Peady’s Selling Engagement sponsored by IRD Prospector
How many times have you told a potential customer or client “But we can save you money”.
And how many times has this statement worked??
For sure business people want to save money however it’s not always their number one concern and it’s definitely not the most effective way to gain an appointment or open a business meeting.
Why?
In my opinion it’s a phrase that has become almost meaningless because it’s used so often. In fact you might call it “white noise”.
Until you have built a relationship and built trust a prospect can’t or won’t believe you. Possibly they might be thinking “save money compared to what?” or “save money how?” or “what’s in it for you to save me money?”
How about?
An alternative plan could be to uncover their current business challenges or future growth opportunities. From there why not raise the subject of driving top line revenue via more customers and sales. After all doesn’t advertising creates enquiries? Any business school student will tell you that. Is that something you can affect with your medium?
Try some ideas
Most SME’s I work with are crying out for valid business ideas to help them grow and build the business and in some cases simply survive. If that’s something you can provide they’ll love you for it.
Final note
If you are a “save you money” kind of sales person maybe it’s time to reconsider? The phrase is boring, and so overused it’s virtually worthless. “
Try something more creative or relatable like “can we work together on some business growth ideas?
About the author
Stephen Pead is a media industry veteran of 30 years with significant experience in direct sales, sales management and general management. He is based in Sydney and specialises in helping SME’s market their businesses more effectively and providing training for salespeople and sales managers.
He can be contacted at [email protected]
