Introducing new solutions to your business relationships can be challenging, especially when they are skeptical or resistant to change. How do you persuade them to see the value and benefits of your innovative ideas? Here are some tips to help you win over skeptical business relationships to new solutions.
Before you pitch your new solution, you need to understand the needs, goals, and pain points of your business relationship. What are they trying to achieve? What are their current challenges and frustrations? What are their expectations and preferences? By doing your research and asking open-ended questions, you can show that you care about their situation and that you have a relevant solution for them.
You may have the best solution possible but if you don't listen to the client, and specifically their challenges, you will struggle to get your pitch right. Having a base level of understanding of the client is important, but the first few minutes in the conversation are key to understand their key challenges... you're there to help, not to sell.
WIFM....What's In It For Them ! No one really cares how good you are, your company is or even your products unless you can show them how/why they will make a difference for them
Stop selling. Do you like to be sold to? Probably not. Start asking. Not, "What keeps you up at night?" It is not your prospect's job to educate you on their industry and their company. That's a job for Google (or better yet, ChatGPT). You can start the process of gaining a prospect's trust by assuming the role of a business advisor. One question that I've seen work is to ask, "I've had three other clients in your industry that had a problem with A, B, and C...are you finding similar issues within your company?" Continue that dialog wherever it goes, but DON'T bring up products and services. Ask for time to think things over, consult with your colleagues, and bring a few possible solutions to your next meeting.
NOBODY wants to be SOLD. EVERYONE wants to be HELPED. So find out how to help them, and if you can't then find someone you can.
Be a"problem finder" not just a "problem solver". Start talking and listening to customers much earlier in the cycle and help them realize they have an opportunity/problem to face rather than coming in late in the cycle with your solution. Understand first and only then seek to be understood.
Once you have identified their needs, you need to demonstrate how your new solution can add value to their business. How can it solve their problems, improve their performance, or create new opportunities? Use concrete examples, case studies, testimonials, or data to back up your claims and show the impact of your solution. Avoid using jargon or technical terms that might confuse or alienate them. Instead, use simple and clear language that focuses on the benefits and outcomes.
The biggest mistake I see from vendors is not taking the time to understand the business model of new customer/partners/resellers and having the humility and vision to realise that their success will drive your long-term success and growth. You must align to their value and approach not force on them your products or approach, else you will spend more time justifying and causing friction. The value proposition must bring the buyer a combination of efficiency and opportunity that can elevate them directly, or their end customers, business outcomes. Business cases must be specific and relevant to the buyer’s world and make saving projections realistic so they are accepted then you get to focus on the value on top!
It takes tact, evidence, and understanding to introduce new solutions to skeptical business partners. The most important thing is to listen actively to their concerns. Your approach can be tailored to address specific apprehensions by understanding the root of their skepticism. Provide concrete data and research to support your proposals. Success stories, case studies, and statistics can sway opinions when they are demonstrated. Instead of listing features, emphasize how the solution will increase efficiency, reduce costs, or enable growth.
Once you understand their concerns, providing testimonials and success stories from other companies that have had similar problems can be powerful tools to show that the solution works. If possible set up time with previous customers that can talk directly with prospective customers and you will find how quickly trust can be built.
Providing evidence as to how your solution can address their pain points will make them more comfortable talk to you and seek clarifications. Offering Data backed solutions , narrating success stories and case studies along with examples that demonstrate the benefits and success of the new solutions will help build credibility.
A great opportunity to demonstrate value is to show any previous interaction with the client that could have been enhanced by this new solution. This brings attention to the important aspects for your client and identifies tangible upgrades in the quality of service/product.
Even if you have a compelling value proposition, you might still face some objections or concerns from your skeptical business relationship. They might question the feasibility, cost, risk, or compatibility of your new solution. Instead of dismissing or ignoring their objections, you need to address them respectfully and confidently. Listen to their feedback, acknowledge their perspective, and provide evidence or reassurance to overcome their doubts. You can also use stories or analogies to illustrate how your solution works or how it has helped others in similar situations.
Storytelling addresses objections by making content relatable, evoking emotions, providing structured narratives, enhancing recall, showing empathy, simplifying complex issues, and facilitating visualization, enabling persuasive and memorable responses.
The best objection handling starts with good discovery, otherwise you may not realize you're handling an objection they didn't actually have while the actual objection goes unaddressed. Oftentimes the customer will talk themselves out of the objection while also giving you more information with which to overcome it. Additionally, the process of discovery can make your client feel heard and disarmed.
Getting "Objections" is actually the BEST you can hope for during your proposition! They are assists to deep dive into a specific topic, to tell a story about it, to bring practical examples... In the end to get CLOSER to the prospect!
In convincing skeptical business partners, addressing objections transparently is crucial. If they express reservations—be it cost, feasibility, or risk—listen actively. Never over-promise; instead, align your offerings realistically with their goals and drivers. You might say, "I understand budget is a key concern. However, when we consider the ROI and long-term benefits, our solution offers significant value." Leverage case studies, real-world examples, or even relatable analogies to support your claims. The objective isn't just to overcome objections but to do so in a manner that establishes trust and credibility. Through this approach, you can turn skepticism into confidence, laying the foundation for a fruitful business relationship.
Respectfully address your clients objections and give them the information they need to feel comfortable. Ignoring their concerns only weakens the rapport and potentially loses trust. Give examples of how you have overcome these obstacles with other clients.
