Problem: Phil is a salesperson I coach and he told me about a quote he had done on a 5-axis CNC machine for a potential new customer. He swore during our coaching sessions it was a “sure deal.” I just got off the phone with Phil who informed me the deal went to a competitor. He had called to review what went wrong. “I don’t understand,” he stated, “I quoted exactly what they wanted.”
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.
Problem: Lisa was angry. It had happened too many times. She recalled the old movie, “Network,” where the veteran news anchor said, “I’m mad as hell and I won’t take it anymore!”
After submitting yet another proposal, she determined that she was just one of several vendors who were being used to satisfy the prospect’s need to obtain competitive bids. They had already selected a vendor (often the incumbent), and Lisa’s numbers were just needed for comparison and leverage for a better deal with their current supplier.