How can you negotiate ongoing support or maintenance with customers?

1 Understand your customer's needs and goals

Before you propose any support or maintenance options, you need to understand your customer's needs and goals. What are their pain points, challenges, and opportunities? How does your product or service help them solve their problems or achieve their objectives? How do they measure success and value? By asking open-ended questions, listening actively, and conducting research, you can gain insights into your customer's situation and expectations. This will help you tailor your support or maintenance offer to their specific needs and goals, and demonstrate how it can benefit them in the long run.

2 Position your support or maintenance as a solution, not a cost

One of the common objections that customers have to paying for ongoing support or maintenance is that they see it as an unnecessary or excessive cost. To overcome this objection, you need to position your support or maintenance as a solution, not a cost. You need to show your customer how your support or maintenance can help them prevent or solve issues, improve performance, enhance security, optimize efficiency, or access new features or updates. You also need to communicate the value and return on investment of your support or maintenance, and compare it to the potential risks and costs of not having it. For example, you can use case studies, testimonials, or data to illustrate how your support or maintenance has helped other customers achieve positive outcomes or avoid negative consequences.

3 Offer options and incentives

Another way to negotiate ongoing support or maintenance with customers is to offer them options and incentives. Options give your customer a sense of control and flexibility, and allow them to choose the level of support or maintenance that suits their needs and budget. Incentives motivate your customer to take action and reward them for their loyalty or commitment. For example, you can offer discounts, free trials, upgrades, or bonuses for signing up for longer-term or higher-level support or maintenance contracts. You can also use scarcity or urgency tactics, such as limited-time offers, deadlines, or exclusivity, to create a sense of FOMO (fear of missing out) and encourage your customer to act quickly.

4 Handle objections and concerns

Even if you have done your homework, positioned your offer well, and provided options and incentives, you may still encounter objections and concerns from your customer. These may include budget constraints, lack of authority, competing priorities, or satisfaction with the current situation. To handle these objections and concerns, you need to acknowledge, empathize, and respond. Acknowledge your customer's point of view and show that you respect it. Empathize with your customer's feelings and emotions, and validate them. Respond by addressing the underlying issue or need, providing evidence or examples, and proposing a solution or compromise. For example, if your customer says they don't have the budget for your support or maintenance, you can acknowledge that budget is a common challenge, empathize that you understand their situation, and respond by offering a payment plan, a lower-level option, or a value-added service.

5 Ask for the commitment and follow up

The final step to negotiate ongoing support or maintenance with customers is to ask for the commitment and follow up. Once you have addressed all the objections and concerns, and established the value and benefits of your offer, you need to ask your customer to make a decision. You can use a direct or indirect close, depending on your customer's style and preference. A direct close is when you ask your customer to sign the contract, place the order, or confirm the agreement. An indirect close is when you ask your customer a question or suggest an action that implies their agreement, such as asking for their opinion, feedback, or preference. After you ask for the commitment, you need to follow up with your customer until the deal is closed. You can use email, phone, or text to remind your customer of the offer, address any questions or issues, and confirm the details and next steps.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?