One of the most interesting and perhaps intimidating parts of Sales in the Startup has been our sales conversations. It’s been a great opportunity to learn from other students and apply the principles that we have been learning about all semester. It’s interesting to plan ahead to go on the last day of the conversations as well. One of the most important and yet difficult things that I have seen in these talks so far has been maintaining control of the conversation.
It is an extremely difficult balance of allowing the prospect to express their needs and questions while still controlling the flow and direction of the conversation. I think the majority of students who have done well focus on answering questions with a different question or redirecting to other talking points if they are given a question that starts backing them into a corner.
There is a huge learning curve when it comes to in person, non-scripted sales calls. This exercise has been eye-opening to see how difficult and awkward of a process it can be. On a personal level I can see how my natural inclination would likely be to sell benefits and lose control of a conversation accidentally while simply trying to let the prospect be heard. It’s been a great opportunity to watch other students go and take note of techniques that work well in the context of these conversations. Heading into my conversation I have a clearer picture of my own weaknesses and can tailor my approach more effectively. Ultimately this simulation is an incredible, low-stakes learning opportunity that the entire class has benefited from!\
BoweryJE22
I agree that this is a great low-stakes selling process to apply the tactics that we have learned. It has been interesting to see all the different sales pitches. I believe that students have lost control of the conversation by answering questions too directly. You need to get an idea of what type of budget your prospect has before you answer directly what the price is. By directly answering price, you open yourself up to price gougers and losing control of the conversation. Good luck on your presentation.