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Outside Sales Executive

Executive
Executive
Executive
+5

They chose a competitor…

What are some tactics you use to try and resell/close a deal in a competitive situation after they tell you they are moving another direction?


“Post, we loved your solution but we have decided to move forward with ABC Company instead. They were less expensive and fit our need just fine. We appreciate all of your hard work.”


….Go!

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17 comments

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Rallier
Politicker
7
SDR Manager and Consultant
Honestly, I don't think these types of deals are worth chasing down. They've already made their decision, and 99.999% of the time you won't be able to change it.
Post
Executive
0
Outside Sales Executive
Fair point, and I agree with you for smaller deals. I am in mid/large size account sales. My personal average  deal size right now is $120k. Largest deal CTD is $1.2million. 
 
Would the size of the deal change your response? 
ChangeTheChannel
Good Citizen
2
Channel Sales Manager
Large enterprise orgs have pretty well defined procurement processes in place and I think that makes 're-entering' the discussion after elimination even harder in some cases. 

Your best bet will be to check in with the customer once a quarter and discover lingering or additional pain to solve.
Ozz
Politicker
0
Account Executive
Yeah, you should just DQ the deal and follow up quarterly. Sometimes the implementation goes wrong and you might be able to get back in but that's a small chance. Move and find another prospect. 
msp_sales
Opinionated
4
Full Cycle Sales
“First of all, thank you for letting me know. I sincerely appreciate your candor, and not making me suffer through the long NO. For my own edification, is your decision final… Or is there something I can do to sway you back in my direction? I do think there’s a possibility we could serve your needs incredibly well. What are your thoughts?”
braintank
Politicker
3
Enterprise Account Executive
My former boss used to love lobbing a 90-day offer as a hail Mary. He'd ask the account if the competition offered a 90-day out if the solution didn't work out or wasn't as great as the competition said. His aim was to stall the decision by having the account make a difficult ask. It was a ballsy approach since we knew our own deal desk wouldn't approve this offer either.

Overall, I'm with the @Rallier -- don't dwell too much on lost deals. Ping them every 6 months but focus on fishing where the fish are.
bamageorge
Celebrated Contributor
2
International Sales Director
I appreciate their honesty and ask more about the competition just to see what they are offering and if we can improve that.
CuriousFox
WR Officer
2
🦊
Ask who they chose and how the decision was made. Has to be more than price. If it's not then I would follow up in 75 days to see how it's going.
CaneWolf
Politicker
2
Call me what you want, just sign the damn contract
In my world, those people often come back after getting fucked over. We more or less tell them that the door is open if that happens. Occasionally that also gets people to reconsider.
Post
Executive
0
Outside Sales Executive
So you ever set expectations for what is to come with their new provider? 
CaneWolf
Politicker
1
Call me what you want, just sign the damn contract
As Futurama wisely puts it:

God: It takes a gentle touch. Like a safecracker, or a pickpocket.
Bender: Or a guy who burns down a bar for the insurance money!
God: Exactly, if you make it look like an electrical thing.

goose
Politicker
1
Sales Executive
You were probably the second column from the beginning...
Kinonez
Celebrated Contributor
1
War Room Enthusiast
Is there any particular reason you chose this vender besides the price? 
- “yes” (see if you have a better solution in that regard, if not let them go, if you do explain why and price match if possible)
- no, explain why you are better and price match if posible. 
Post
Executive
1
Outside Sales Executive
Bingo.  I like that. 
Kinonez
Celebrated Contributor
1
War Room Enthusiast
Glad to help! 
GDO
Politicker
1
BDM
Just ask as many relevant questions as possible. Do not be to pushy. Use that info to ga for a winback in the future. 
Post
Executive
0
Outside Sales Executive
Thanks everyone for their advice.  This happened to me yesterday and I went the route of asking more questions around their decision, then tying all deciding factors back to our core differentiators and speaking factually about how the competition would not support their goals. Nothing I couldn’t prove by looking at competitions website

Turned it around and brought in for 55k 

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