It'd be fair to say Tom Capizzi knows how to win projects ... lots of projects.

As president of Capizzi Home Improvement, and a member of the Home Builders Association of Cape Cod, Tom has been recognized for the highest personal sales recorded in the United States several years in a row.

So when Tom says price-shoppers and tire-kickers don't really exist, it's worth taking note.

"If you think about it," Tom says, "who isn't a price-shopper and what does that really mean?"

"People typically only know to ask two things [that are] relevant to their project:

"That is, unless they're a professional buyer of that particular product or service, they really don't know what else to talk about, so that's what they throw at you."

Then Tom lets the bomb drop.

"I mean, as far as I'm concerned, this whole price-shopper, tire-kicker thing is 99% strictly in the mind of the salesperson or contractor."

The point the homeowner asks, "How much" or "I only have a certain budget" Tom refers to as the "dividing moment."

"This is the moment in time where a salesperson or a contractor either becomes an amateur or a professional in my opinion," Tom states.

"You have to realize, when you first meet someone, either on the phone or in person, they're putting up a front and a facade," Tom continues.

"They have an 'anxiety barrier' up because you're the salesperson and it's a 'you-against-me' kind of a thing.

"My approach [at that point] is different that most," says Tom. "Most contractors are trying to make a sale right away.

"I'm not trying to make a sale."

Instead, Tom says, "Until you've spent some time with someone, and my opinion, in person, building credibility by getting to know them, asking questions, and not doing any selling.

"[Only then] are you going to start to actually get the truth out of someone, because they're starting to feel more comfortable with you," says Tom.

"Until then I'm doing nothing but trying to help and act as a consultant and an educator."

And does it pay off?

"It has paid huge dividends," says Tom.

"Only when I've exhausted all the questions to learn everything I can about that person, their home, their motives for the future with the home, their past experience about past jobs, what they liked, what they didn't like ... only then have I really earned the right to come up with a presentation and a proposal that might solve their problem .

"Too many [builders and remodelers] are seeing commissions, or dollars ... or no dollars ... because they're pre-judging, and that's not where I'm coming from.

"I'm coming from 'How can I help them?'

"Shift your 'thinking pattern' in terms of helping, educating, and serving until [you] really understand the customer," Tom suggests.

"Don't get 'derailed' by what people are saying to you, or how they're acting, or how they look. Spend time with them [rather than] chasing dollars."

"I've sold too many jobs that way to ever change," he says.

Tom's final thoughts sum up his philosophy to selling...and business.

"You know, my late friend Richard Kaller had a saying that we live by in Certified Contractors Network, the organization he founded. He'd say, 'If you ever get confused, just think about doing the right thing.'

"What's the right thing?" asks Tom.

"The right thing is not copping a little attitude or blowing people off. Nor is the right thing jumping the gun when someone [asks about price]." he states.

"The right thing is to give people the time-of-day, and the service, to help them as much as you can.

"The right thing is to figure out, 'Is there a win-win situation here?' and a relationship that will actually turn into a business relationship."

Sage advice from one of the most successful salespersons in the industry.

Go to www.SuccessfulHomeBuilders.com today and you can listen for FREE how one builder/remodeler eliminated time-wasting free estimates from his business -- for good!