Should we let their fingers do the walking?

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ArtLady

SGF, Supreme Grumble Framer
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Oct 13, 1999
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Lawrenceville, Georgia
When you are busy, alone in the gallery and have the customers lined up, invariably you will get a phone call from someone who wants to know "How much does it cost to frame a...?". I believe they are calling to eliminate us from their list of places to visit because they believe they can get a better price somewhere else or the process is too expensive for their budgets. Over the years I have tried several different responses. In my latest I tell them that "I can not respond to their question because it would be like calling a kitchen remodeler and asking how much does it cost to remodel a kitchen. There are many choices to be made." Then they usually respond "can't you give me a ball park?"

I believe that the customers who came in are more important.

How do the grumblers let their customer's fingers do the walking?

AL
 
I agree. I hate giving out prices over the phone! Sometimes it is a basic poster frame, but I still hate it. They also have a habit of calling when we are on the computer and can't get on it to give them a price. (We have lifesaver) I also do not appreciate other frame shops calling and checking my prices! This bothers me more then customers calling. We have caller ID, so I know this happens.
I also feel the customer in the shop should get the attention first. Years ago I had a customer get upset with me for answering the phone.
When we do get phone calls I ask them to come in to the shop, and explain that it is very difficult to come up with a price over the phone.
 
Always take care of the client in your shop first! They are the one who has taken the time to come to you. I will cometime use the response that I have a customer at the counter even though I do not as an excuse not to give a quote over the telephone. I will also ask for a part number of what they are looking for. If they have no idea what they are looking for I will quote that the "starting price" for framing is "$xx.xx". I have a list of sizes and prices for my least expensive frames to quote from. I go into no further detail than that.

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Jerome Feig CPF ISA
24242 Woodward Ave
Pleasant Ridge, MI 48069
 
We have a scripted, pat answer that everyone in our store is required to put into their own words and use whenever confronted with this situation. It goes like this:

"Since we're discussing a visual medium here, I would like to invite you into our store so that I can work with you to design the best possible look for your artwork. I will work within your price range and budget. We have a very wide range things to choose from and we have always been able to satisfy our customers on price".

The bottom line: GET THEM TO COME INTO YOUR STORE.
 
I usually tell people that there are many variables in custom framing and I cannot give them a price unless I know exactly what it is that I am giving them a price on.
 
Ask for a phone number and tell them you will call back.

This always happens when a new shop opens up.

I hesitate to give specifics but what if they are just beginning to frame and really have no idea. Men especially I have found will call in advance and will tend to be bigger spenders.

The customer is always right even when they aren't. It would be nice if we could hand pick all of them!
 
This sounds like a very common problem that every shop owner faces.It does however bring to mind a few axioms that I was taught over the years.
First: Some years ago a Psycologist named Horowitz said "If the phone is an annoyance take it out". Of course you can't do this and stay in busines,so manageing the calls is the answer. And "You catch a lot more flys with a ounce of sugar then a whole quart of vinegar." Which brings up the second point.
Second: "It's nice to be important but it's more important to be nice"sometimes when your in charge of everything it's very hard to be friendly ,but you had better.Don't you think if your abrupt with a caller they will pass this along to others?Of course ,even when you don't make a sale,Isn't the converse true?
An other more comical way to say this,"It takes 3000 attaboys to erase just one awww chit".And if your always making awww chits ???
Still another solution to the competition calling or just comparison shoppers is get Caller ID ,and when you know who it is a little friendly misinformation can go a long way towards controling things your way.
In a nut shell ,many things demand your time which you have little of but what makes the differenc is do you control them or are you allowing them to control you and give you a bad image?
I can't belive that we can't be business like and still be curtious,but then maybe thats why I'm not as succeessful as some.
BUDDY


[This message has been edited by BUDDY (edited 01-02-2000).]
 
Since part of your advertising budget went toward getting that potential customer to call, it makes sense to explain your situation, ask for a name and number and call them back. You can give them a bottom line price & tell them the cost goes up from there. Use one of the old sales phrases like "from costume jewelery to diamonds & gold", or "Volkswagen or Cadillac" to explain how the luxuries add up.

Also, I have to say, that I am amazed that a competitor would call to get prices knowing that knowing their name would show up on caller I.D.
 
jframe;
A possible reason that competitors call is that not everyone elects to have caller ID installed on there phone and therefore some who do not have it, forget that others do.That is why I sometimes call back to let them know that I do ,in a hope that they will quit calling.However this can be counter productive since all that is required is to go to another phone or use the caller block option.It is so easy in fact that I often wonder if the added cost is worth it.The real advantage is if you miss a call and forget to turn on your answer machine or if they don't like speaking to a machine you can simply hit the redial button and ask how you can help them.Most ligitimate customers appreciate the time you spend returning the call and somtimes so do we.Ater all in our area ,at least,there are a lot of competitors who take the time to know what we offer and are only a short finger walk away .
BUDDY

[This message has been edited by BUDDY (edited 01-03-2000).]

[This message has been edited by BUDDY (edited 01-03-2000).]
 
Competition calling for prices is okay. They are behaving like a good retail should and so should we. We should all be mindful of our competition and what they are charging. How else can we know where we stand in the economic community? This is information that we need when we make decisions. Don't be afraid if their prices are too low, because they are faced with the same conditions as you are and will go away. We all know how much labor is involved in this industry. However, until they do go away you may want to plan for those individuals who will be shopping price.

If you are aware that the competition is on the line, you might want to have a special price just for them. There is no reason that they should have acurate information to make their decisions. Good or bad if they are telling people about you it is publicity. You know what is real and they don't.

I say let them call and use it as opportuntity for you.

AL

[This message has been edited by ArtLady (edited 01-04-2000).]
 
