Hi Friends, Here is your end-of-the-week insight into what I see going on in the business world,...
Hi Friends,
Here is your end-of-the-week insight into what I see going on in the business world, what I’m thinking about, and what I’m learning about. Forward anything that you feel inspired to share
What I’m Hearing From Sales Leaders/Professionals
This past week, I have had multiple negotiation-prep conversations. These are always fun, exciting, and … confusing. Too often, my clients get caught up in discussing scenarios that don’t make sense for their prospect or even themselves.
My role in these conversations is to take a fully rational view while listening to the different scenarios. Often, my clients are so emotionally attached to the deal that they cannot see what does and does not make sense.
This seems to happen more often the closer we get to the end of the year.
Let’s discuss two things that are often contemplated that don’t make sense and why we convince ourselves that they are the magic bullets to winning the deal:
1. Offering a discount when the objection is not budget (cash)
In all my years of consulting, this is the one that comes up most often in internal negotiation-prep meetings. A deal is not closing, and someone will say, “We should tell them if they sign by X date, we will discount by Y.” My response to this is, “Why?” (See what I did there.)
Usually, the response from the executive offering the discount advice is “Well …” and then they say something rooted in their own biases around paying for things. So, what should you do?
Well, before you offer a discount, find out if it really is a budget/cash objection. Then dig in and find out when the situation will change, e.g., budget will open back up in Z months.
If the situation will never change, i.e., they will never pay what you are asking them to pay, then you’re not dealing with a true budget objection. This is value disguised as budget. Remember, it is easier to tell someone that you don’t have time to date vs. telling them you find them unattractive.
How you negotiate these two alternatives is vastly different, and confusing them can lead to bad terms or lost deals. Here is a good question to ask to help you get started. “If you had the money, what else would need to be different in order to move forward?”
2. Offering a price lower than what you can actually afford to sell your product for
Rational humans often do irrational things. Even more so when they have spent time and energy on something. Just think back to relationships (romantic/platonic/professional) that you stayed in for too long just because you had invested a lot of time into them.
I often encounter very smart people making very dumb decisions because they have spent a lot of time on a deal and don’t want to lose it after all their effort (sunk cost bias). Someone in the organization needs to ask the question, “At what price are you willing to walk away?” And once that is answered, they need to ask, “What do we say if they tell us the “walk-away” price is still not low enough?" Then, you practice your response, which should sound something like this. “I appreciate your transparency. It’s unfortunate that we won’t be able to do business. If things change on your end, please reach out, and we will do the same.” That’s it. No need to explain any further.
Good luck, and if you have a deal that you want an outside perspective on, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
What Made Me Laugh
My son does annoying things. Which I guess is what kids are supposed to do. I often find myself saying a prayer to my mom, saying, “You were right, that is annoying. I am sorry,” after my son does something I used to do all the time. This VIDEO reminds me of how much it annoyed my mother when I would run in the house. She was right. It is annoying.
This Week’s 40/20
For every 40 hours of work, I believe you should spend 20 (additional) hours mastering your craft. This is how I spent some of my 20 hours this week.
This week, I randomly learned about the most charismatic man that ever existed, Porfirio Rubirosa. Here are a few highlights from his life:
· He was a race car driver.
· Two of his five wives were the richest women in the world at the time of his marriage.
· He became a spy because the dictator of the Dominican Republic thought he was the most handsome person he had ever seen.
· Want more proof? He dated Eartha Kitt, Marilyn Monroe, Ava Gardner, Rita Hayworth, Veronica Lake, Joan Crawford, Eva Peron, Judy Garland, and more.
· Parisian waiters named gigantic pepper mills “Rubirosas” after the same appendage that cost Anthony Ammirati a medal.
Anyway, this will help you 0% in business, aside from giving you something interesting to talk about at a happy hour.
I see you, playboy (I have always wanted to say this and have it mean something).
Potpourri for 800
Potpourri (shoutout to Jeopardy!) is a category that covers a variety of topics.
I recently watched the movie “Abigail” about a ballerina vampire. It was pretty darn entertaining. It was a cool and strange concept. Still not as strange as THIS LIST of the strangest animals in the world. Which one do you think is the coolest? For me, it’s a tie between harpy eagle, spiny bush viper, and potoo bird.
Quote for My Son
Every day, I leave my son a note with a quote. This was my favorite from this past week:
“The price of success is paid in private. Visible triumphs are built on invisible work.” – Shane Parrish
You can get weekly helpful information for sales professionals by following my company’s Maestro Mastery blog here.
Let me know what you think about this week’s edition of Fuentes Fridays. Which section was your favorite? How can I make this better? Shoot me a message on LinkedIn @willfuentes.
Until next week!
Thanks,
