Clients are Not Stuck in Today

If you have ever had to worry about this quarter’s numbers (and what sales rep hasn’t), it is easy to lose sight of the long-term picture. But, I guarantee that the client has very little interest in the next 90 days. They are talking to you with a year, two or five in mind.

In the example below, our client, Trilight, lost a deal, even though they were comparable in most every way. Primary Intelligence learned the reason why:

What were the primary reasons you did not select Trilight?

“Actually, the decision came down to the very end. Everything seemed to be very similar. We felt, and this was a team decision, that Manifesto had the depth and breadth to do the job. We thought that our account exec at Trilight was phenomenal. We knew she could get the job done, but we weren't sure about the actual corporation or the company. With Manifesto, we were more impressed with the company than the account execs. There wasn't a point of improvement or anything at that point.”

What were the primary reasons you selected Manifesto?

“They presented to us differently. We went to on-site visits at Trilight and at Manifesto. When we went to BI, the difference was we saw more of what they could do for us. We toured their buildings and stuff, but it was more than that. They brought representatives for each department into the room to present. They would come in and do their key element and then leave. At Trilight, we walked around and we saw a lot, but Kelly answered all the questions for the most part, not the so-called experts in that area.

“Manifesto’s method was more appealing because we could see that there was a team of other people to do the work. Our account executive at Trilight, Kelly, was wonderful. She knew everything from front to back, but if Kelly ever left, we didn't know what would happen. Could the other people do the work? We knew she could; she's been there since the start of her career and she's grown up there, but we didn't know, if she decided to leave the company, that they could do as good of a job as she did.”

While Trilight had equivalent services and a good relationship, they lost because the sales experience did not convince the client that they would have adequate resources to service them over the long haul.

Moral of the story: Think long-term with your prospects. You can talk about the price they will pay today, but it is better to show how valuable you will be to them over years of service.

If you have a thought, let me know (cdalley@primary-intel.com, 801-838-9600 x5050)