Page 7 - The Compass - Volume 14 Issue 5

LEARNING FROM THE BEST
plumber from work and then going back to work. So, it’s selling the work [booking the follow-up appointment].
hard to get them to slow down. You want to let them know, This was a whole new concept for me; I had always sold and
“Hey, if you don’t mind, I’d like to take a look at a few things done my own work. So, you have to build the customer’s
if you have the time.” But you have to make it about their confidence in your installers. I’ll say, “All of us are educated
time. You don’t want to do that with someone in a rush. the same at Ongaro. We all attend the same trainings. The
You don’t want to hold them back. I want to provide them guys who are coming out to do the work are going to call
with a prompt service, but I want to look over everything if me if they run into anything. They know they can call me
they have the time. at any time if they have any questions.”
After you’ve run through the house, when it
comes to building options, are you always
offering three options?

Scott: I always offer three options. I’ll give them a repair
option, I’ll give them a replacement option, and then,
maybe, I’ll throw in a filtration option because they have
hard water. I’ll always find a way to get to three.
Do you deal with much financing?
Scott: I’ve probably financed a dozen people, and I’ve been
here eight years. Most people around here have money. But
DOUG RECEIVING THE CROWN CHAMPION AWARD there have been some situations where they might have just
AT THE 2019 SAN ANTONIO EXPO.
bought a new roof for twenty grand, and they may not have
When you’re given the time, what’s your enough for their plumbing issue. So, they’re very thankful
natural pathway throughout the house? that we have that option. Normally, if the project is five
Doug: Let’s say that I’m dealing with a leaky faucet. I’ll ask grand or more, I’ll mention it.
the customer, “Are all your faucets around the same age?” Doug: Yeah, the only job I’ve ever financed was a $4,000
That will lead to you going to the other bathrooms and job, and when I bring up financing, it’s when I’m sitting
looking at the plumbing in each of those. Then, you can down and talking about costs. You bring it up casually, so it
share with them, “Hey, if this cartridge has gone bad, what’s doesn’t become awkward for the homeowner. I bring it up
to say this one isn’t going to go bad next?” When looking quickly just so they know you have it.
under the sink where the cartridges are, you’re going to
see what the stub-outs are. You’ll see if they’re galvanized Do you get many price objections?
or copper. You can educate them by saying, “You know Doug: Absolutely, we get objections. It’s price or they want
you have galvanized pipe, right?” That opens the door to to check with their significant other. Those are the big ones
a conversation where you’ll educate them that it’s better to I get. In those situations, I reassure them of what Ongaro
have copper piping versus galvanized. does. We do business the right way. We’re one of the only
Scott: I have a similar approach. I’ll ask questions like, “Do companies around here that pulls permits on the work we do.
you ever run out of hot water when in the shower?” That We do everything by the book—completely to code. That’s
will lead us down to the water heater. But I think Doug a big differentiator for us. Our price is going to be a little
nailed it—a lot of people have busy lives, and they don’t higher, but you’re paying for that quality and the Ongaro
want to spend an hour looking at their plumbing. They name. When you’re in the plumbing industry around here,
just don’t have the time. So, right off the bat, you can tell and you tell someone you work for Ongaro, we always hear,
they’re in a hurry and how you’re going to approach the “Oh, yeah, I’ve heard of you guys. I hear you’re great!”
call. But if we are going on a PPP call, where it’s an annual The biggest thing for me, when I came here, is I came
thing, we will spend anywhere from one to three hours from a company that only focused on the numbers. There
depending upon the size of the home because you want to was no educating you on anything plumbing related. It was
look at everything. only for sales. I’ve always hated sales [Doug said while
laughing]. When I came to Ongaro, they paid for me to go
As plumbing advisors, where you’re only to PHCC classes, they paid for me to go to code class, and
selling the work, do you schedule the work they have all these trainings. It reassures you as a plumber
while in the home? that, “Wow, these guys really care about us, and they really
Scott: Absolutely, 90 percent of the time, you want to book want to make us a better plumber.” They’re not as worried
that call right then and there. about the numbers; instead, they want to make sure you’re
Doug: I would say that is the hardest part of exclusively doing the right things for the customers.

THE COMPASS | Issue 5 | 2019 7