What makes the difference between a good roofing company and a great roofing company?
Great roofers see more success because they use effective roofing sales techniques to bring in more customers.
Table of Contents
Today, we will review some of the most successful roofing sales strategies to help you level up your roofing sales skills.
How to Sell Roofs
Roofing Sales Tips: Prep for the Pitch
Learn Closing Techniques
You must learn how to properly close a deal. There are several effective strategies, so pick one that suits your personality and the buyers’ interests. Here are a few closing strategies you can use:
Make a time-sensitive offer
Ex. “I can give you 10% off your service if you sign today.”
Summarize the benefits of the product/service
Ex. “This product lasts 5 years longer and provides better insulation.”
Offer a free add-on with no strings attached
Show your prospect a visual of what you offer
Ask a question that assumes the deal is done
Suggest a day to finalize the deal
Ex. “Why don’t we finish signing on Wednesday so our roofers can inspect your property before the weekend?”
Cover (several) pros and (a few) cons of choosing your services
Ex. “Yes, our roofing prices are slightly higher than our competitors’. But we offer the highest quality shingles, a 10-year warranty, and a 100% satisfaction guarantee, so you prevent costly repairs later on.”
Ask them to rank how likely they are to use your services
Get to Know Your Roofing Business
The more you know about your roofing company, the better you can sell roofs.
Make sure you do an in-depth analysis of the roofing business you work for. Take a look at your company’s expertise, awards or certifications, and any other factors that make you stand out from the rest of your competition.
Some of the things that you might want to know include:
Gain Roofing Product Knowledge
Studying your roof product is a surefire way to successfully close more sales. Have answers to questions that people might ask about your product. The key is to be fluent in your field.
Take the time to learn more about your roofing product. Consider:
- How does it stand out from your competitors?
- What details make a huge difference?
- Get hands-on experience with your product or watch someone perform the service.
- Talk to your coworkers about what your product has to offer.
- Research the roofing industry to see how your products fit into the bigger picture. According to a survey by IRC Sales Solutions, most sales reps average about 11% of their time reading industry news.
Research Your Buyer
Researching your buyer will give you unbeatable insights into their roofing needs.
Look at customer:
- Demographics
- Motivations
- Goals
- Problems
If you don’t have buyer information, consider surveying or interviewing past customers.
What is your buyer looking for? What solution do you provide to their roof problem?
Tailor your product to your potential customers, and they’ll understand exactly what you offer.
Get Organized
Do you ever feel like you’re asking homeowners the same questions about their roof over and over? Have you ever called up your customer to ask them if they have a copy of their roofing contract?
Whether you’re dialing for dollars or walking the soles off your shoes going door to door, you need to be organized.
That’s where roofing software comes in.
The software keeps an active database of potential customers and helps you navigate relevant information.
You can connect all the roof job, payment, and material order information to individual customer files, putting your customer files in one easy-to-access place.
For example, JobNimbus has a form builder you can use to make consistent forms.
Create a proposal inspection form with checklists and dropdowns for your team to add a photo, damage type and notes, date of loss, shingle type, roof measurements, and how the customer will pay.
Once your form is ready, your field team can fill it out and get all the information you need on the first trip to the site.
The right customer relationship manager (CRM) makes you infinitely more effective and can improve sales in five key ways.
Roofing Sales Tips: During the Pitch
Sell When People Are Home
If people are all at work, then there’s no sense in beating down doors. Unless, of course, you’re into low margins.
Not that knocking on doors during the day is a complete waste of your time; you can find some people at home. But, you do have a greater chance of finding decision-makers at home in the afternoon and evening.
Clean Up Your Act
What separates the sales newbies from the experts is the first impression: your professional image.
Everything from your clothes to your behavior and the music coming from your work truck immediately sets the foundation for your interaction. Make sure you smell good, look good, and keep an eye on your language.
Be Genuine
Although you do want to be on good behavior, be real. In essence, you truly are selling yourself and not just the product.
Reveal a little background about yourself, like how long you’ve been working in the roofing industry. Don’t be afraid to talk about your hobbies and history with the company.
Be Confident
Show up with confidence. No one wants to buy from someone who seems unsure of the product or themselves. If you’re looking to boost your confidence, try some of these tips:
- Watch your body language
- Speak with authority
- Be prepared
- Remind yourself of past successes
- Cut out negative self-talk
Educate, but Don’t Hard Sell
Chances are, your customer less about roofing than you do. Your job is to display the reasons they could benefit from your service, not the product itself.
Focus on why a new or repaired roof is vital to the customer. Help them see how it affects their home value and safety.
Don’t forget to explain how the roofing replacement process works.
But don’t push the customer. Remember, about 56% of your market just isn’t ready to buy yet. Give them time to warm up to what you’re offering.
Listen to Your Client’s Needs
You don’t want to do all the talking. Spend time listening and getting the customer to share their concerns.
Only then can you solve their problems and explain how your services can help.
Your customers will tell you what they need, and your job is to customize your sales pitch to match them.
