining your Big Day just to save a few dollars, would you?
3) You could shop around, but we'll probably book by time you need us. Do you want that to happen?
4) Would you like a bite of my eggplant sandwich while we talk? Should I remove that sock from my desk? Did you ask for a price yet?
5) We can't match his service or caring, but we play over 500 weddings per year, and have over 20 DJs! Wouldn't you rather keep this informal and Let US handle your wedding?
6) Is Price important to you? What price do you put on a ruined wedding?
I've seen it, I've heard it, it bothered me when I was a young sales manager trying to avoid it! Selling with FEAR! "Buy this or you'll have a Terrible Wedding!" Then, the guilt..." And your guests will want Uplighting, and Shrimp Cocktail and a Fully Stocked Open Bar and Parent Albums!!! If you don't have these you're a horrible person!"
I've seen it! I've dealt with Vendors for 20 years, and they fall into 3 groups -
1) Those who really care about your wedding, and charge you a fair price
2) Salespeople who use other artists' talents to exploit you (the Guy who owns the company who won't tell you a price up front - the Car Salesman)
3) Artists who HATE doing business, hate all this "mingling and selling", but are trying to make a few bucks, so they charge you whatever the going rate is.
Of the three, beware the second. He will slam you into a contract faster than you know! But what DO YOU KNOW?
- Who will actually PLAY your wedding?
- Where are his Testimonials?
- Are their workers THAT interchangeable?
- Who's going to care FOR ME?... You leave there HOPING everything will be great, based on what that strange man said. What was his name?
* You leave the meeting with NOTHING but a Contract and a Prayer. You'll tell all your friends you made a Great Choice, because you don't want to share your fear.
The ONLY fear you should have regarding your wedding day is the fear that your fiance's idiot friends will paint him red the night before (word of advice - have the Wedding Dinner 2-3 days before the Wedding, and the Stag at least a week before. THEN, tie him down in a room the night before!).
When you choose a vendor you should walk away RELIEVED, feeling your choice was a good one, and you can trust this man or woman to do what you're paying him to do -
He's being paid TO CARE! From caring, all good things come.
Let's take our fear-mongering DJ Owner above...You dropped $1500 altogether when your budget was $1000 - and he made you pay $800 as a deposit, and the rest due in a month. Deposit's non-refundable, so you HAVE to stick with him, yet he can switch DJs on you tomorrow- you hired the company, not a person.
And what do you know about the service? You've heard some good things, and some not so good things. One of their DJs is fantastic, but you'll probably get one of the Lower Priced Package kid they farm the "under $1500" weddings out to. I've known many girls to send in the deposit check to book the date without even meeting anyone in the company. THEN, they complain that their wedding was mediocre!
When will you PLAN the reception with him? The inference was that when the time comes they'll gather your information on their "Interactive Website", and plan your wedding for you. Ever feel like a number in a big machine? PLANNING is everything (I've been doing it 20 years!), and here you're asked to make a few "musical suggestions" that the dj might get to! Or shots the photographer might take!
Do you see what I'm doing here? I'm Selling Fear right now! - What happens if that DJ or Photographer Doesn't Care?
It's a horrible game. I didn't even go into the Car Sales Tactics most of these morons use on you, degrading you! Take the caterer who, during the Tasting, sneaks in a mouthful of Premium Fare, and berates you for not offering that to your loved ones on "The Only Wedding Day You'll Ever Have!" - Car Sales 102 - Get them to drive the car (or the pricier food)!
The point I'm making is find a Vendor who will sit with you and Plan Your Wedding, and make you feel comfortable that They Truly Care about you, about your big day. The Vendor who sells with Fear has nothing else to show you! If he was so great, why opt to hide it? Why, instead of showing you HIS references, asking you to check them, has it not come up? Why is he vague about service, and boisterous about the add-ons...
"You can get our Basic Service for $1200, and that's great, but can you imagine your guests when we hand out air guitars and hula-hoops (extra $100)? Can you see their faces when our Gobo Laser etches your name across the dance floor ($300)? How can you live without the Shrimp? My God, THE Shrimp!!! You're a Terrible Person for neglecting your loved ones! You would slap them in the collective face for a few measly dollars? Oh...Ohh...The SHRIMP! (he grabs his sides, writhes in agony)...the Horror, The Horror!!!"
Then you hand him a deposit of $800?
Please, find someone that cares. Ask all the questions above, and get practical answers.
1) Every Good Vendor has a back-up plan, in case the man/woman you hired is in an accident (but it doesn't mean they have Carte Blanche when it comes to switching the DJ you chose to another wedding that pays more money!). It' good business. Ask. Also, will the DJ or Photographer have Back-up equipment on hand at the reception, just in case?
2) He should ALWAYS offer to sit Face-to-Face with you a week before the wedding and PLAN your wedding With you, taking any and all suggestions. He should also show you that he cares about your guests, and will try to make THEM happy too! Planning is Everything!
3) Upsells are good sometimes - don't ignore them. But don't be pushed into them either! The Basic Service should be affordable but Extraordinary - that's good business! Anything less is unacceptable to you.
4) Make sure the person playing your wedding has pages of impeccable, checkable Testimonials. Call/email those brides, and ask them anything you can think of. They'll help you more than any salesperson. In fact, references that you can check - references about THE particular DJ or Photographer doing your reception - are Crucial. You should fear NOT having them! Don't take "company references", get them for the guy playing your wedding.
"But we don't know yet whose going to be playing your wedding next September! But all our DJs are good!" Warning, warning!
5) I could have saved you all this time and pointed you to my "Tom's Tips for Hiring Vendors Page", but I wanted you to experience Fear Selling, since most Vendors learn to use that as a Closing technique. If a Vendor is confident enough to say, "Please check all the other Vendors, then sit with me again", hire him.