Your Field Techs – As Your Sales Reps?
Field technicians have always been one of the best (and sometimes the only) line of contact with customers. Unfortunately, most organizations don’t use their field service personnel to their full potential. Want to start utilizing your field technicians to increase your sales? Here’s five ways you can turn your field force into a profitable, selling machine:
- Go Mobile - Without a mobile device and application linking your techs to the back office, they won’t have the tools and data needed to successfully sell in the field. With customer and product information at their fingertips, however, they can become selling machines.
- Spare Parts Pricing/Ordering - Make spare parts pricing available to your techs and encourage them to use it. For example, if a tech replaces a part which needs frequent replacement, they could suggest the customer buy another to keep on hand, quote a price and place the order - all from their handheld device.
- Sales Support - Although not technically selling, the updating of contact information can be an important part of a company’s data. Field techs that are allowed to indicate updates to customer information can visit other departments while on a call and indicate the needed changes to customers’ records.
- Up-selling - Field techs can often see opportunities for up-selling products and services while on site. When one of these opportunities comes up, the tech can quote a price and sign the customer up on the spot via their mobile device.
- Train The Techs - Most field technicians aren’t natural born salespeople - and they don’t need to be. A little training, combined with their customer service skills, and they should be fine talking with customers about spare parts, contracts and other products you offer.