Selling added value defeats price objections

Posted: August 18, 2014 | Categories: Sales

I remember a tireless mantra from my first sales training class:  Evidence defeats skepticism.  Let me take this one step further:  Selling added value defeats price objection.  There are few things that can derail a sale more than price objections.  If we let ourselves get caught in that trap, we may get stuck.  Let’s face it, if price were the only concern, every time we looked at a parking lot, we would see only the least expensive cars.  This indicates that price is not the only concern our prospects have.  So what do our prospects really want?  That is what we have to find out.

Once upon a time, there was a small company that specialized in repair of large electric motors.  The owner believed in exceptional service and he had a championship team to deliver on all that he promised to his clients.

Joe shared a story with me about a big sale he had made to a major auto manufacturer.  Imagine that.  A small company doing business with the big guys.  Knowing how often auto manufacturers like go haggle on price with their vendors, I asked, “How much of a hit did you have to take on your profit margin?”  He said, “None.  In fact, the price I gave them was high, and they did not even question it.  At this point I said, “What’s the catch?”  Here it was:

They explained to Joe that equipment breakdown costs them thousands of dollars a minute.  On previous breakdowns, their former vendors had sometimes taken hours to get things back in shape.  They asked Joe if he could guarantee that if they had a breakdown, his crew could get them going in an hour or less.  Joe agreed to these terms, and the client was willing to pay a premium for it.  Joe delivered on his promise.  He had hired the right people and knew how to manage and lead.  This was his added value, and he put it “in the bank”.  What is your added value?  How do you capitalize on it?  If you are not sure, take some time right now to write down all the qualities and features you offer that are of added value.  It is the first step to help inoculate ourselves against the infamous price objection!

 

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