During any sales pitch, there are always questions from your prospects. During this process, they are qualifying you and your business’ ability to deliver on what you’re offering them – just as much as you’re qualifying them.
The fact they’ve agreed to meet, and hear the solution you’re offering them means they are looking for a solution to the problem that they have – so you’re already on the front foot.
To make sure your salespeople are armed with answers to commons questions that are thrown their way, we’ve put together a list of common questions and how you might go about answering them.
How much will it cost?
While you might have price in mind, it’s important to remember that as soon as you bring cost into the conversation, it’s becomes a dollars-for-hours conversation, and not a value one. When this question arises, rather than simply answering with a number, talk about the outcome and the value you’re offering instead.
How long will it take?
There can be a lot of variables when it comes to the time it takes to implement or deliver your solution. Make sure you come armed with a standard project plan with high level dependencies included that you can talk to if needed. Most projects will go over time when there is a dependency on the customer that hasn’t been met in your plan. Listing some of the key dependencies or blockers you’ve met before will help the customer feel confident you know how the project will unfold.
How are you different to your competition?
Like the cost conversation, this question should also be answered by communicating your value, as it pertains to your uniqueness. Many Microsoft Partners do the same or similar things – so you need to have your differentiator front of mind and ready to discuss. You might operate differently, offer a guarantee, or have specialist IP within the business that sets you apart from the rest. Make sure you have this part of the pitch down pat – it will always come up and you need to deliver your answer confidently.
Are your people skilled?
Do you have key skillsets within the business that will be delivering your solution for the customer? Talk about your mix of different skillsets that, when combined, create a hybrid team that can tackle anything that comes at them. Keep this conversation about your team rather than specific people, they want to know they’re accessing a team of smart people and skills, not just one or two stand-outs.
How do I know you’re not just “selling” it to me?
Prospects will always want some proof, to help them feel confident that you can deliver on what you’re pitching. Even if you don’t have a case study of the exact solution you’re selling, come armed with references that will vouch for your business. It will make them feel confident when you can produce existing customers will speak positively about doing business with you.
How do you operate?
When engaging with third parties, organisations like to know how you will operate with them. Will you act as a partner, working in a hybrid team model with their in-house team, or will you take the deliverables offsite and come back to them in 3 months with their solution? Most important here is accountability & communication – make sure they know that no matter how you choose to operate, there are clear accountabilities and communication between both parties until the point of success.
What’s next?
Since you’ve made it this far you might be interested to know more about our SalesPlay On-Ramp™ Program? If we're right, shoot us an email and we'll send through all the details.
