Making the sale

Experts in the field of sales tend to state the obvious when it comes to selling to women as opposed to men -- men and women are different.

A quick browse through various sources uncovers what women have known in all aspects of life: Men don't listen. Men don't multi-track. Women tend to form an emotional connection to the product they're considering. Men don't -- well, maybe they do in the case of cars. Women customers are more likely than a man to view a compliment from a sales person as insincere or suspicious. Women enjoy shopping; men don't.

Local sales people verified these concepts based on their experience. Business Today asked people who sell items both men and women buy -- cars, furniture and jewelry -- if they observed any differences in sales patterns between the sexes.

Mitch Mayberry, sales manager for Van Matre Buick, Inc., said his staff knows that when a woman comes in, it's time to get serious about a sale.

"If a lady comes in here I know she is going to buy a car," Mayberry said. "Some of the guys come in here, they're just looking, hanging out to see what's out there. "

Sales personnel can get further into the social minefield when they're trying to sell a woman a car.

"Let's not fall into the old style car salesman's trap of believing that men are interested in what goes on under the (hood) and women are only interested in what colors you can get and whether it has a vanity mirror," writes Alan Fairweather, author of the book, "How to Get More Sales without Selling."

Mayberry said a big selling point about the Buick Rendezvous that appeals to women is that the vehicle was designed by a woman, and that it has a bin in the front seat to hold a purse. But a salesman has to be careful about how he approaches a woman customer.

"Years ago we would say to a woman, 'go get your husband and we'll talk about a car,'" Mayberry said. "We take great pains not to do that."

It appears that selling cars to women is evolving, but slowly. Venita Daniel, who sells furniture for Hutson Fine Furniture, stepped away momentarily from the differences between men and women in furniture sales to say that she dislikes going to car dealerships.

She recalled one salesman who told her that she would "look good" driving the car she was looking at. She found that distasteful.

Author Fairweather agrees: "Women will pick up on your emotions much quicker, so no false compliments guys and don't patronize the ladies or you're dead," he writes. "On the other hand a woman can give all sorts of compliments to a man and he'll just love it."

Daniel say that whenever she needs to buy a car, "I always ask one of the people really big in the church if they know someone who sells at a dealership. Then I go and ask for that person. He's usually much more helpful."

When it comes to selling furniture, though, Daniel pointed out two major observations that she noticed between men and women. Men don't listen and they want immediate gratification. They don't want to browse around, unless maybe it's in the electronics department. They come in, find what they want, and buy it.

An example she gave is of a woman customer who was shopping around Christmas and found a clock she wanted. It had a cherry finish and chimes. She mentioned it to her husband.

"The husband comes in Christmas Eve we have one clock left," she said. "It's oak and it doesn't chime but he wants it."

A man buys furniture out of necessity, pointed out Hutson salesman John Cobb. "A woman wants it to look pretty. Men don't really pay as much attention to detail as women."

Judith Anne Lang of Lang Jewelers says she has noticed that when men buy jewelry for themselves, it's usually something useful they need -- cuff links or a money clip -- rather than something decorative. The difference between the sexes is, who is buying and for whom?

"We had a knife show of collectible, high end knives -- art pieces as well as useful knives," Lang said. "The show was geared toward men. Men were looking but women were coming back and bought."

Men don't get as emotional about wedding rings sets as women do, she said. They're generally as generous as they can afford to be -- sometimes even more than they can afford -- but they don't base their choices on the same criteria as their future brides.

Like women buying cars, a man who walks into a jewelry store comes to buy. He usually knows what he wants, Lang said. Either the bride has been there before and told him which rings she likes, leaving the final choice to him, or he has consulted with the bride's best friend or mother and has an idea what she wants.

"There are definitely different buying patterns," Lang said. "Men are not traditionally shoppers. Think about it: There are no men's resale shops."

Resale shops abound for children because they outgrow their clothes before the items wear out. Women resell their own apparel items in resale shops because they are tired of them and want something different; others want the discounted price for high-end goods. Men buy a pair of shoes and wear them until they're worn out.