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Daily Sales Tip: Great Sellers Are Courageous People

How early in your last sales presentation did the subject of price come up? And please tell me that you were not the one to start that part of the conversation. How soon in your next sales presentation will you and your buyer get around to a discussion of price?

Here's the deal: The decision should never be about price. It's about what? It's about why? It's about when and who?

When all the above questions are answered after a forensic look by a partnering buyer and seller, it's time to negotiate the equities. Before then, for both of the parties, it's a pig in a poke. That's because before the work neither have a reality-based clue about what the maximum opportunity to further the buyer's interest might be. So without serious examination, it's clear what the risk is to the buyer. And the seller? A one-time sale, a disappointed seller, another one who "tried it and it doesn't work."

So, what do courageous sellers do? They suggest at the beginning of the conversation that their intention is to help the buyer probe all of his critical assumptions regarding pathways to success. Together they need to compare experience, learnings and be willing, each of them, to bow to greater wisdoms or logic. "Mr. Jones, these are tough and confusing times. The information flow is all but overwhelming. There used to be a time when I felt I was completely on top of the marketing of goods and services. Now I'm convinced that no one is. Not me, and not you -- even about your own business." Do you dare? "Together, Mr. Jones," you continue, "we have a shot."

A friend of mine who manages several billion dollars of institutional investment funds, and whose intelligence and wisdom is beyond question, said to me recently that he believes most thoughtful people feel guilty these days about their inability to stay on top of everything. That's a real change for many and how could it be otherwise? Today, there's almost nothing we can't get answered within minutes using "search." And yet, there isn't nearly the time available to search all the new bits of information that pop up every 10 minutes of every day.

"Don't you think that's true, Mr. Jones? Shouldn't we get started digging in and prioritizing what you believe are the obstacles to continued or renewed growth? Will you remember when I challenge you and question your assumptions that I'm here to help?"

"The real question is, how much truth can I stand." -- Nietzsche

You can do this work.

Source: Media/advertising executive Bob Sherman

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