undercoveroperator profile picture
undercoveroperator profile picture

undercoveroperator

Senior Sales Team Leader

Executive
Valued Contributor
Good Citizen
+3

When you need an amendment on a deal, but the term gets rejected? What do I do?

Hi y'all - hoping to get some advice here. I had a deal come in on the last day of the month. Just before signing last night, the COO asked for a change on the payment terms. I said leadership wouldn't be able to approve changes until the next business day, but I'd create an amendment to get approved first thing in the morning. The agreement was signed as-is last night. I created the amendment for the payment schedule adjustment and the requested changes were rejected. What do I go back to the COO with in order to save face???

👑 Sales Strategy
💰 Compensation
12

10 comments

Sort by:
Kinonez
Celebrated Contributor
7
War Room Enthusiast
Let leadership know that without that approval you could loose the deal, if there is a leggit reason why it can;t be approved, I'd come clean and explain why it couldn't be done and what you propose to make it better!
CoorsKing
WR Officer
5
Retired King of the Coors Knights
“Leadership did not approve the amendment because of XYZ reasons. Here is what I propose we do as an alternative…”
AlphaCharlie
Arsonist
3
Account executive
First, apologize and let them know why this happened, hopefully, they will understand.
Cornholio
Opinionated
1
Account Executive
How big of a difference in terms are there? I’d make sure you exhausted all your options internally but as quickly as possible today. Then you just need to be honest that you tried but couldn’t get it approved. Being anything but upfront and doing it as fast as possible is what will cause this to blow up in your face and lose credibility. Even if you lose the deal, being honest will at least keep you in good graces.
undercoveroperator
Executive
0
Senior Sales Team Leader
From annual payments to monthly and net-30 to net-60. Doesn't seem like too far of a stretch at face value. The problem is that it's a small agreement for a partner's internal use. They're planning on bringing us into 20+ customers (including several F500 & F100's).
Cornholio
Opinionated
2
Account Executive
I’d escalate immediately then. That’s something worth making sure your manager knows is at risk.
CuriousFox
WR Officer
1
🦊
Inform leadership the deal may fall through and come up with a solution for the customer.
Coffeesforclosers
Notable Contributor
1
Director Sales and Market Development
Say the payment terms require us to add 3% fee on top of the total, maybe you make more scratch and the company approves it. We do that a lot for annual payments turned into quarterly we tack on 3-5% of their total CARR
MCP
Valued Contributor
0
Sales Director
Why agree to the amendment? You said you’d submit for approval which assumes it would happen vs checking to see what’s possible. Some people use the last minute change tactic to squeeze more out of the deal after terms are already agreed upon, especially when it’s EOM or EOQ. Signing as/is is a sign he would have signed regardless. I see no reason to entertain an amendment, particularly when there’s nothing in it for you. Next time say you’re happy to look into things but the terms were already agreed upon. Then ask how the last minute change request affects things. More often than not they’ll still move forward. Save amendments for renewal time.
Diablo
Politicker
0
Sr. AE
What can't be controlled can't be. I would bring the changes to the management to see if we accommodate what we promised the prospect. At the same time, I would show some empathy to the prospect and ask him how much flexible he would be with the changes assuring him that I am still trying your best to give him the best

Related posts

1

How do you deal with client's who 'ghost' you after being heavily engaged for a period ot time?

Question
📈 Closing
7
2

Follow client's process, or risk blowing up the deal?

Question
👑
📈
☁️
17
6

What's the most important term and condition you look for in a contract & Why?

Advice
☁️
📬
7
Bravado is a community of trusted sales professionals endorsed by their customers.
Apple Store logo
Products
The War Room Jobs Salary Guide Tech Sales U
Company
About Us How It Works Blog Bug Bounty
Contact
Press Careers
© 2024 Bravado Inc. All rights reserved.
Privacy Policy Legal and Privacy Center Sales Jobs
If you are hired as a contract sales rep by a Bravado customer, we may ask you to prove access to the employee email account provided to you by that customer. This data will be shared with customers to track your sales productivity; customers can use this data to confirm you meet the minimum activity requirements to pay out your ramp stipend and commission.