Sales Blog with Sales Tips

Prospects have become so wearisome of cold callers these days that conversations don’t even get off the ground when we call them.

“I’m too busy right now to talk to a salesperson.”

Here’s A Technique That Will Get The Prospect Talking 99% Of The Time
Immediately after the prospect says he or she is too busy to talk, respond with, “I understand, but before we get off the phone, can I ask you just one quick question?” And then you ask your question.

Let’s Dissect Why This Works So Well
Prospects will perceive that you aren’t going to be taking too much of their time and they won’t have to reveal too much information. Minor investment. Minimal commitment. “Just one quick question.”

If you are calm, assured and prepared, the prospect will be put at ease. While you’ll start with a closed-ended question, you might be able to follow-up with one or two additional open-ended questions that will help start a relationship and set the stage for your next interaction.

Research has shown that initial objections from prospects are “throw away” objections. They’re just reacting to an interruption. The objection is not a real objection, but a stated objection.

Sales Tips Wrap Up
The keys to making this really work are:

• Do some research on the company before you call. The one question you’re allowed to ask needs to sound like you know something about the company and their industry.

• Know when to stop. Don’t overuse this technique. If the prospect seems willing to answer a question, don’t keep pushing for more if the prospect is not receptive.

• Be genuinely empathetic with the prospect if you perceive that he or she honestly can’t talk with you at that moment. You can always call back. No need to tarnish a relationship before it begins.

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>©2010 Scott R. Sheaffer

Scott Sheaffer’s New Book, “Comatose Management”
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Six Short Stories of Destructive Management Practices, Volume I
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Available in printed and Kindle edition on amazon.com
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The most trustworthy phrase in the English language is, “Everything is negotiable.” When our customers push us for better pricing, or some other concession, we can’t condemn them. Horse-trading has been around since Adam and Eve asked God if they could get a “do over.” We all know the answer to that one.

The Customer’s Perspective
When customers are negotiating with us, it’s how we respond to their haggling that can make all the difference. We forget the following when negotiating:

• Most customers have only primitive negotiating skills, at best.
• They’re just throwing stuff “out there” to see if we’ll bite on some of it.
• Their company requires them to ask for certain concessions.
• They intend to buy from us, even if we don’t give them a green light on their last minute requests.

In short, they think, “Why not ask? We have nothing to lose.” And they’re right.

Wrong Way Example
Customer: “Debbie, we’ve been customers of yours for three years now. We’d like to get a 20% price reduction on future purchases.”

Wrong Way Salesperson: “You know I’m already giving you the best price I can.”

This customer is now quite unhappy with this salesperson. Why? Because the customer doesn’t feel heard. They feel “blown off.”

Right Way Example
Customer: “Debbie, we’ve been customers of yours for three years now. We’d like to get a 20% price reduction on future purchases.”

Right Way Salesperson: “You know that I am constantly working to find ways to secure more favorable pricing for you when possible. I think you would agree that our relationship is good and I’ve been a reliable and high quality supplier for you. I don’t know if I can reduce your price by 20%, but I can reduce your costs on all of your purchases if you source more of your fluid power products from me. Can we talk about that possibility?”

Why We Like The Right Way Sales Professional’s Response
“Right Way” has many things going for her. She provides numerous sales tips for us in her response.

• She acknowledges the customer’s attempt at negotiation. The customer feels heard.
• She reminds the customer of the value she brings to the table.
• She agrees to some kind of price reduction, but the customer will have to earn it.
• Finally, she puts the ball back in the customer’s court.

Handling negotiation in this manner does not offend customers. It recognizes the customer’s right to negotiate while simultaneously treating them with respect. If we do it right, we avoid irritating the customer and set ourselves up for additional business.

Sales Blog Epilogue
Our strongest and most powerful tool as a sales professional is our tongue. It is a rudder that steers our relationships right into icebergs or safely around them. How we craft our responses to customer negotiation can either erode a long-term customer relationship or create new opportunities and strengthen partnerships.

Further sales blog reading:
A Classic Buyers’ Discounting Tactic
What To Do When You’re In A Weak Negotiating Position

>You can automatically receive Sales Tips Blog by Scott R. Sheaffer >by email< or >by RSS<.
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>©2009 Scott R. Sheaffer

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It’s funny to me how many people think that it’s the sales professionals who are playing the games in the sales process. I believe that buyers play at least as many games as sellers. I’m going to address one of their most common below.

You’ve most likely been a victim of this little game many times. In retrospect, I know I certainly have.

The Game
I know a Purchasing Director at a large company. He has a staff of buyers who collectively conduct hundreds of buying transactions per week.

For all purchases above a certain dollar amount, he requires buyers to ask for a 5% discount at the very end of the negotiation process.

He estimates that 70% of the sellers give in to this request. Do the math. For each $100 his company spends, they realize, on average, a $3.50 savings. Multiply that over hundreds of millions of dollars and suddenly the Purchasing Director looks like a hero.

