Every Tuesday morning, I meet with a group of sales professionals, all at various stages in their careers. Regardless of whether they are new to the sales role or are a seasoned professional, almost every member of our group struggles when it comes to the money discussion. Perhaps we can blame our parents for this discomfort, after all, growing up, many of us were told that money doesn’t buy happiness or money doesn’t grow on trees or even worse, money is the root of all evil. Who can blame us for the way we think.
So, let me ask you – how, and when, do you talk money with your prospects? Does your reluctance cause you to avoid the topic at all cost (pun intended)? Do you think that once you talk money, you’ll be immediately perceived as a sales person?
As a professional, your reluctance to be perceived as that “pushy salesperson” may cause you to have trouble being up-front about money issues. This can cost you money. Here are two common money pitfalls that I often see amongst sales people, and ways to avoid them:
#1 You give your expertise away. Your prospective client has an objective: To find what you know, how you can solve his problems and how much you cost. When you give him this information without payment it’s called free consulting. Many professionals do a lot of free consulting. You find out what the needs of the prospective client are and then say, “Let me tell you how I can fix that for you.” Then he says to you, “It looks good. It’s one of the best presentations we have seen. You have given us a lot of really good information (the operative word here is “given”) that I am sure we can put to good use. Write me a proposal and I’ll talk it over with my partners.” What you don’t know is that the prospect already has several proposals. And, since they all say basically the same thing, one of you gets beat up on price, or the prospect does nothing.
#2 You give a price too early. Prospective clients often underestimate their problems. They paint a simplistic picture of what their needs are and say, “Well, I think I’m paying too much. What can you do for me?” The problem is, you don’t really know how much it’s going to cost until you get in and look. Generally, when you quote a price too early, that price winds up being higher after you uncover the client’s true needs. Then you have the problem of saying to a brand- new client, “I know I told you $5,000, but it’s really going to be $7,000 or $8,000.” You gave in to pressure from the prospect to give a number and you came up with one too soon.
Try this instead: “Based on what you’ve told me, it sounds like this may run between $4,000 and $5,000. Now, do you know what my problem is when I give you a number like that? The problem is this is just an estimate. Typically, when I talk to people like yourself, they tell me about A, B and C. Once we get a close look, we find out about D, E and F. Chances are it’s going to be more. So, I’ll tell you what: Understand that this estimate is for A, B and C, and that if there are some other things you need, it’s going to be extra.”
Yes, it’s a gutsy thing to say. But you have to remember: Your expertise and service are your money in the bank. Don’t give it away! Charge what you are worth, get your price, make it stick and make money the root of your happiness.
