Emails, texting, and social media are all excellent tools and originators should be using all options to effectively communicate with their vendors and end-users. However, these tools are no substitute for an actual conversation or an
in-person meeting.
An originator recently explained how he lost a transaction when negotiating the final terms with an end-user. I asked for a summary of events that led up to the loss. He explained that the end-user preferred to communicate through emails and that he would forward me the chain of email exchanges.
Wow! The email print-out was several pages long battering back and forth with lengthy pros and cons of particular issues, terms, and conditions. It was unbelievable. The originator asked for suggestions of what he should have done to win the transaction.
My first suggestion was that after the first, and definitely second email, I would have picked up the phone and called the end-user. I would have had a productive conversation and explained the reasons for my company's request. I would have listened intently to the end-user's concerns and would have negotiated the transaction in real time. The originator at first defended himself by reiterating that the end-user's preference was to communicate via email. He then admitted that he did not fully understand his company's terms and conditions and therefore was not confident to enter into a phone conversation. He was using email as a cover rather than a tool. He lacked the knowledge to negotiate his transaction and chose to hide. The right course of action would have been to:
Talk to his credit department and fully understand the approval.
Be confident enough to pick up the phone and accurately convey the approval to the end-user with conviction.
To never use email or any automation as a cover. When needed, originators must be willing and able to present themselves, their company, and their approvals with confidence. There is no substitute for a live conversation.
Call me old fashioned, but I still believe that the most effective means of establishing a new relationship or closing a deal is by having a real conversation.
Survive - Thrive - Lead
This "Sales Tip" is provided by Wheeler Business Consulting.