How Do I Sell Roofs Door To Door?
I’m afraid we’ve made roofing sales too difficult… way. too. difficult.
We’re overwhelming salespeople with more information that they need to get started selling door to door. We need to take several steps back and start this conversation back at the beginning.
Where do we begin?
QUESTION: How do you eat an elephant?
ANSWER: One bite at a time!
We need to break door to door sales up into bite-sized chunks, don’t you agree?
If you can master the first chunk, you can start working on the second, and then the third chunk; you keep going until you’ve eaten every bite and you have yourself a sale.
Let’s begin with the first bite, okay?
Get To The Front Door
Don’t allow anything to distract you… get to the front door!
Yes, I know you have no clue what you’re doing because you either have too much information floating around in your head or you haven’t been given enough information about what to say when you do get to the front door (probably why you’re reading this article right now).
Listen, it’s going to be hard for you to make a sale until you consistently get out of your truck and get to the front door. If you’re going to drive around all day like your doors are welded shut, this is not going to be the job for you. Beg your old job to take you back because you’re not made for roofing sales.
Bottom line, if you can’t make it to the front door on a regular basis, you can’t sell roofs door to door.
Okay, now what?
Set The Hook
Assuming they come to the door, you’ll need something to say to capture their attention.
Don’t try getting fancy here!
Say something they want to hear and get to what you’re going to say quickly. Don’t worry about selling ice to Eskimos. Set your hook and see if they bite. Here’s a few opening lines you could try…
“Hey, I just came by to see if you’re still open to a free estimate on your roof?”
“We’re doing free roof inspections in the neighborhood. Who is your insurance company?”
“Your neighbor said I should come talk to you…”
In the wise words of Kevin Plank, former CEO of Under Armour, “If the answer is ‘No,’ our job is to get there as fast as possible.”
Think of yourself as an old-time gold miner. You’re digging through the dirt to find the gold. You’re not afraid of the dirt because that’s where you find the gold. At the same time, it’s good to remember you’re not looking for dirt; you’re looking for gold.
Depending on how your prospect replies at the front door, you’ve either got dirt or you’ve got gold.
If you’ve got dirt, meaning the answer is “No,” don’t waste your time on fancy rebuttals right now. Now is not the time to talk a stranger into trusting you. Save your objection handling for later in the sale, after you’ve built more trust & credibility. Thank your prospect for their time and move on to the next door.
If you’ve got gold, meaning the answer is anything other than a “No,” you have one of two options here. I’ll explain them both.
Make An Appointment (Option 1)
My preference is to make an appointment if you’ve got gold.
First of all, setting an appointment gives you the opportunity to come back later with more trust & credibility. You’ll no longer be a door-to-door stranger. You’ll be the person they’ve already talked to and the person they’re expecting.
Second, you might need to bring someone with more experience back with you for the appointment. Obviously, you’ve proven you can get out of the truck and now we know you can set the hook, but you may not feel 100% comfortable with what to say and do next. Setting the appointment buys you more time.
Get On The Roof (Option 2)
If you’ve got gold, and you’re comfortable doing a roof inspection by yourself, your next step is to get on the roof.
Your company should teach you what to look for when you’re inspecting a roof. If not, there’s tons of free YouTube videos on how to inspect a roof.
The inspection is where you document the reasons why your prospect will either accept an estimate from you, if you’re selling retail, or call their insurance company to file a claim.
If you use your phone or a tablet to take pictures, you’ll be able to share those pictures with your prospect after you finish your inspection. Plus, your roofing company may require you to upload your photos to their CRM (i.e. AccuLynx, JobNimbus, etc.). We all know a picture is worth a thousand words. May as well get plenty of pics!
The Kitchen Table
Once you’ve finished your inspection, your next step is to get to the kitchen table.
