The upstairs air conditioner in my house is about to die. It’s in the final phase of life. If it were a person, we’d be hospice. It’s kind of sad but it’s lived a long, full life.

We’ve known this day was going to come. It’s been leaking coolant and the repair bills have been mounting. We’ve tried to make it work but we just don’t have the energy to keep trying anymore.

We started shopping for a replacement HVAC system. We met with two HVAC contractors this week. They both came to the house and spent a couple of hours with us. They asked about our needs, our special concerns. They listened to us.

The sales reps were very different. One of them took our information and gave very little feedback during our meeting. She basically said “trust me,” and that she would take care of things. She had an air of confidence. She told us she could do the job, that she had done it many times before, and explained that she would email the price quote. She was believable and trustworthy. I knew we’d be pleased.

The other sales rep dragged me up to the attic with him. He pointed out tubes and wires. He took things apart and explained them. He talked extensively about two stage compressors, thermostats, R-22 refrigerant phaseout and SEER ratings. He went on and on and was very “educational”. I was  really, really bored. I’m confident that he knew that I didn’t understand most of what he said, but that didn’t slow him down–he kept on talking.  I was actually aggravated about having to listen to him for so long. He too said he would email the price.

So did we pick the “trust me” sales pitch or the “educational” sales pitch? They both wanted to be liked and trusted. How did we, as customers, feel about their very different approaches?

First we had to see the price, right?

Interestingly, an HVAC system costs about the same amount as some divorces. It’s also interesting that an HVAC is about as complicated as a divorce. I think it’s also worth noting that neither an HVAC system or a divorce is really a very satisfying purchase. It’s not much fun to pay HVAC or divorce bills. It’s no iPod, HDTV or island vacation.

My wife immediately felt comfortable with the “educational” sales rep. I asked her how she was going to feel about things if his price turned out to be much more than the “trust me” price. She wasn’t sure. I, of course,  really wanted to know the price.

Well, we got the verdict today. The “educational” sales rep wants a good deal more money than the “trust me” version. Why? I don’t really know. They sell different brands of equipment. The equipment has different levels of efficiency. Bottom line – we are going to make this decision based on trust because we really don’t understand all of the issues.

Who gets the business? Who did we trust? That was easy. We went with the “educational” approach. We don’t have a clue if anything he said made sense but something about his spiel was comforting (if a little long-winded). He seemed to know everything about HVAC systems.

We made our decision based on emotion. Then we rationalized the higher price. What do you think your prospective clients are thinking about when they decide?