Browse Tag

buying on price

When a Salesperson Should Stop Selling Value

By Jim Lobaito
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Jan 12, 2016
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Problem: Recently, I had a conversation with a sales engineer about his frustration with trying to convince a prospect the price of his equipment was worth the value. His prospect is convinced that he is selling high quality, efficient equipment with a large ATBM (Average Time between Maintenance). Though his prospect faces frequent interruptions due to breakdowns, the prospect continues to buy his competitors’ equipment because their prices are lower. The prospect continues to tell him that he can’t justify the capital investment needed to buy his equipment. read more

It’s Seldom About Price

By Jim Lobaito
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Sep 08, 2015
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Problem: One of the most common objections salespeople get is about price: “That’s a bit more than we were thinking about paying.” “Your prices are kind of high.” “That just doesn’t fit our budget” are typical comments. Salespeople tend to be very aggressive in their attempts to overcome price objections and begin dropping their price to get the sale. And, more often than not, once the price issue has been “resolved,” another objection comes to the surface. Sometimes it seems to be a never-ending circle of objections from the prospect. read more

The Price Trap

By Jim Lobaito
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Nov 18, 2014
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Problem: One of the most frequent complaints we hear from business owners, sales managers and salespeople is the following: “Price is the primary focus of the sale these days–all of our prospects want the lowest price.” It starts out innocently enough. Buyers lead with questions and comments like these: “How much is it? Can you give me a quote?” As the sales discussion proceeds it gets more intense: “That seems like a lot.” or “Why is it so expensive?” or “I saw it for less.” Salespeople often respond by cutting price thus giving away margins and commissions. read more

Break the Rules When Dealing With RFP’s

By Jim Lobaito
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Jul 31, 2014
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Problem: Many distributers are frustrated because they have to participate in a competitive bidding process to obtain business. Winning is often based on having the lowest bid. More than in any other type of sale, the buyer is in total control of the process. All information is disseminated to the bidders at a common bid conference and individual meetings are rare. The seller has no advantage over his competitors and frequently is reduced to guessing what his company will need to win the bid. If there are six qualified distributers bidding, your chances are less than 20% of winning the bid. And if you’re the “lucky” one that is awarded the bid, chances are your margins won’t be as healthy as you’d like. read more

The Incumbent Strikes Back

By Jim Lobaito
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Jul 15, 2014
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Problem: The deal was consummated and Troy had finally displaced his number one competitor at an important account. Having received a promise that the initial order would be sent the following week, he departed, congratulating himself on his good fortune and ability to land the tough ones. Then, several days later, he received a voice mail message from his new account. From the tone of his contact’s voice, he immediately knew something was wrong. Apologetically, the client told Troy that when the competitor found out that they had lost the business, they reacted with decisiveness and lowered the price significantly. The result was predictable. The initial order was cancelled and the incumbent retained the business. Having been blindsided, Troy was at a loss for what to do. His company was unwilling to match the new price and he “lost” the deal. To add insult to injury, his contact was too embarrassed to return his phone calls. read more