Professional Salesperson or Deal Maker?

Question:  What is one common element that connects most professional sales people?   

Answer:  We tend to want to fix everything for our clients.   

Does this get us in trouble from time to time? Let’s hear it…”YES!!” 

This trouble manifests itself is in a couple of different ways. You tend to set a bad precedence for client management, and thus cause problems long term, and you also tend to ‘leave money on the table.’ Recently I got a call from one of my clients who sounded unusually frustrated.  After a short conversation, I realized that his expectations were far different from what we had originally agreed to.  He thought he was going to get an ‘extra widget’ with the ‘widget’ he had just purchased.  I immediately wanted to jump in and give him what he wanted, to make him happy with us again, even if it required taking a hit in our profit margin.  However, in my years of sales experience I have found that playing “let’s make a deal” is usually a very bad idea.  I have to fight that tendency and focus on good business practices for all parties involved.  (After our discussion, he remembered all of the details, and I was back in his good graces). I am not saying never to discount a product or service.  Discounts can be an effective tool if utilized correctly, such as securing a long-term contract, gaining exposure, or perhaps a guarantee of more orders…One of our clients is the Center for Non-Profit Management (CNM).  If you are a member of CNM, we offer a discount on our flagship website product.  CNM  has been responsible for an average of 3 referrals a month for a year now!  This arrangement benefits both parties, because it supports their efforts to be the premier resource for support for non-profit businesses, and for Keystone, there is less ‘sales cost’ involved in every sale.  

Setting proper expectations and sticking to your agreements allows for:

·        Better sales and business planning

·         A more professional arrangement with your clients

·         More respect from your clients and your management.   

Proper client management has many components.  Always take great notes, and get contracts in place.  Your management team will thank you, and so will your clients.  Tell your clients the truth and follow up, and if you have your facts together, don’t be afraid to say “well, that’s not what we agreed to.  I looked over the contract and we only promised one ‘widget”.  We certainly can sell you another widget, I’ll get pricing put together today.”    Managing your client’s expectations is harder than just going in for the quick sale, but it’s much less stressful and long-term and you can build a business around these expectations instead of just building a small, fleeting pile of money.   Please leave a comment below if you have a personal experience in ‘client management’ that you’d like to share.        Jason Elkins
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Account Manager
http://www.kbsweb.com
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Jason Elkins is an Account Manager for Keystone Business Solutions in Hendersonville. He has 14 years of experience in technology sales. Jason has been married for 14 years and has 2 children, and is an avid writer and blogger. You can read more original articles at the links below.
www.transparentchristianmagazine.com
www.jasonelkins.blogspot.com