Why It Works
This is negotiation 101 stuff. Once sales professionals have invested time and resources in landing a sale, buyers know the selling company is frequently more willing to be flexible on pricing. The purchasing professional is counting on your thinking, “After this much time, I’d hate to lose this sale for just a 5% discount.”

Notice that the purchasers are asking for a 5% discount. They fully intend to buy the products and services, even if the discount is not given. They are bluffing. They feel there is no harm in asking. And they’re right.

Sales Tips For Handling This Tactic
If a buyer wants a last minute price concession, you can be 99% sure it’s a bluff. Remember, they’ve invested time and resources in you too.  Use one of these sales tips the next time you run into this negotiating tactic:

Your best technique is to just say no. The statistics are on your side, by the way.

Agree to the discount, but inform the purchaser that you won’t be able to deliver the products/services that had originally been discussed. This is called decoy marketing (see Further reading below).

Let the buyer know your price will soon be going up and he or she is, in effect, getting a discount by your excluding them from the price increase. Take the offensive.

Inform the buyer (after you’ve made some important looking phone calls to your sales manager) that you are in a position to give them the discount if they add an extended service plan, agree to exclusively buy a certain product from you, etc. Always make customers earn a discount.

Remind the buyer that you started negotiating with a highly discounted price. There is no more room. They’ve hit your wall.

Tell the buyer that as much as you would like his or her business, your company has never given discounts and isn’t planning to in the future. Then ask for the PO number.

Sales Blog Epilogue
I can easily steer you in the right direction on this buying tactic. If a customer asks for an 11th hour discount, say no. The odds are with you.

Further reading:

• You May Be Blind To This Customer Negotiating Tactic
• What To Do When You’re In A Weak Negotiating Position
• What is Decoy Marketing?

>You can automatically receive Sales Tips Blog by Scott R. Sheaffer >by email< or >by RSS<.
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>©2009 Scott R. Sheaffer

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The bulk of my best sales training has come from observing incompetent salespeople and incompetent sales management. I’ve undoubtedly benefited from many good mentors, coaches and trainers, but there is nothing like the lasting impression of watching gross stupidity. It’s like taking a white-hot cattle brand and branding the words “don’t do it this way” on your brain.

Time For A Story
Let me give you an example of sales ineptitude I observed 4 years ago. I’m simply going to relate a real-life story; you won’t need for me to do any kind of analysis at the conclusion.

The Foolish Funeral Director
I was attending a military funeral for the father of a close friend, Julie Marks. Julie’s father was a Colonel in the US Marine Corps. It was a Saturday; we were at one of the best known and most expensive funeral homes found in this large metropolitan area. In short, my friend was not sparing any expenses on her dad’s funeral.

The funeral service was beautiful, as expected. The facilities were perfect and the funeral itself was orchestrated without error. All expectations had been met by the funeral home.

Immediately after the service concluded, the funeral director (euphemism for “funeral salesperson”) walked up to my friend and me and said, “Mrs. Marks, can you talk with me for a moment?” I asked Julie if I should leave and she indicated I should stay.

The funeral director then presented Julie  with an invoice for the funeral. Is it just me, or was this bad timing on the part of this salesperson? But wait, it gets much worse.

Julie gatherered herself together and started to look at the individual items on the invoice. She suddenly stopped at one item and said, “What is this extra $500 for?”

“That’s our customary additional charge for Saturday funerals.”

A rather perturbed Julie commented, “I don’t know anything about this whatsoever. You and I planned this funeral from start to finish. Why didn’t you tell me about this?”

In what has to be the worst response to a customer objection I have heard in my career, the funeral director said, “Well, I guess you didn’t ask certain questions.” I thought to myself, his reply was actually a scripted answer. He had prepared this wretched response in advance!

Even though Julie was going through a tremendous amount of grief at the moment, she responded by saying, “Withholding relevant information from a customer is the same as lying. Your timing makes this even worse. I will not be paying the additional $500.”

I have to confess, I wanted to go postal on the funeral director for 4 reasons: 1) As a salesperson he was a 3 car pile-up, 2) For upsetting my friend at a time like that, 3) For being an idiot, 4) Did I mention for being an idiot?

I called Julie while preparing this sales blog post to double check my facts.  She added that not only did she not pay the $500, but she and her husband canceled the purchase of two plots worth $26,000 they had planned to purchase from this same funeral home.  There may be no such thing as a free lunch, but being out to lunch cost this salesperson some money.

Sales Tips Wrap Up
This experience allowed me to burn into my brain yet another sales lesson – one I will never forget – in how not to handle an objection.

Further reading:

• 3 Rules For Improving Communication With Customers
• 8 Speed Traps in Sales [Sales tips about how haphazardly handling the sales process has many unintended negative consequences.]

>You can automatically receive Sales Tips Blog by Scott R. Sheaffer >by email< or >by RSS<.
>Follow >Scott R. Sheaffer< on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter.
>©2009 Scott R. Sheaffer

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Are you satisfied with your sales results?
Kay Ray can show you and your team how to reach
your objectives and unlock the door to success.
thekayray.com