Building enduring customer relationships relies on discovering what a customer truly values. Proposing two or three alternative solutions to resolve a customer’s need communicates your appreciation for their business, and ultimately increases their satisfaction with their final decision. Here’s why proposing choices reveals what your customer values: How consistently do you propose choices to reveal what your customer values?
Bob Schultek Author of The Gauntlet Delivering promised benefits to a new customer communicates that you respect and value the business shared with you, and that your commitments are reliable. The customer’s confidence and trust grows, earning you consideration when the next opportunity arises. Consistently producing promised benefits, time after time, builds customer loyalty. And when your solutions do more than resolve short term needs, when they also contribute to the customer’s progress and goal achievement, an …
In this age of limited time and unlimited access to information, customers want more than better, faster and cheaper. They specify 3 factors that persuade them to choose you. Customers seek to learn if you are more interested in helping them make money or in taking their money. They choose you once they sense your commitment to their success, and evaluate your motivation using these 3 criteria: Sharing valuable insight about market trends. Customers understand …
One of the more challenging customer conversations every salesperson faces is the negotiation discussion. It’s almost inevitable that the climax of this dialogue will be the customer’s request for a concession. What’s the most effective way to manage this conversation to ensure that both parties win? The first step in a successful customer negotiation is planning. What factors favor you vs. which favor the customer? What additional information is needed from the customer to better …
Customers react to proposed solutions in one of three ways, and they will progress in a positive direction, from one level of commitment to another, when effectively guided by the salesperson. Meetings are held every day to discuss changes that should be made in a business, but often never are. Your proposed solution will be reviewed in one of these meetings, and a decision will be made to accept your proposal only if the customer …
Managing a customer’s objection to your proposal involves discovering the motive for the objection, plus determining if the objection can be overcome. If a customer is ready to do business but still has some concerns, these 4 steps can help you deal with the open issues and progress towards agreement with the customer. 1. Find a point of agreement. When a customer challenges you or your proposal (“Your price is high”), don’t counter or debate …
Tim was frustrated that his proposals were not being given fair consideration. “They just skip to the last page to check the price,” he complained. “What should I do differently?” Why does one proposal presentation earn customer commitment while another does not? Presenting a proposal is serious business. You typically get one shot to capture your customer’s attention and earn their agreement. 1. As Covey would say, begin with the end in mind. When customers recognize …
There are three key ingredients that help earn a customer’s commitment on your proposed solution. Gaining customer commitment on your proposal begins by identifying the key stakeholders in the customer’s decision, learning why they are influential, and aligning the benefits of your proposal to meet their needs. This enables the development of advocates for your proposal within the customer’s organization, and reinforces your position as a problem-solving business partner, not a peddler. Responding to requests …
Earning the customer’s commitment on your proposed solution often requires the successful completion of many intermediate steps that may affect multiple shareholders within the customer’s organization. Different stakeholders play different roles in the decision process with some being more influential than others. Here are 3 ways to earn commitment from the key decision-makers: 1. Be a partner, not a peddler Act as a problem-solving business person, a partner more committed to making them money than …
[separator top=”40″] Earning your customer’s commitment requires many steps, and Grolistic has teamed up with SalesFitness™ to create 6 video resources highlighting successful techniques that produce thriving customer relationships. Your proposed solution often requires the successful completion of many intermediate steps that may affect multiple shareholders within the customer’s organization. The following video provides guidance to earn the customer’s commitment to your proposal by summarizing points of agreement, presenting options and winning when the customer wins to establish the …
