It often happens that you get the first meeting, present the solution, carry out a demo and manage to spark some interest in the client.
You thought the process was going well and that if you sped it up, you would not only meet the client's expectations, but also provide a better experience. So you decide to put together the proposal quickly and send it by email. Wrong!
The first meeting is not even close to a meeting where the potential client is malaysian numbers going to confirm the purchase, it is just a meeting to get in touch and make an initial inquiry.
It is important to understand that commercial proposals need commercial tension to be achieved, but… What is commercial tension?
It is the expectation that is gradually generated in the client through a certain mystery that we must not reveal too quickly, precisely so as not to end that tension and, consequently, the commercial process.
To do this, it is essential that the sales team try to maintain the interest and attention of the client in order to obtain as much information as possible and, when they are convinced that they have the right proposal, present it. This will take several stages. Therefore, it should be noted that, generally, after the first meeting is not a suitable time to present the commercial proposal.
3 practices that solve these errors
We've already talked about the common mistakes that are usually made in a first business meeting, now it's time to talk about how to solve them. Therefore, below we present 3 practices that you should implement to avoid encountering some of these mistakes and, consequently, generating false expectations.
1st: Use the first meeting to diagnose, not to sell
Knowing how to listen and ask the client is the key to any sales process. We have to get the prospect to verbalize and define a real intention to solve a certain problem. To do this, a good salesperson has to ask and see the level of responses he is getting from the prospect and, from there, take action and engage him. If that does not happen in the first meeting, it is very difficult for the process to progress to something more in the future.
2nd: do not send proposals by email, organize a new meeting to talk about the ideas that arose in the first one
The solution presentation should not be sent by email. It should be done only when the problem to be solved has been defined. It cannot be presented when the problem is not determined or we cannot determine it ourselves. To do this, we must talk to the prospect and find out what he or she thinks.
Therefore, the problem has to come from the client's mouth and, if possible, be documented and endorsed by him. In this way, we not only manage to involve him, but we also avoid misinterpretations and false optimism on the part of the sales team who, perhaps thinking they understood what the client needed, omitted valuable information, did not ask the right questions and misinterpreted the prospect's real need.
3rd: Once the problem has been identified, present possible solutions.
Giving the prospect a range of possibilities and allowing them to participate in the adoption of the best solutions generates a good customer experience and an optimal sales process. To achieve this, an environment of co-creation must be created, involving the prospect and giving us their point of view. While this is happening, the sales team must analyze the level of commitment that the client has in order to determine if it is an opportunity to close.
At this point, we could show our credentials and the cases we have worked on and demonstrate that we have the arguments to solve their problem.
Implement these practices in your business and improve your sales process with our support. At Pragmática we can help you boost your brand to generate real business opportunities.