In B2B sales, particularly in the tech industry, meeting with a prospect, whether in person or online, is an essential stage in nearly every sales process. Such interactions provide a prime opportunity to establish rapport, comprehend the prospect's current situation, and showcase your product if the probing reveals a need for it.
While the specific information to glean from a meeting may vary depending on your product and industry, there are often key answers you must obtain to assess whether an opportunity should be placed in your qualified pipeline—the ones that have the potential to become your customers.
In my experience, here are the crucial pieces of information to gather. Although these may seem straightforward and logical, I've observed numerous salespeople, including myself at times, returning from client meetings without answers to these fundamental questions.
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Problem:
- Is there a clear problem or gap that your product or service can resolve for the prospect?
If you can't affirmatively answer this question, the other points may become irrelevant, as businesses seldom make purchases solely because your product is cool or they like you
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Decision-Maker Identification:
- Are you in direct contact with or have access to a decision-maker?
Identifying the decision-maker is crucial. The person you engage with should have the authority to "put a signature" on a deal—essentially, access to the company's funds. While there may be various individuals involved, such as champions or influencers, there is typically only one person who can officially approve a deal. If your contact is not the decision-maker, strive to secure an opportunity to communicate with them during the deal's lifecycle. This significantly enhances your chances of closing the deal or, at the very least, gaining legitimate insights into why they may not proceed.
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Buying Decision Timeline:
- What is the prospect's timeline for making a buying decision?
While determining a timeline may not always be straightforward due to differing interpretations of terms like "urgent" or "soon," it is crucial for salespeople to ascertain if the prospect is prepared to make a decision in the foreseeable future. Having a pipeline full of opportunities without defined close dates can be challenging.
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Budget Availability:
- Does the prospect have a budget allocated for making a purchase?
The significance of this point often correlates with the potential deal size. While most companies can afford a monthly payment of $50 for a SaaS tool, selling more expensive products, starting from $10,000 or more, becomes challenging if that amount is not budgeted. Ensuring the prospect has a budget can significantly impact your chances of closing the deal.
It might seem easy to always obtain answers to the above mentioned questions, but reality shows you often need to ask those in the correct order and manner. The most challenging, yet crucial, aspect is determining whether your product effectively addresses the problem and that your prospect agrees on that. Through various practiced techniques, I've trained the ability to extract clear answers to all these queries and eager to share these insights with fellow sales professionals. Let me know, if you feel I can help.