When does a sale happen? There are four key elements, and here they are.
I’ve spent years talking about how and why a sale happens. Until recently, however, I’ve not spent much time talking about when a sale happens, and that can be just as important a piece of information as how and why.
For a sale to happen, four things must intersect. They are: need, solution, timing, and perceived value. That’s a lot to have collide in the same place, and too many salespeople try to “push the rope uphill” when one of them doesn’t exist. Worse, some salespeople don’t recognize when all four DO exist in the same place, and miss sales. To add to the degree of difficulty, the four exist in a particular order in the customer’s mind, and sales tactics fail when they don’t respect this.
The first thing that must exist is a need. A “need” is a situation that the customer has that can be resolved by making a purchase. In the B2B environment, a Need exists when the customer would like to improve a Strength, fix a Weakness, create or capitalize on an Opportunity, or head off a Threat (this, by the way, is why “pain” as a motivator doesn’t do the job – it only covers one of the four potential motivators). In the B2C environment, needs boil down to a perceived improvement in the quality of life. Unless a Need exists, nothing else matters – you won’t make a sale, and you usually won’t even get an appointment.
The second condition for a sale is a solution. This means that the needs must be assessed, and a potential product or service measured for its capability to address the need (solve the customer’s issue). Sales fail here when the salesperson just knows that his product will solve the problem – but fails to ascertain that the customer also agrees that the product constitutes a solution. Sales also fail when the salesperson doesn’t really believe that his product is the solution but bulls on regardless due to the need for a sale.
Timing is a critical aspect of the sale – and perhaps the toughest to get your hands around. Timing is one of those things that is up to the customer to determine – not you. Timing could be a function of finances – right now, cash flow is too thin to purchase. Timing could be a matter of circumstance – for instance, the personnel to implement your solution aren’t hired yet. Timing could be any number of factors, and the only way to find out if the timing is right is to ask good questions – preferably big-picture questions about priorities – that discover what you want to know.
Finally, perceived value must be in place. Put simply, “Perceived Value” means that the customer believes that his/her money is better spent on a product or service than staying in their wallet. Again, it doesn’t matter if YOU think your product is a good buy – what matters is if the CUSTOMER thinks the product is a good buy. Some customers’ tipping point is low – the perceived ROI isn’t very much. Some other customers have a high tipping point – you have to demonstrate significant value before they will buy.
The next time you lose a sale – or the next time you have a proposal dangling and are wondering if it’s going to close – ask yourself if all four of these key factors are in place. If not, move on.
