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Weekly Business Development Tip
DON’T SHOOT THE MESSENGER
How many times have you been in a situation where you thought the deal was done, only to find out that there is NO MONEY to go forward? You’re expecting a telephone call to approve the sale. You already have your bags packed for your European vacation. The phone rings. Unfortunately, it’s bad news. The person who chaired the committee, the person who you thought had the power to make the decision to purchase your product or service tells you that “management” has put a freeze on any spending. There’s NO BUDGET for your services. Ouch!! You have to unpack and cancel your trip to Paris.
Were you speaking with the messenger rather than the decision maker? Was the real decision maker hiding behind the two-way mirror, lurking in the shadows while you were spending time with an individual or a team of people who simply did not have the authority to get the deal done?
If you want to avoid this problem in the future, you have to do a better job of flushing out who is the real decision maker. As part of your sales process, you need to investigate how buying decisions are made. Who makes them? How does the company make a choice to work with a firm like yours? Who makes these types of decisions?
Let’s face it; many of us consult with others before making a major buying decision. When you are in sales mode, it’s your job to flush out how the decision is made and who makes the final buying decision. Just because your prospect looks important, carries a big title and claims to be head of the committee making the decision to purchase your products or services, doesn’t necessarily mean that he/she is giving you all of the facts. Particularly in larger companies, there is going to be the person behind the 2-way mirror, the person who lives in a bubble that only comes out when money is involved.
When you hear the money is not available and the budget has been slashed, it may very well be a nice way to tell you that you did a poor job of creating and representing value to your prospect even if he/she is only the messenger. Is this buyer only shopping for price? Is this the type of client that you really want?
I would encourage you to have the money discussion as early as possible in your sales process. If you had the money discussion well before presenting your proposal or plan, your focus should then be on creating value and presenting your solution to resolve the challenges and problems faced by your prospect within the scope of what they are prepared to invest. You have minimized the possibility of hearing, “your fee is too high” and you now have to focus on renegotiating your fee. At this point in your sales process, your prospect should only have to make a decision as to YES, they see you as someone who can help them resolve their problem, or NO, you did not establish a results orientated deliverable that the prospect is comfortable with (i.e. you did not show them the value in your offering) and you are leaving without a check.
If you want to be sure that your next vacation is not ruined because of a lost sale and ensure that the money is available for your products and services, focus on helping your prospect obtain results within the parameters of their budget. Have the budget conversation early on and don't wait until you deliver your proposal. Show your prospects how your solution will make their current business problems go away. Become a resource not a vendor to your prospect. Create value for your prospects, even if you are talking to the messenger. The likelihood of a favorable outcome will increase when they enter the inner sanctum to present your solution to the powers that be
“You can overcome anything, if you don’t bellyache.”
- Bernard Baruch
P.S. Your e-mail address will never be shared. If, for any reason, you don't want to receive my weekly sales and business development tips, just let me know and the emails will vanish from your life immediately.
Good selling!!
Ken
Ken Levine
Impact Business Solutions, Inc.
508-845-8849
SELL MORE BY SELLING LESS
www.impactbussolutions.com
Call toll free: 877-845-8849
