5 Questions to Pre-Qualify Your Kitchen and Bath Sales Leads

We all know the old saying “time is money,” and when you’re a kitchen and bath dealer, remodeler, or designer, there are no truer words. Getting new clients for your business is the ultimate goal for any dealer, but the quality of the leads you’re getting is even more important. 

Your time is valuable, and you should focus on spending it with the right clients instead of wasting your time with clients who are not truly interested in the products and services you’re offering. But how do you differentiate real prospects from dead leads? 

Here are 5 questions you should ask to pre-qualify your kitchen and bath sales leads. 

The first question you want to ask your client is about their project. You need to get an idea of what the full scope of the work is and what they have in mind. Ask them about their needs, what they want to change, what is most important to them in their space. 

You also want to ask them whether or not they’ve done some research prior to approaching you. An informed client who has done research knows what they want and is likely serious about hiring someone to do the job. Asking this first question will open a dialog between you two, and you’ll be able to gauge if you’ve got yourself a potential client or not. 

This is one of the most important questions you need to ask your clients. Money is generally a touchy subject for a lot of people, but in this particular case, it’s necessary to bring it up. Don’t be shy to ask about this up front; you’ll be able to tell right away if it’s even possible to take on the client or if their budget just isn’t a right fit for your business. 

If your client’s budget is realistic, you can move on to the next steps. If your client is unwilling to share their budget, try asking the question in a different way. Tell them how much a kitchen or bathroom project costs on average, and see how they react. If they react positively, great! If they tell you it’s way out of their budget, you can part ways, or you can refer them to someone else. 

It’s important to ask your clients what their expected timeline is because you need to make sure you have enough availability to take on the project. You also need to manage their expectations if they have unrealistic delivery dates for the size of their project. 

Once you know when they want to get started and when their expected date of completion is, you can let them know if you can accommodate them. If so, this brings you one step closing to signing them on as clients. 

If your client has contacted you without having discussed with their partner first, you won’t get a sale right away, if at all. If two people are involved in the decision-making process, it’s best to discuss all details with both parties, otherwise they will tell you they need to speak to their partner first and get back to you. 

Asking them who will be making the final decision will help you determine if they’re serious about hiring you and how quickly you’ll be able to close a sale. If they have the final say, then they’re a good lead, if not, don’t waste too much of your time and resources.

If you really want to know whether or not you’ve got a serious lead, you can ask them if they’ve been shopping around for quotes from other kitchen and bathroom dealers. If so, ask them if they’re comfortable sharing the quotes with you so you can compare and potentially offer them a better deal. 

You should also ask them what their deciding factor is (i.e., a wide selection of cabinets, specific materials, pricing, services offered, etc.). If you don’t have the style of cabinets that is an absolute necessity for them, you’ll know they will most likely buy from another dealer. If pricing is the only deciding factor for them, you’ll try your best to meet their needs.