When in a sales process, it is vital to find the key decision maker in the process.
For example, when someone enters a sales conversation with a lower manager, they manager may be super ecstatic about the sale that you’re trying to sell them on. But, if that lower manager has to run the project by a higher manager or a CFO or even a CEO, it might get shot down without you even having the chance to meet with them.
Rather, if you take the time to look into who the decision makers are in a company, then you’ll have the direct access you are looking for. You can bring up the hard questions you need to have answered, like money questions and if the company is even heading in the direction you need it to be to work effectively with them.
So, what are ways that we can find the decision makers in a sales situation?
- Do your research ahead of time. Most companies have information about who leads the company. Especially with large organizations, you should be able to find out who you need to talk to.
- Ask. When you enter into a sales conversation, be sure to ask who else needs to be involved in the decision. Questions like, “Who else has a say in this contract?” are really useful for this.
BoweryJE22
Key decision makers are so important in the world of sales. This is some great insight on an important topic that should be discussed. Key decision makers hold the power in companies, so gaining their approval on projects is an extremely important task. Asking the prospect in the sales conversation is also a great thing to do because it gives you insight on the company straight from the source.
It is very important to figure out who is really making the final decisions and who has a say in what goes on. Assuming that the person you are having a sales conversation with is the one who makes all the decisions is to be very naivé.
Great point and recap of the lecture!
Have a great week!
-Collier
I agree with you that it is vital to identify who the key decision makers are, during the sales process. If you only have access to assistants or others who won’t determine the end decision, then you won’t have nearly as good of a chance of actually completing the sale. Great post!
In any sales situation, it’s important to find out who the key decision makers are because they are the ones who make the ultimate decision. It’s important to ask your client what position they are so you can get an idea of they are a key decision maker. Another way to find out is by doing research. Not only does this help prepare you for the sales meeting but it gives you an idea of who is in charge.
I agree, I think that finding the key decision maker is one of the most important steps in the sales process. You don’t want to be wasting your time talking to somebody that doesn’t have any influence in the decision making process.