We
have all been there as salespeople…just when we expected a “yes,” we heard instead
that we lost the deal to our competition. What went wrong?
Recent
studies suggest that the reasons these deals are lost are not necessarily what
we would expect. We were the losers not because the competing salesperson or
even their product was better.
According
to buyers, here are three main reasons sales are lost:
- Working at too low a level. You need to gain access to the decision-makers. The bigger the deal, the higher you need to reach. Learn what you can from consultative selling training that focuses on how to talk to executives so you can gain their confidence in you and your offering.
- Competing against an incumbent vendor. Buyers resist changing to another supplier even if they are somewhat dissatisfied because it takes work (and perceived risk) to change and bring others up to speed.
- Irrelevant messaging. No matter how smooth your pitch, if it doesn’t resonate with the specific buyer in front of you and their particular situation, it won’t carry the day.
Next time let’s end up as winners rather than losers.
