Mattress Retailing 101: Selling the Verlo way
Connecting bedding quality to better sleep
David Perry, Bedding Editor -- Furniture Today, February 28, 2008
Mundelein, Ill. — In the end, says Stuart Lazarus, a Verlo Mattress Factory Stores franchisee here, it is all about better sleep.
"Our ability to impact the quality of our customers' lives is immeasurable," he said. "This is one of the greatest ways we can enhance their quality of life. But people lose sight of the fact that we are selling better sleep."
Consumers know there is a connection between "the quality of their nights and the quality of their days," he said, but they become "desensitized" to the significance of a good night's sleep. "We need to remind them of that and highlight the features and benefits of the various sleep products we sell."
Lazarus operates four Verlo stores in this market in north Chicagoland and is a regular on the sales floor. He said it is important to take mattress sales one customer at a time.
"Every customer comes to us as an individual," he said. "If we lose sight of that, we lose the realization that we are impacting the quality of their life. We are not just selling a mattress."
He says bedding sales associates have a choice: "You can sell a mattress or you can engage in a discussion with your customer." All too often, he said, salespeople "are out to sell a mattress. They forget about what we can do to enhance our customer's quality of life."
But Lazarus chooses to engage in discussions. A good question, he said, is: "What about your current sleep situation is an issue in your life?"
Consumers have specific needs, needs that can be met with specific beds, Lazarus said. "They will tell you their needs," he said. "This is like raising children. You need to listen. You also need to ask the right questions and be sincere."
Other keys to the selling process, he said, are building rapport and qualifying the customer.
Asked to offer one suggestion that can help other sales associates sell more bedding, Lazarus responded: "You have to listen to your customers. Give them the opportunity to express their thoughts. People in sales want to share their knowledge. But the customer has to tell us what they are searching for."
It is also important, he added, not to rush through the sales process. "Don't try to sell a bed too quickly," Lazarus advised.
Made-to-order story resonates with consumers
Peoria, Ill. — How is the mattress business in Peoria?
"Pretty good," responds Leonard Bertuli, who operates a Verlo Mattress Factory Store in that well-known Illinois city, famed as a barometer of heartland values. "I've been doing pretty well there. I've been there for 17 years."
Bertuli lives in Mark, Ill., a town of 500 with no stoplights and no Starbucks. The 50-mile daily drive to his factory and showroom in Peoria takes him along the Illinois River. It is a scenic drive, he said, one that clears his mind for the day's activities.
Bertuli is an unlikely bedding salesman. A mechanical engineer for 25 years, he became a Verlo franchisee as "a step to independence." Bedding seemed like a more natural career for him than a foray into the fast food business. "I understand springs," he said. "I don't know much about hamburgers."
It's been a good move for him. "I just like it," he said. "I like being out in the store and talking to people."
He offers these thoughts on selling mattresses: "The biggest thing I find is that you have to be honest. There are too many pushy salespeople. You need to stop telling stories and start telling facts. And be educated about your products."
Bertuli said Verlo's made-to-order story resonates with his customers. "There are three keys to life," he said. "They are diet, exercise and sleep. If sleep is one of the three key factors in life, then you need to have the bed that is right for you. That is a fact that is unappreciated by most consumers."
He said that Verlo's factory roots are appreciated in Peoria, a blue-collar town. "The Craftsman Direct message (used by Verlo in its marketing campaign) plays well in Peoria," he said. "Everyone there is a hands-on person. When I first opened there, no one believed I built the beds there. They were shocked. They wanted a tour."
That is part of the appeal of the Verlo model; consumers can watch the beds being made at the back of the store.
Bertuli said he enjoys the neighborliness of his customers in Peoria. "These are neighbors you are friends with," he said. "There is more of a sense of trust. You trust them, and they see you as being honest."
It's been a winning formula for Verlo in Peoria.
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