When you’re selling mattresses, you’re not really selling the pieces of fabric wrapped around box springs or memory foam material, you’re selling a better night’s sleep.
And there are four main parts of a better night’s sleep that retailers can use to make more sales. Together, these four pieces help a salesperson show a massive amount of information as well as help the customer understand everything clearly without being overloaded and burnt out.
So what are the four components and how can you sell mattresses around them?
- A Bed for the Head. Start with selecting a pillow for the customer, one of the most important features besides the mattress itself.
Ask the customer if they’ve ever been professionally fitted for a pillow. They may be surprised that there is such a thing as a professional fitting, so you need to explain to them how pillows properly support the seven vertebrae of the neck and head—which is essential to a better night’s sleep.
After that, ask them what kind of sleeper they are (back, side or stomach) and choose the correct pillow based on that. Side sleepers can have three pillows to support their head, underarms, and legs.
Finally, explain to the customer that most pillows need to be replaced every six months to three years depending on the quality. Ask them how old their current pillow is, and if they still have a pillow from 1997, that’s a great way to sell them on the benefits of a new one. - Finding The One. With the pillow selection out of the way, it’s time to start looking at mattresses. If the customer selected a pillow, have them carry it around to the beds they try out so they can feel the whole sleep system in action.
Then it’s time for discovery questions. Some examples being, ‘how old is your current mattress?’ or ‘what type of mattress are you currently sleeping on?’ While in most cases comparison is the thief of joy, comparing mattresses is a benefit because it helps the consumer think about what they’re looking for in a mattress.
You should also ask questions about any body or back pains they may have. Pressure points? Tingling? All of this serves to assess what material a person may need depending on their pain points. And if you’re trying to sell them a memory foam or latex mattress, you should ask if they’ve had any experience with these materials before.
In this stage of the process, questions are your best friend, as you’ll want to educate the customer on everything they need to know. You can also ask things like:
- Have you ever slept on a memory foam or specialty bed before?
- How many times a night do you wake up, do you get back to sleep easily?
- Do you or your partner/spouse snore?
- At night do you find yourself too hot or cold?
·
- The Power of the Power Base. After the mattress is selected, it’s time to talk up the benefits of a power base. Every selling opportunity should include a power presentation because showing it can lead to more sales.
While talking about the features, also bring up the many health benefits. Beyond relaxation and healing more quickly, power bases provide other health benefits like minimizing acid reflux and snoring, improving circulation, and helping a person breathe easier.
This is also a perfect time to throw some healthy sleep facts at the customers. Here are just a few:
- 92% of people agree that a comfortable mattress is important to a good night’s sleep
- People with insomnia were five times more likely to develop sleep depression.
- Middle-aged or older adults who slept less than five hours were nearly three times more likely to have diabetes.
- Insufficient sleep may lead to Type 2 diabetes by disrupting the way the body processes glucose, slowing down the body’s process breakdown by up to 40%.
- People who sleep less than six hours per night are much more likely to have a higher than average Body Mass Index.
- Sleeping two hours less each night doubles your mortality risk.
- Long-term Protection. Last but not least, show the customer how they can protect their investment by keeping it free of stains, dust mites, skin cells, and more.
Again, throw some cold hard facts at the customers, like how we lose about 100 hairs each day, we shed 40,000 skin cells per minute, and in one month, adults sweat up to four gallons of perspiration while sleeping. These icky facts all serve to drive the point that customers need to take care of their mattress—even from things they don’t see or think about.
Yes, a mattress can cost a big chunk of change on its own, but protecting it from natural elements is a small amount to pay versus replacing the mattress entirely. And don’t forget that customers can minimize the costs with payment options (a great way to show this is to compare payments to a daily cup of coffee.) And while you’re at it, don’t forget to add sheets and blankets to set your store up as a one-stop shop.
Each part—and the questions within each—set you up for the next series of questions, and if you answer these with firm, informational answers, you’re more likely to close the customer and make a sale, no matter the price.