ArtLady;
Unless I'm mistaken I think we just agreed on something(Check my second to last post).We do seem to have the same usage in mind for Caller IDs when Copetitors call.I also agree thattheir calling can be advantagious if we use the call properly.This can alo be true when customers call,annonamusly(or so they think). We can getA nice idea of what they considder important without them realizeing it.
I wonderdo we think alike and just don't know it?
BUDDY
 
Some of you poeple are MAD, not giving the customer a price over the phone is like telling them to go elsewhere, the person who phones your store still has money to put in your pocket. If you are concerned about answering the phone when busy with another customer... ASK the customer you are serving if it's okay with them (call them back). When the store down the road does their ring around and your caller ID shows it's them, try reversing the call as you answer it "Hi, can you give me a price on framing...", I've done this succesfully once it's hilarious.

When you do give a price ensure that the customer on the phone is aware that it is subject to change.
 
I try to answer the question as accurately as possible, while helping the caller understand how ridiculous the question is.

My usual response is: "Thanks for calling. Because our work is custom, we have almost infinite choices in materials, methods and special features. Your custom frame could cost from $50.00 to $1,500.00, depending on your choices. I suggest you bring in yout item(s); you can see some possibilities and we can talk about your options. In any case, please understand that asking us the price of a frame is like calling a furniture builder and asking the price of a custom made chair."

That usually puts things in perspective for the caller, and doesn't commit us to anything. If the call is a real inquiry, it isn't a wasted effort for the prospective customer.


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James Miller,PPFA-CPF; PPFA Certification Board Member; FACTS/GAFP Committee Member
 
A better example would be "How much does a house cost?" There are more variables in this example and a customer is more likely to understand how stupid their question is especially when they do not even know what size the image is or even what type of art they have.

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Jerome Feig CPF ISA
24242 Woodward Ave
Pleasant Ridge, MI 48069
 
Why do we advertise in the Yellow pages if we don't expect calls?

I had a wrong number call yesterday and the gentleman on the other end proceeded to ask just what we sold. He had heard of us but wasn't aware of our product. Now he is and just maybe he'll be my next new customer.

I made a call for a product myself, asked the prices and instock availability and 2 hours later spent my $300. The half hour they took to put all of the info into their new compter system almost made me change my mind.

[This message has been edited by JPete (edited 01-07-2000).]
 
The great telephone question:
"How much does it cost to frame a picture?"

I ask:
What kind of picture to you wish to frame?
About how big is the picture?

The second question is sometimes hard to get an answer so I use questions such as:
Is it as wide as your refrigerator?
Is it about the size of a phone book?

Using these two pieces of information I grab a price out of the back of my head gained from years of framing. I answer:

Customers often spend about 175 dollars to frame an art print of this size.

Then add:
There are lower price ways to frame but you may chose something costing more. If you bring your art print in we will show you a number of ways to frame it and tell you the exact price of framing so that you can make your decision.

Thank you

I believe I get 90% of people that call to come in and almost all leave the piece to be framed.
Scarfinger

PS That phone ringing when you are busy is annoying. You don't answer it until the third ring and use the time for those 2 extra rings to change your attitude and be ready to answer cheerfully.

[This message has been edited by Scarfinger (edited 01-07-2000).]
 
I have a hard time with this question too. In an attempt to "cut to the chase" one day I asked the caller "What do you do for a living?"
"House painter." was the reply,
"Great" says I,
"How much would it cost to paint my house?" The guy started to ask me all kinds of questions, paused and then said "I see what you mean."
I've used that story a lot since when I get those calls, The humor of it seems to disarm the question. Use it if you want.

Gary Blitsch
Humble Shopkeeper
Framewoods of Topeka

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Couldn't agree more than most of the above stated. However, there is one small caveat which might be added: I think it is a really fatal error to put any customer in the position of feeling patronized. We've all been faced with the retailer-putdown, and I can tell you that I would never set foot into a store where I had received such vibes over the phone. And I would broadcast my feelings widely. But then, we've probably all learned by now how to tell a customer to go to Hades without giving offense. (This just happens to be a hot button with me.)
smile.gif
 
We can not live our business lives fearing every notion an unidentified caller may conjer up in their minds. Remember that if they complain to other people it will only leave those other people wondering what the complainer did to elicit such a response. What goes around comes around. We can only positively do our best and be the most politically correct as we can be. If someone is still offended it is their problem not ours. There are those individuals that will always project their perceptions on to others. Our reputations will prevail. At some point it is reasonable in some fashion to draw the line to protect our ability to manage our business and time as we see fit. To try to please every caller is absurd. We can politely continue taking care of that business that is most profitable for us.

Since I started this grumble I think that it is time I shared some of my thoughts.

People who call on the phone for the most part are calling to eliminate you from their quest to get the lowest price, trying to determine if the expense is within their budgets or they want some comfort that you are the person that will get them the results they want. I needed to develop a script that would convince them to come into my gallery. I really like the response "Since this is a visual...". One of my favorites lines is "When you are done calling around checking prices call me last so you can be sure I've given you the best price." When they call back I tell them the price less 6% which I know is lower than anyone elses. My other strategy is to develop a rapport with them by asking what it is they want to frame and talking about the art and where it will be placed. By the time I am done they want to come in. I have learned that the first step in sales is developing a rapport. A customer will not make any purchases from someone that they do not like. Directing the conversation away from price and towards esthetics can be the first step in developing a loyal customer. So when I am "time challenged" I like to get names and numbers to call them back when I am more able to talk.

Sincerely

AL

PS-You all have my permission to do those tasks and use your time to pursue that which is most profitable for your business.

[This message has been edited by ArtLady (edited 01-09-2000).]
 
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