One of the best ways to win over skeptical business relationships to new solutions is to involve them in the process of designing, testing, or implementing the solution. By giving them a sense of ownership and participation, you can increase their engagement, trust, and commitment. You can also use this opportunity to collect their input, feedback, or suggestions and incorporate them into your solution. This way, you can show that you value their opinions and that you are willing to adapt and improve your solution to meet their needs.
Folks talk about partnership all the time without delivering partnership activities. Involving a customer in the process of creating new solutions helps build partnership. It allows for added transparency and gives more opportunity for buy in on the project and the company processes. It helps build deeper trust in your organization. It’s one thing for a customer to trust the sales guy, it’s another level when they trust the plants, engineering and everyone else in the process. Another major benefit is customer input. You can learn what drives different stakeholders. Sometimes the original request doesn’t represent the customer as a whole. Regular feedback allows you to find out everyone’s priorities. Partnership needs to be an action.
It's critical to involve the client in developing and implementing a new solution to insure that solution is the right solution and is implemented in the most effective manner. The sense of "ownership" in that solutions will support it's success. That coordination with the client helps to avoid pitfalls the sales person may not identify.
This includes defining how measurement will be done, so there’s little to no space later to dispute results. Align the KPIs, the formulas, the data sources. Everything so it’s very tied. From my experience there will be many nuances to pre-align on.
Establish trust, then I think it’s about asking relevant questions to uncover their skepticism. Once you understand their skeptic points, you have to provide relevant data to help them overcome the skepticism.
Sellers sell too much and often hand it off to another person to implement. Be a buyer who demands process and asks for the best process for you and your organization. Here are some examples: Waterfall and Agile for software, Kanban for workflow, Six Sigma for quality, CRISP-DM for data mining, Scientific Method for research, PDCA for improvement, 5S for organization, TPM for manufacturing, and Trello for task management.
Finally, after you have presented your new solution and addressed any objections, you need to follow up and deliver on your promises. You need to keep in touch with your business relationship, update them on the progress, and provide them with any support or assistance they might need. You also need to deliver the solution on time, on budget, and on quality and ensure that it meets or exceeds their expectations. By following up and delivering, you can build credibility, loyalty, and satisfaction with your business relationship and pave the way for future collaborations.
Enterprise Account Executive @ Dynatrace | 14x Gartner MQ Leader in APM and Observability |
This is where as a trusted advisor, you need to set the expectation beforehand of what you can or cannot deliver. Usually when there is a gap in expectations, is when you find yourself with a dissatisfied client.
I hear the words "chasing" all the time when conducting a sales cadence on slipping deals. "I chased them for feedback..." etc. My answer is routine but often produces wide eyes and an ashen complexion when I say "Following the presentation you did write and confirm the agreed mutual obligations, 'actions', and gain clear agreement of what the next steps look like once achieved against their measures and within the agreed timescale didn't you? " This and lack of 'progress' or 'check-in' calls with the deal sponsor is a big reason for slippage and surprise introduction of low bid competition as your proposal is shopped around
Approaching follow-through with more accountability creates a greater degree of trust. It reverts the responsibility back to you and your team. Putting your money where your promises are, has been a differentiator in an industry over-compensated for mediocrity, health insurance. A strategy we use is to place a 100% fee guarantee on our annual engagement schedule and for a determined amount of savings that is mutually agreed upon with the client. When you know you can deliver, put your money on the line. If or when, you find failure points, you'll immediately fix it and greatly improve your processes. This approach creates efficiencies and help you continually evolve.
This is so right you can also use your relationship to allay their fears get one of your clients to vouch for you this is why we say networking helps
Follow up is a partnership. Agree how you will both contribute to the follow up process and invest the time to build credibility in seeing through the delivery of your solutions.
To me, it starts with trust. If you want people to be open to a new solution, they have to trust you. There's plenty of ways to establish it. My typical approach is to be direct and demonstrate integrity. If I have to tell someone we can't do a thing they want, I tell them. If a solution I have doesn't quite meet their needs, I don't try to force it. Yes, I push hard and sell on the benefits of the solutions I can offer...but...I find that by being 100% straightforward, whether the answer helps my chances of closing the deal or not, I'm typically able to establish a foundation of trust. When my clients know they can trust me, they start to trust in the solutions my company can provide.
All of the article advice is spot on but before you can do ANY of those things, you must lower their resistance. Without lowering their resistance they can not possibly change their position. Lower their resistance by agreeing with their starting position. "I understand your position and it makes sense to me. And while I came here to share something new with you, now I know it might not make sense. So instead of sharing, can I ask you about...."
Speak their Language: Do your research and speak in terms of the problem pain points they might have already. Demonstrate: Show and Tell! With Examples. How similar customers (or competitors) like them derived value.
Be transparent and willing to walk away from the deal should this not be the right solution for the prospect. Buyers are right to be skeptical, we all are too when we do not have the right information and we think we're being 'sold' to, this is why it's important to understand the client and continually check during the conversation whether you're still aligned with the prospect.
Winning over skeptics is not a one-time effort but a continuous process. Maintain ongoing engagement even after the solution is implemented to ensure satisfaction and address any evolving concerns. Establishing a feedback loop is crucial for continual improvement. Actively seeking and incorporating feedback shows that you value their input and are committed to refining the solution to better meet their needs.