The Risk of Being in the Risk Phase

Have you ever felt the horror of being on your way to losing an important opportunity? All you hear from the customer indicates problems. They are asking for proof on things you thought were perfectly clear. New competitors show up and seem stronger than before. The panic is near…

What is the solution to such a situation?

I met a salesman this week who truly are feels the risk of being in the risk phase. The snowball started to roll when he was on a vacation and the CFO (power sponsor) checks with the CEO about the business case. The CEO asks the standard questions: price level, who else did you look at, is this the best alternative etc… The CFO felt she had a lot more homework to do, like talking to more vendors. The CFO is now in the risk phase.

Rule #1: Keep talking to the customer
Rule #2: Ask why they need the proof
Rule #3: Give them all what they want

And the most important rule:

Rule #4: Demonstrate how much you want their business

People buy from people …who are serious and willing to go the extra mile.

Written by and posted with the permission of:
Jens Edgren, Lindgren Partners Solution Selling
+ 46 8 651 25 00
www.lindgren-partners.se



Why Sales Process?

Is selling an art or a science?  Answer: both.  Eagle sellers, who are natural born sales people, put a lot of art into selling - they just sell and it happens.  But most of us do not have that luxury.  Most sellers, myself included, need the science of selling in order to be successful.  The science part of selling is understanding the customer’s buying process and aligning your sales activities accordingly. 

The sales process gives you a game plan to start a sale and follow it through to the close.  There are various components to it, but the most important thing to remember is to stay in alignment with the customer.  In today’s selling environment, we we want to be buying facilitators to make it easier for our customers buy from us.