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Think about this for a minute. For most businesses a 10% improvement in conversion of proposals brings an improvement in sales of more than 40%.
Now ask yourself – how much of the 65 years of research into persuasion do we apply to our proposal process and conversion strategies? Seriously – when was the last time you leveraged deliberate persuasion principles to increase the probability of a “yes’ and decrease the probability of a “no”?
Let me give you a real life example I experienced recently when negotiating on a potential premises for lease. The agent’s commission would have been (we didn’t proceed) in the vicinity of $15 000 so you would think that would make it worth their while preparing for the closing meeting.
There we were with the owners and the agent. Many of the terms I had offered were acceptable to the owner. But, the agent started off the discussion by saying “Your demands on CPI for reviews are not acceptable”. Now given that research on negotiation tells us the most successful negotiators always begin by highlighting agreements this struck me as plain dumb! Even more hilarious (or disappointing if you employ the agent) was that after three belligerent statements around CPI being too low, the owners stepped in and said “We’re actually happy with CPI. Not only was the agent doing the opposite of what research says works best, they had also failed to take clear instructions from the owners!
If you’re thinking that wasn’t too smart let’s review some other common mistakes and see how you and your team stack up.
Mistake # 1 – Failing to Agree Early
When you present a proposal to another business you need to start off with as much agreement as possible. Research tells us starting with agreements increases the probability of a positive outcome. Next time your people are heading out to present, ask - “What will you agree on early in the meeting?” If you get a blank stare make sure you challenge them to develop strategies for making sure the conversation starts strong.
Mistake # 2 – Failing to Reconfirm Commitments
The more a person confirms that they’re in a situation that could be better the more committed they are to making a decision. Basically, encouraging a prospective customer to confirm the issues and challenges relating to their current situation early on primes them to make a decision later in the meeting. If your people have done their needs analysis effectively they should have a number of issues and challenges to reconfirm. Challenging them to state the customers issues they plan to reconfirm before presenting a solution will challenge your people’s thinking and make it more likely they will apply this strategy.
Mistake # 3 – Failing to Show Proof
Research tells us people are more likely to proceed with a solution if they believe others have accepted it and their decision is supported by credible authorities with specific justifications. Ask one of your people to present a solution to you and test it for these three elements. Have they included the testimonial of a relevant customer? Have they quantified the challenges and issues the customer faces in a manner that will enable the prospect to justify the decision? Have they leveraged the expertise of authorities outside your organisation to improve the credibility of the solution offered, and your business as a partner? All of these could increase your probability of walking away with a yes.
Mistake # 4 – Presenting Solo
Research tells us that when terms are negotiated the number of concessions won correlate to the number of people on each side of the negotiation. So having an extra team member there when you present your proposal significantly increases the probability of securing a favourable deal. Funny – as I reflect on this I’ve realised my team and I have been making this mistake! This rule pretty much applies to every stage of the sales process - working in teams makes as much sense as presenting in teams.
Mistake # 5 – Failing to Define a Compelling Close
Once again, I challenge you to ask a salesperson planning to present a solution the following question. “What’s your planned closing?” If they can’t respond confidently there’s a high probability they’ll make a very common mistake, by closing the presentation with “So, what do you think?”. Here’s the problem. It makes the prospective customer significantly less likely to make a decision! Not smart.
So – how do your team stack up? These are just 5 of many common mistakes we’re helping clients avoid every day, to make the way they present solutions and convert opportunities more persuasive. Tackling this challenge in your business can have a profound impact on your overall sales results.
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Dean Mannix is a Founding Director and Principal Consultant at SalesITV – Australia’s leading online sales and customer service training company. He has over 20 years of legal, finance, sales and management experience and is regarded as one of Australia’s leading performance consultants. Connect with him on LinkedIn.
