Time and time again, I’ve seen salespeople hold off on presenting their price to a prospective client until the final written proposal. They don’t bring up pricing in person or before a written proposal is sent because they’re afraid to scare away their potential client. Ironically, by following this methodology, they end up scaring away the prospect anyway.
If you avoid discussing pricing options until the very last moment, you make it too easy for the prospect to ignore you. They may love everything about you and what you have to offer, but if the amount they see in writing is not something they’re comfortable with, chances are they will simply avoid discussion rather than initiating it.
In their mind, it’s much easier to ignore you than to reach out to you for a chance at a better price. When this scenario unfolds, you lose complete control over the sales process and you make it very difficult for yourself to recover from it.
Always talk to your prospect about pricing options in a draft proposal before you put anything in writing. Ideally, you should discuss pricing in the initial discovery call. However if you are unable to do so, ask them to review the proposal with you before sending them anything in writing.
Schedule a date and time so that you can discuss pricing with them as they see it. By doing so, you are able to clear any doubts or confusion on the spot, instead of leaving it up to the interpretation of the prospect and risking the entire sales process.
When discussing the pricing, gauge your prospect’s reaction and respond accordingly. Generally speaking, you can very easily tell what your prospect thinks of your pricing by how they react when they first see it. ← Click To Tweet
If they’re able to see the true value you provide and believe your pricing is fair, chances are they will let you know. However, if they seem hesitant or taken aback when you present your price, you may need to discuss alternatives with them.
Remember sellers, do not let the fear of scaring away your client become the exact reason they stop returning your calls. Sooner or later, pricing options will need to be discussed in order for you to close the sale. Instead of delaying the inevitable, discuss the pricing head-on and retain control of the sales process!
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