Kitchen and Bath Sales System FAQs

In this season of Elevated, we’ve been demystifying the idea of a sales system for kitchen and bath businesses, why you need it, and how you can use it. Over the last couple of episodes, we got into the nitty-gritty on how to get your team to embrace the system.

In this episode, I’ll dive into some of the most frequently asked questions about implementing a sales system for kitchen and bath businesses. Quick sidebar: if you haven’t caught earlier episodes, a sales system is not just software. While software or an app can support your sales system, the system itself is a defined, repeatable, and scalable process. It’s what you use to convert interested individuals into paying clients.

Okay, now onto the questions…

How is a sales system different from generating estimates and proposals?

Generating estimates and proposals are steps within your sales process. A sales system, however, is the broader method for qualifying prospects and guiding them through a process. This includes creating estimates and proposals. Many kitchen and bath design business owners find that estimates and proposals are a pain point. They can be labor-intensive and don’t always lead to a sale, which eats into profits.

Defining your sales system can reduce wasted time and effort on estimates and proposals. By qualifying prospective clients earlier, you generate estimates and proposals only for those likely to become clients. This increases the chances that they’ll transition into paying customers.

How much does a Sales System for Kitchen and Bath cost?

Yes, this is often one of the first questions that gets asked. Like most critical questions, the answer is… it depends. Don’t worry, I’m not going to leave you hanging. Let’s dig in further and get a real answer. 

First off, you can create a fully functional sales system just using a Google or Word document to capture the process. Then use a Google Sheet or Excel document to capture information on the companies and people you talk to. In that case, there wouldn’t be any additional hard cost to the system, as you already are paying for that software. Of course, there’s the soft cost of time and effort to define, set up & use the system.

My position in regards to these soft costs is that the time & effort investment to create the system pays dividends every time someone uses the system. Because without it, the customer data is who-knows-where, and it is likely taking double or triple the time to do anything if you have to chase down information. Not to mention the lost opportunity cost when a hot lead falls through the cracks because there isn’t a system to track it.

Utilizing a CRM tailored for a kitchen and bath sales system often involves a per-user cost.

I cover setting up a CRM in-depth in episode 10, so check that out for all the details. There are many CRM apps that have a free tier to get you started, like HubSpot, Zoho, and Streak. 

Once you get to the point of needing the paid features, the cost can range from $15 to $300+ per user per month, depending on the CRM you choose. While that can seem like a hefty investment, it is always useful to consider the context of what each deal is worth to the business and the cost of the salesperson’s time.

The Math

• If a CRM can save them even an hour per workday, so 5 hours a week,
• with an average hourly rate $30/hr,
• that would save $150 per week, per salesperson

In that case, the math of paying up to $150/month per user for a CRM to save $630/month in wage costs and likely make the salesperson more effective at closing deals, really adds up.

Which CRM should I choose? 

Ah yes – another probing question that gets the standard answer… it depends. When clients ask me about choosing the right app or software, I tell them the right one is the one that actually gets used. Yes, that really is my top criteria for software evaluation. But knowing if you’ll use it usually comes after you’ve selected 1 or 2 to try, so to get to that point

Here are the other selection criteria to use:

1. Does it have the functionality & features you need? Yes, you’ll need to do a bit of prep work before shopping around to figure out what specific features are must-haves for your business.
2. Does it work with the other software & apps you already use? Yup, more prep work. Be sure to have a list of software & apps you use so you can check for integrations.
3. Are there tutorials and/or communities of users you can access for learning? Newer software solutions may not have large communities yet, but the existence of robust learning libraries and communities of users means it will be easier to get up and running and get your questions answered.
4. Is the paid tier in your budget? Even if you’ll be starting with the free version, ensure that the paid tier is in the ballpark for you as you don’t want to adopt the software and then need to change applications later because the paid version isn’t aligned with your budget.

That covers the top 3 most frequently asked questions about sales systems. If you’ve got another question you want answered, send me a message on social or submit your question on our website.

In the next episode, I’ll walk you through a Sales System Health Check. We’ll cover what it is and why you need it. Make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss it!