The Power of Product Knowledge

When I told my best friend a few weeks ago I was headed to Austin this week, he mentioned that he had a cousin that ran a restaurant known as Emmer and Rye.  As described by their website, Emmer and Rye is a farm-to-table restaurant serving American cuisine in a Dim Sum style.  It's also absolutely delicious...and that's not only my opinion.  In a pretty big seated space, there was a 30 minute wait for a table for most of a Wednesday night.

One of the things that stood out, above and beyond the quality of the food, was the customer service.  When I asked for a recommendation, they did not just say the beer or food item, they explained why they liked it so much.  For each beer that I ordered, it was explained what the beer was and why that beer was on the menu.  As each one of my small plates arrived, the food was described to me and I was instructed the best way to eat it.

If you had told me this was going to happen prior, I would have felt that that might be intrusive.  Yet, in the moment, from the opportunity I got to speak with Chef Kevin Pink, to the manager, to the bartenders, to the service staff, I felt like I was surrounded by food experts.  The confidence each had in their recommendations and delivery absolutely elevated my experience.

I've spoken about the power of product knowledge before.  It creates confidence.  Confidence the salesperson has in themselves and their product, and confidence the buyer then has in their salesperson.  The more that the buyer trusts the seller as an expert, the more likely the buyer will purchase the seller's recommendation.  And make no questions.  When the seller has been on the phone with you for 10 minutes, they are looking for your recommendation...not for you to just pass along the information you can find on the internet.

I used to hear the phrase, 'you need to know enough to be dangerous,' a lot.  It's not good enough anymore.  Selling tickets for your team is your job.  Knowing your ticket information, but, more importantly, how your tickets and stadium create solutions for people, businesses, youth organizations, non-profits, etc.  The more you know, the more confident you'll be.  The more confident you are, the more likely you'll positively influence the buyer experience...just like Emmer and Rye did for me last night.