I like it When My Clients Negotiate
This is what a print salesperson said to me the other day. Here’s what he said about clients who negotiate.
"They want me to print for them and are willing to work out the details with me"
Often, the print selling and print buying process is like shooting an arrow into the air and never seeing where it lands. Many buyers will not give you feedback...where you stand price wise and what went into the buying decision...because they don’t want to invite you to question their decision.
"If clients negotiate it doesn’t mean that they are simply buying on price"
If that were the case, they would simply go straight to the cheapest bidder. Instead, the buyer is coming back to you. That means that they would prefer to work with you than the competition.
That’s not a price-based decision. That’s a decision on which supplier they want to work with.
"However, they still have to justify their decision logically"
That means they also want a competitive price. So they need to talk with you about your bid in order to justify using you.
However, often they may not need you to match the lowest price. They may be prepared to pay a little more in order to get the supplier they really want.
Remember, negotiation is a buying signal.
PS: If you’d benefit from more views like this from the point of view of the buyer, download my free e-book "Ten Common Print Selling Errors and What To Do About Them" right now at http://profitableprintrelationships.com/e-book/ You’ll also receive my regular "Views from the print buyer" bulletin, full of ideas on how to sell print effectively.
- Categories:
- Business Management - Marketing/Sales
Many printing companies are frustrated how hard it is to engage buyers in today’s world. That’s where Matthew Parker can help. He is a gamekeeper turned poacher. Parker has bought print for more than 20 years and received over 1,400 print sales pitches. He now uses his buyer’s point of view to give practical advice to printers. He helps them engage with prospects and customers to create profitable relationships.
Download his free e-book, "Ten Common Print Selling Errors And What To Do About Them" and check out his recently launched book, "How To Succeed At Print Sales: Setting targets, planning the right activities and making sure goals are met."
