In my last blog, I outlined the warning signs that a deal may be stuck – and seven reasons why deals get stuck in the first place.
Following on from this, here is an approach you can take to get deals moving again which provided me with great success during my time as a Global VP of sales.
So how can you get things moving again?
It’s unlikely that, once stuck, things will start progressing by themselves again, so if you think the deal is worth it, you’re going to have to put some work in to get things moving. Going back to the basics is often the best approach to take; did you fully understand the customer’s needs and internal processes when you put your pitch together? If you can reach your contact at the company, they may be able to help you discover why things have stalled and give you some ideas for getting things back on track.
What’s the value of the sale to your customer?
In today’s business environment, things change extremely rapidly, and a customer may have changed their priorities since you originally spoke to them. If you can attach the value your deal will create to those new priorities, you may be able to revive the deal, but sometimes you need to start again and create a new solution that better meets your customer’s new needs.
Occasionally, a deal may have stalled purely due to one member of staff at the customer who, for whatever reason, prefers the status quo. In this case, you’ll need to map the power of the key stakeholders and get the person or people with dominant authority and influence to explain what is needed to be done.
Strengthen the business case
Finally, if a client is stalling due to concerns about the level of risk involved, you’ll need to strengthen the business case to prove the benefits are larger than the risk of change. Because psychologically people treat risk of loss as more serious than potential gain, the gain has to be much higher than the risk to be compelling.
What are your best tips for moving forward on opportunities that have stuck or stalled?
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