When they vocalize a problem they’ve been facing, offer an effective solution. Even if you’ve heard the same issues before, every customer is different and requires individual help.
Remember, this is their home you’re talking about—the single largest investment they’ve made. Take interest in them and their home. It will go a long way for you.
Explain How Your Products Are Different
One of the most effective ways to close a sale is to prove why you’re better than your competitors.
According to a survey by several roofing contractors, 76% of homeowners chose the salesperson who discussed how their products and services compare to their competitors’.
Everyone is looking for the highest quality products; your job is to use this time to prove why customers should hire you and not another roofing business.
Ask Open-Ended Questions
Steer clear of any questions the customer can answer with a simple yes, no, or another word. Instead, ask open-ended questions during your pitch to spark a conversation.
People are already wary of salespeople, so it’s essential to avoid language that they can quickly shut down.
Bring Several Roofing Options
It’s a proven fact: customers are more interested in buying from salespeople if they can see the products live.
Bring multiple roofing shingle options to help your potential customers see what you’re talking about. The more options you bring, the more likely you are to close on the sale.
How to Sell Roof Maintenance Checks
Selling maintenance checks for roofs can be a little more complicated than selling a new roof. However, maintenance checks can increase profit, improve your bottom line, build customer relations, and eliminate competition.
As every roofing salesperson knows, selling a service isn’t easy. So, how do you sell roof maintenance checks specifically?
The key is to explain the value and help your customers understand the service.
Let’s break it down.
Highlight Value
Roofing can be expensive, but explaining the value to customers helps them see why it’s worth it. To demonstrate the value of your roofing service, don’t forget to mention that:
- Small fixes in maintenance checks cost less than fixing big damages later on
- Available warranties will protect their investment
- Financing helps break up the cost of the roof check
- Proactively maintained roofs last an average of eight years longer than those that aren’t
Provide Insights
Roofing maintenance checks will make more sense to customers once they know the purpose.
During your sales pitch, take the opportunity to point out what you look for in a roof maintenance check. Explain some causes of common types of damage and point out signs the customer should look for in the future.
Customers appreciate the information, and the more they understand, the more they’ll know why they need you to fix it.
Roofing Sales Pitch Examples
Whether you’re a seasoned pro or new to the roofing industry, crafting a compelling sales pitch is essential for closing deals. You need to be cool, confident, and collected to win customers over. That’s why you should practice your pitch before knocking on the door.
Here are some effective roofing sales pitch examples to help you nail down the perfect approach.
Showcase Your Value
One angle you can take when pitching is to highlight the value your services bring to customers. Emphasize the quality and longevity of your roofing work. For example, if your company offers a roof warranty, highlight that in your pitch!
Talk about the reliability of the materials you use. With your roofing company, your customers will have peace of mind knowing they’ll save money in the long term and enjoy a solid roof for years to come.
Improve Curb Appeal
A new roof does more than protect homes from weather—it can enhance the look and value of a home. Another angle you can use in your sales pitch is highlighting the curb appeal that a new roof can have. Point out that a new roof can raise the value of a home.
Here are some facts you can share with prospects in your pitch:
- Replacing a roof with new asphalt shingles can increase a home’s value by $17,800, according to a Remodeling report.
- On average, homeowners can expect an ROI of about 60–70% for their new roofs.
Harness the Power of Testimonials
Customer reviews can be a powerful tool in convincing homeowners that you’re a credible and qualified contractor. To integrate customer feedback into your sales pitch, share a few anecdotes.
For example, you could say: “A recent customer of ours told us that they couldn’t be happier with the results of their new roof and pointed out how quickly the job was done. We hear comments like this every week, and you can see for yourself by checking out our roofing website.”
You can also use before and after photos. If you have a roofing project with an especially dramatic before-and-after difference, use that in your pitch! People love to see the transformative effect of home improvement projects.
Hearing positive feedback from your satisfied customers can help build trust with potential clients. Sharing your customer reviews helps reassure future customers that they’ll have a positive experience if they hire you.
Time-Sensitive Approach
Creating a sense of urgency can motivate prospective customers to act quickly. To craft a time-sensitive pitch, offer limited-time discounts and other incentives to purchase now. For example, a 10% discount for roofing projects signed that month can be effective.
You can also offer a free add-on service for roofing contracts signed in the next week. Either way, time-sensitive deals can be a great motivator for homeowners to commit to a purchase.
Lead Your Roofing Company to Success with a Solid Roofing Sales Process
Sales is a tough profession. It takes a lot of effort and time to learn, but it gets easier when you focus on helping your client and responding to their needs.
Whether you’re selling new roofs or roofing maintenance checks, taking the right steps will help you close more sales. In addition to mastering your sales pitches, consider investing in roofing software to get a closer look at your sales data.
With features like sales automation and smart estimating, roofing software makes managing your sales pipeline easier than ever. Start a free 14-day trial with JobNimbus to see how you can revolutionize your sales process today!
With the combined power of these sales tips and roofing software, you’ll be well on your way to generating $100K in roofing revenue.