I've been in sales and business development for over 25 years. I've managed all kinds of salespeople. I've taken numerous sales negotiation courses, done hundreds of negotiation role-playing exercises, and attended countless seminars.
I've learned how to deal with different personalities and have developed an innate understanding of how those personalities make purchasing decisions.
For some business development professionals, sales come naturally. For others, it takes time.
Ultimately, success comes down to learning from mistakes, developing a detailed understanding of the customer's business, being a different person to different people, and understanding your competition's approach to the market. However, the one criterion all successful salespeople have is their ability to stand up for themselves.
Yes, defending yourself is an essential trait of becoming a successful salesperson. Defending yourself involves holding your own with co-workers, defending your time, pricing, and offer with customers, and establishing reasonable expectations with your management.
Now, you're guaranteed to encounter situations where you have to capitulate. You're going to give in sometimes. However, you must have the courage of your convictions to back up your claims, stand your ground, and make your voice heard.
Defending Your Time with Customers
Your time matters just as much as your customer's time. You could easily argue that your time is more critical. A single customer is only concerned about their business, but you must consider all customers' concerns.
Don't allow your customer to make you wait endlessly for that meeting – which is often a tactic of some corporate buyers. Waiting impacts your schedule, and your next appointment is just as important, if not more important, than the current one.
Give your customer 15-20 minutes, but don't wait 30 minutes or longer. Your job is to maximize as many opportunities as possible. A customer who constantly makes you wait is not a customer who'll take your position, your price, or your offer seriously.
Defending Your Price: There's a fine line between aggressively negotiating pricing to close the sale and allowing a customer to shop your price to lower another company's offer. A price war erodes profit and wastes time. Even if you win that business, you've set a precedent with the customer for capitulating on price demands. So, if you're going to give in on pricing a bit, make sure you ask for something in return.
Don't be afraid to walk if the deal doesn't make sense. That requires buy-in from your management. They have to trust you to make a go/no-go decision. You must know where your boundaries are. Not having that information inhibits your ability to think on your feet.
Your customer is looking for a decision-maker who can justify the deal. They're not interested in someone who has to constantly get approval for a given concession.
Defending Yourself to Upper Management
B2B salespeople know it's a "what have you done for me lately" profession. One month, you're up – the next, you're down. Three consecutive quarters of above-budget performance don't mean anything if you suddenly fall short the next quarter. However, that only happens if you let it. Just decide this is no longer acceptable to you. Just decide that you will no longer be put on the spot by a management philosophy that quickly forgets what you've accomplished.
Yes, sales is demanding. Yes, it's stressful. Yes, there are going to be times when you fall short and have to deal with a Monday Morning quarterback routine from a boss who's under a ton of pressure. However, there is a limit to being second-guessed. There's a limit to how often you should defend yourself.
Stand firm if you have a performance history on your side. Broadcast that success. Make sure it's known, and defend your decisions and approaches when you fall short. Most importantly, know where your boundaries are and how you'll be measured.
Never leave anything open to interpretation. This means understanding how low you can go on a bid, the concessions you can offer in a negotiation, and when you can walk away from the deal.
Sales is unlike any other profession. There are no guarantees. There are many uncertainties, and it all comes down to human nature.
Other professions have more control as you manage incoming and outgoing work. However, sales all come down to how an individual makes a purchasing decision, and there are thousands of reasons why you won't close the deal.
So, stand your ground. Defend yourself with your customers, co-workers, and management. Decide what you will and will not tolerate.