What do less experienced sales reps struggle with the most? Hands down it is pricing discussions. And this then extends into closing deals. Heck, you could credibly make the argument that even the most experienced sales reps struggle the most with overcoming pricing objections.
Here is the coaching that I always provide to sales reps struggling with overcoming pricing objections. Price is simply a proxy for value. It is incumbent on us as sales professionals to build the appropriate value proposition with the customer as a core part of our sales process.
In fact, all sales reps should be able to deliver pricing to their customers with complete conviction. Why? Because the sales rep should unequivocally believe in the value that their product will deliver to the customer. Based on what? What other customers similar to this customer have derived for value from using your product.
Based on what you learned from your discovery process around the customer’s pain. Quantifying the value of addressing the customer’s business problem and making the pain go away. Getting concurrence from the customer on what the cost of doing nothing is or sticking with the status quo.
This can be done formally through an ROI exercise/calculator based on what value your real world customers have experienced by using your product. Or informally through a “back of the envelope” math exercise jointly with the customer using their numbers and getting concurrence.
When you master the art of building your value proposition with a customer, the pricing discussion becomes simple. Rather than something that you dread as a sales rep, customer pricing discussions become something you look forward to because you know that you are that much closer to a deal.
Good selling!