It’s more difficult–though not impossible–to sell a roof at the front door, out in the garage, or on the back porch. The front door is where salespeople get dismissed. The garage is where guys drink beer, hide out, and waste time. The back porch is for relaxing. The kitchen table is where important decisions are made. Get to the kitchen table!
“I think you’ll be interested in what I found on your roof. Is there a place we can sit down inside and I’ll show you what’s going on?”
If they won’t let you come inside, you probably don’t have a serious prospect. You can try moving to the next step (Make Your Presentation) at the front door or out in the garage if you would like, but I usually walk away (“I’m sorry. We’re not a good fit for each other. Have a nice day.”) because I prefer to do business with people who do business on my terms. If they’ll fight you now, just imagine what they’ll be like later if you are unfortunate enough to get their business.
Once you’ve mastered all five of the prior steps (e.g. get to the front door, set the hook, make an appointment, get on the roof, and then to the kitchen table), you are really close to making a door to door sale now. All you have to do now is nail the presentation. Easy peasy, right?
Make Your Presentation
Every roofing company has a slightly different roofing sales presentation.
There’s an advanced presentation I teach in the Roofing Salesman University, but you can make a good presentation by following a simple outline.
WHO
Remember, they don’t know you.
Maybe they’ve done a quick search online for your company, but maybe not. Your job is to set the frame for who you are and why they should be open to doing business with you.
Tell them who you are. Show them your BBB Accreditation, your insurance certificate or state license, give them a glimpse of who you are as a person. Warm things up so you’re presenting to someone who feels like they know you.
WHY
Remember all those pictures you took?
Now is the time to pull those pics out. Show them why you should give them a free estimate or why you’ll recommend calling in an insurance claim. Explain the damage. Paint the picture about what could go wrong if they don’t take care of things sooner rather than later.
WHAT
Tell them what to do next.
Do you want to come back and hand-deliver a free estimate? Tell them what to do next.
Do you want them to call their insurance company? Tell them what to do next.
Tell them the same way your Mom used to tell you what to do. In other words, tell them in an asking kind of way.
“Do you think I should put together an estimate for you?”
“Wouldn’t it be wise to go ahead and call your insurance company now?”
WHEN
Give them a timeline for when they should expect the next step and what they should do when it happens.
People don’t like to be left in the dark. If you can shine a light on the future, they’ll trust you more when what you said would happen actually happens.
“When your adjuster calls you, call me so I can be here for the insurance inspection.”
“When I finish your estimate, would Tuesday or Wednesday evening at 5 pm be better for you to go over it together?”
Close The Sale
You want to lock down the sale as soon as possible.
Don’t wait any longer than you have to wait. If you can close the deal before the insurance adjuster comes out, close the deal. You don’t want to do all of the work, help get the roof bought, only to find out they’re going to get three more bids before deciding. What a colossal waste of your time!
If you can close the deal before you deliver the estimate, close the deal. The point is, don’t wait for your prospect to make a decisions about whether or not they’ll do business with you. Strike while the iron is hot and get them to make a commitment.
Personally, I don’t push paperwork, but that doesn’t mean I don’t close the deal. There are better ways to get a strong commitment besides paper and ink or using a DocuSign(r). I walk you through my system step-by-step in the Sales Domination System.
Congratulations! You sold a roof going door to door.
Here’s the 7 Steps you took to make your sale…
- Get To The Front Door
- Set The Hook
- Make An Appointment
- Get On The Roof
- The Kitchen Table
- Make Your Presentation
- Close The Sale
Peace,
Mike
P.S. I realize you may have more questions about selling roofs door to door. You should subscribe to my 101 Sales Tips newsletter now. I’ll send you a fresh, hot sales tip every day for 101 days and you’ll get my direct email address.
Mike Coday
Mike started selling roofs in '95 while working as a youth pastor at a small church in North Texas. A decade later he transitioned to speaking at industry conferences and training outside sales teams. Today, he works exclusively as the premier consultant to roofing company owners who are driven for growth.
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