Every month I receive a variety of questions from salespeople and their managers. These come from a variety of sources - my live seminars, the monthly phone seminars, questions that are sent into my newsletter, and issues that arise in the course of my consulting work. Out of all of these, I select those that I think have the most universal application, and respond to them here.
I have many customers who refuse to even consider some of my products because the one they have now is working fine and they don't want to even consider changing something that is working well for them. They feel they are opening themselves to potential dangers, problems and nightmares by fixing something that isn't broken. Any suggestion for how to deal with the "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" attitude?
This is one that frustrates every sales person. Let's start by putting yourself in the customer's shoes. You've shown him your thing, and it's noticeably better/cheaper than what they are currently using. Or, they won't even take the time to look at your latest and greatest solution. Regardless of where you are at in the sales process, the problem is that you have something better, and they won't budge from using an inferior solution.
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Why not? Let's analyze the situation. As is almost always the case, the solution becomes really obvious when we have done a good job of analyzing the problem. So, let's consider the reasons why the customer won't budge. Here are the big three.
The perceived benefit from switching the product is not worth the time and effort the customer must invest in the change process.
OK, so your LAGS (latest and greatest solution) will save him 5%. But, he must work off his old inventory, notify the current supplier, switch all the numbers in his purchasing and inventory systems, perhaps rewrite protocols, maybe train staff in the new thing, communicate the change so that everyone internally knows about it, etc. See the problem. It takes time, effort and money to change a product. And most of your customers, if they are like most of the business world these days, have too much to do and not enough time in which to do it. They don't need another project.
So, while your LAGS is an improvement, the improvement just isn't worth the time and effort.
The potential change infringes on a well-established relationship.
It maybe that the current product is being purchased as part of a committed relationship with the competition. And it may be that the competitor performs other services for this customer that would be jeopardized if the customer didn't buy this product from them. For example, the competitor may invite this customer to an annual outing to his condo on the beach in Florida. If the customer switches this item, he may believe that it jeopardize that. Or, the competitor inventories the product for them, provides special dating, packages it specially, etc.
The issue here is that switching the product harms an existing relationship, and the relationship is more important to the customer than the savings or benefit of your product.
This relationship issue can also extend to the individual. In other words, the customer has a long-standing excellent relationship with the competitive salesperson. And the customer doesn't want to do anything that might be seen as jeopardizing that relationship.
In either case, the relationship trumps the benefits of your product.
The risk isn't worth it.
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If you have any comments or questions, email them to me. I do, of course, reserve the right to edit.
Here are a few articles by Dave
that you might be interested in reading:
- Strategic Planning for Salespeople... "Ready, shoot, aim." Unfortunately, that's the all too common description of the field salesperson's modus operandi. In a misguided attempt to stay busy and see as many people as possible, too many salespeople subscribe to the theory that any activity is good activity. There was a time when this was true. Customers had more time, sales was a simpler job, and any conversation with a prospect or customer was a good thing. But times have changed, and the job of the salesperson has become much more complex. The pressure on the salesperson to make good decisions about the effective use of his time has never been greater. Salespeople now must confront an overwhelming number of potential "things to do," and that requires them to make decisions about which customers in which to invest their time, to prioritize their activities every day, and to continually choose from a menu of possible activities. In other words, salespeople must now engage in strategic planning.....{Read More}
- The Impenetrable Account... How do you sell to an account that is in the hands of a competitor? It's a great question, reflecting one of the most perplexing and frustrating situations every sales person faces. In this article Dave expalins how to get an account away from your competition.... {Read More}
There are also many other action-packed articles for sales professionals that offer how-to solutions to every day sales problems that you can read online at www.davekahle.com/article.htm.
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