Hayden Hampton

Sister Warnas
Sell 275

Escaping The Price Driven Sale

October 26 2015

ESCAPING THE PRICE DRIVEN SALE

!1

In the modern world buyers can find anything they want about a product through the
internet thus making the salesman obsolete. The salesman is no longer the only expert in his
field. His client now has the potential to know just as much about the salesmans products as he
does. A purchaser can now buy without ever having to see another human being, namely the
salesman. Therefore it becomes important for the salesperson adapt and acquire the necessary
skills to keep himself employed. I believe the skills discussed in this book are realistic and within
the reach of almost any salesman; it is a matter of honing these skills and instincts and bringing
them to the forefront in business interactions.

Given that your potential client has potentially just as much information about what you
are selling as you do, and about your competitors services; the only thing that can potentially
redeem or set you apart from the other salesman is the value you (yes you) create for the potential
clients company. There is a simple equation for creating value, and that is value=benefits-cost.
Basically the conditions in which a sale can be made is when the value and benefit of your option
out weighs the cost. With this general idea of value lets discuss how to create value, without
talking about features or benefits.
ESCAPING THE PRICE DRIVEN SALE

!2

As a salesman you have a unique view of the industry in which a buyer operates,
precisely because you meet with different businesses every day. You see their processes and how
things operate. You take tours and are constantly watching and learning the way things run. This
is something that people in purchasing departments do not do. This gives you a creative
advantage. You have the advantage of an outsider. You have views and perspectives the buyers
do not have, and would pay to have. This is one of the redeeming qualities of dealing with a
salesman which you must use to your advantage to create value.
As you go about your sales, you must learn to look for patterns. You must look for
scattered causes and try to link them together in your mind to make sense of them. You must
learn to connect dots to make a picture which has implications for your buyer. You must make
data, numbers and statistics become a comprehendible pattern. It is important to employ your
best most objective questioning skills. As you begin to see a pattern, you must keep your mind
open. To be objective and accurate you must not become over attached to one idea or solution
you have. You must stay mentally agile. While you are processing this information, you should
simultaneously route a path of questions whereby the client can come to the same conclusion, or
at least see the problem you are detecting. The reason this is a necessity is a psychological
principle called confirmation bias.
Confirmation bias has 2 components. The first is that people value what they say and
their own conclusions more than what they are told. The second is that people value what they
ask for more than what is freely offered. The bare truth is that people wont appreciate your
opinion if you just come out and say it, because they didnt realize it for themselves and if they
didnt ask for it, they are less likely to care. So it is important that the conversation has such a

ESCAPING THE PRICE DRIVEN SALE

!3

nuance that it leads the buyer to discover things for themselves, leading them to ask you for your
solution, thereby increasing the value of your consultation in their minds (because they asked for
it,) making you valuable to their company.
This process can be broken down into an acronym: SPiKE.
Skills: asking the right questions in the right way to lead to aha moments of discovery.
Process: Identify problems that plague the industry, look at your companies capacity to solve
these plagues.
Knowledge: Be well read on the industry and its minute processes.
Effort: You must be paying attention when you go out on your calls. You must be alert and
critical of everything so you can know what questions to ask.
It is through applying SPiKE, that you can ask the type of questions which will be in the
know and having your customers ask you questions in return, and you can become a valuable
consultant in the eyes of that company.
So far weve been discussing some value fundamentals. We have defined value, we have
looked at what creates value, and how to be valuable to the company. Now lets find out how to
quantify value in the eyes of the customer.
When considering your proposed solutions identify and prioritize areas of business
impact. So you are to identify your companys capabilities, the products and or service
capabilities, and the people capability you can offer. Next consider how you can impact the
revenue of the client, cost of sales, margin, expense and profit. Identifying and writing these will
then help you to prioritize these things to list them in such a way that it is of most value to the
customer. Next you plan with the customer to work out an unanticipated solution through asking
factual and hypothetical questions, such as How many people work in x department and

ESCAPING THE PRICE DRIVEN SALE

!4

hypothetically what if we could lower _______ costs by 15% Next once the customer has
drawn the desired conclusion, this will most likely elicit the invitation for you to give your
proposed solution. In this step it is of utmost importance that you wait for the customer to ask for
your opinion. Then and only then should you proceed. Finally write a nice proposal which
highlights the aha moment that they came to on their own.
Really this is almost the art of inception. The art of planting an idea in someones head,
but less sinister. You are simply leading them on a path of discovery which respects their intellect
and innate human psychology. You are using this psychology, while tedious, to your advantage.
It is through this process that we respectfully propose our solutions. It is extremely important
throughout this process that you remain humble. You never want to come across as preachy or
condescending to your customer. You must be honest and humble if you want to be well
received. These principles may not be as easily practiced to those of us who are new to sales, but
if you remember to keep these things in mind as you learn more about the industry in which you
sell, you will be able to have the respectable character and disposition of a trusted consultative
seller.

ESCAPING THE PRICE DRIVEN SALE

!5