Seems like, for a lot of folks, there is never enough time to do it right, but there is always enough time to do it over. However, in selling situations, there is rarely enough time to do either. You simply don’t get the chance. It’s over, the fat lady sings, and you have squandered your opportunity.
I hate losing probably even more than I like winning. Mind you, I’m not a bad loser. Most often, losses have been fault alone, plain and simple. Therefore, I made a pact with myself. I could stomach losing if, and only if, I could look at myself in the mirror and say … “You did 100% of everything that you could to win this sale.”
The only thing that is worse than losing the sale is “what if?” What if I had done this? If only I had … These are examples of knowing what needed to be done but either lazily not doing them or … not remembering to do them. This knowledge had not yet become … reflex.
Ultimately it comes down to doing your job, putting 100% effort into every sale, and never becoming complacent. Complacency will often rear its ugly head when you figure that this job is in the bag. Perhaps so, but then it still remains your deal to lose. You get one chance. One chance only.
Winning deals is not complex, but then neither is losing them. And, for the record, the close is overrated. A win is the natural culmination of a selling process well done! Some tips …
Be prepared – Know your product and know your customer. Take good notes and refer to them prior to your next engagement.
Help to set, and then to manage, customer expectations – Every customer has expectations. Do you know what they are? Are they reasonable? Now, even though they might have expectations, they might choose to not share those with you unless … you ask them.
Educating your customer on the process … from this call all the way through to completion … will go a long way toward making sure that you are both on the same page. Speaking of expectations … there are only 3 possible outcomes from any selling engagement …
- You did not meet their expectations – No explanation needed.
- You met their expectations – Meh. Neutral. Even if you got this sale, you don’t have a customer.
- You exceeded their expectations – Referrals and repeat business.
Continuously hone your skills – I’ve been in B2B selling since 1977, but I am constantly striving to be better at my craft. I don’t know it all. Buyer behaviors have changed, there are multiple new tools and strategies that are available, and all are designed to help me to sell more. If you are not open to new ideas, I feel sad for you and I fear for you.
Practice, practice, practice – If you want to turn this knowledge into reflex, you are going to have to practice and do so continuously. Reflex often gets lost due to a lack of consistent practice … aka complacency. Honest self-reflection also goes a long way toward solidifying skills as does asking your customer why they did or did not buy from you.
How about you? Always up to get better or too old of a dog to learn new tricks?
