Client doesn't have a budget range

When I am on client calls (particularly early calls) I always ask what a client has in mind for spend. I work in media so budgets can be drastically different from company to company.


Anyone have any tricks on getting someone to give you at least a range? I push pretty hard because I don't want to come in way too high or miss out by coming in low but sometimes I get nothing.


(Currently having an issue with the prior)



👑 Sales Strategy
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9
UrAssIsSaaS
Arsonist
9
SaaS Eater
IMO this starts with research and knowing exactly who you are speaking with. What competitors they are using and how much those cost. Then if they dont give you a range I will suggest one saying something like "I work with similar companies to yours and they typically spend between x and y, does that fit into your range or did you have something else in mind" 
InQ5WeTrust
Arsonist
2
No marketing, mayo isn't an MQL
That ass  contains strategy as well as SaaS
happyhunter
Politicker
6
spittin' sunshine
"I just want to ensure I am bringing value in alignment with expectations and don't want to waste any time. Is a number like (throw ridiculously high) something your company would consider? Oh okay...what is the range you guys are comfortable with?" ...or something along those lines. 

And if they aren't the person in charge/don't have the power and truly don't know (but are interested), they will connect you with the decision makers to move things forward
hh456
Celebrated Contributor
5
sales
Use the 'i'm just the middle man' approach. I did this all the time and it had pretty good results.

If you're selling media (not sure what kind) I'd use the publisher as the bad guy. "if you want the results you're asking for, Google says it's going to run about $300 p/day and you'll be able to get x sort of business out of that." Change Google with wherever you're placing the ad. And now they're gonna say, 'can you get them down?' and you say, 'I think i can but i need a commitment from you before I go see what I can do.' and then you'll get an answer, 'yeah, i can do $280 a day if you can figure it out.' then say you'll get back to them in a short amount of time and then come back with the good news and have a contract ready to sign in their inbox.

It's a simple word play but it makes you look like your job is just to facilitate the transaction as you become the account manager. I always had good results with that.
RealPatrickBateman
Politicker
4
🔪Amateur Butcher🔪
No budget? Greaaaaaat, lets talk about our "Platinum Package" 
jefe
Arsonist
0
🍁
No budget means it's not a limiting factor, right?!
alecabral
Arsonist
3
Director - Digital Sales Transformation
A few thoughts on this:

1. Building on top of what @UrAssIsSaaS said, always be sure to be talking to the right person, as in someone that is more likely to have that information and/or decision-making power.

2. Aim high. It is always better to go after bigger prospects first (as in bigger companies / teams who are likely to have bigger budgets), then move down the food chain.


3. Don't pop the question too soon or you'll get the wrong information. What you're looking for is not money they want to spend but short-term and mid-term indicators like ROI / ROS. A great way of easing into the budget question is asking them what is the ROI they hope to get out of a certain solution in a given timeframe. They'll come up with a ratio or a $$ number, and then you can transition from there to "Is that your benchmark, and how much do you typically invest to get that ROI?" or something like that (less clumsy than my example for course.

Hope that helps!
UrAssIsSaaS
Arsonist
4
SaaS Eater
Point 3 is super important, you ask this too soon in a disco call and you'll quickly dissolve trust.
jefe
Arsonist
1
🍁
Interesting... We always discuss this during the disco, albeit towards the end, as I'm NOT going to demo someone that can't afford.

Given the level of integration in our solutions, any qualified buyer knows that it's not going to be cheap, so often ask for a ballpark before the call. I prefer to do some needs analysis first.

But either way, they need to confirm the range is feasible before we move any further.
UrAssIsSaaS
Arsonist
2
SaaS Eater
I totally agree that you should cover it on disco, just not one of the first couple questions, asses product fit timelines etc then talk budget. 
jefe
Arsonist
1
🍁
Agree 100%, but you had me worried for a moment.

Your original comment on this post is solid as hell @UrAssIsSaaS 
Diablo
Politicker
2
Sr. AE
I always ask what value are they getting for the money they are spending. Try to understand if they are missing anything that will be helpful for them and the opportunity cost they loosing out there. Then I relate this to ROI vs additional amount they would be spending with us as @alecabral mentioned very well.
Njanack
Good Citizen
0
SDR
No budget means theyre open for many different offers 
AnchorPoint
Politicker
0
Business Coach
Give them some options.  Option one includes ___ and is ballpark $.  Two includes ___ and is $$.  Three is $$$.  If they cannot commit to a minimum budget range, punt.  They are using you to check a box or negotiate with someone else.
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