We were taught at a very early age to never make assumptions. However, I still encounter salespeople who make assumptions all the time. I want to, in particular, highlight two tales of woe from clients who I discovered were making damaging assumptions.
Ask, “Who Else?”
One client assumed that they were working with the decision-maker. For 10 years, they worked with a purchasing agent who brought them huge amounts of business. In fact, their relationship was so strong it became their biggest customer. They were happy.
However, after a reorganization, they discovered that there were two other people in exactly the same positions giving two-thirds of the business to their competition. It was about $200,000 a year in revenue that they were missing because they had assumed they were dealing with the only person in a decision-making capacity. That’s $2 million of lost revenue over 10 years. Their stomachs hurt a little bit. Thus, always ask the question: “Who else?” If my client had done this 10 years ago, they would indeed be $2 million wealthier as a business.
Decision-Maker Assumptions
The second tale of woe came from a client of mine who was working with a prospect and he assumed that the buyer was the decision-maker because he owned the business. He couldn’t understand why month after month he could not get this buyer/owner/decision-maker to close the business with him despite everything looking great. He then asked a question which revealed that there were other owners in the business who were being the gatekeeper to them moving forward.
In his case, even though he was able to close the business eventually, it took what should had been a 60-day sales cycle and made it six months of frustration because he made an assumption.
Indeed, never make assumptions about buyers. Always ask yourself: “Who else is involved?” “Who else needs to know?” “Who else should I meet?” You will find yourself selling more in less time.
