As a lifelong sales guy, I’m allowed to say this; salespeople are inherently lazy and want to find the most return on their efforts.
This can show up in the way they talk about lost opportunities, and in staffing, no socially acceptable excuse is more common than losing based on bill rate.
As a leader, you may hear things like, “we lost the deal on price”, “they went with a cheaper option”, “they aren’t willing to pay market rates”, etc. When in reality, they got outsold and didn’t provide value for the customer.
In sales, objections are part of the game and when price is the objection that’s not random.
Typically, it is a result of the seller not being able to clearly identify a problem/need, not being able to qualify the business impact, or an inability to create urgency to make a decision.
Value = Benefits – Cost
This is the equation that your prospects use for decision-making
Cost is not just the bill rate the client should consider. The salesperson must be able to confidently articulate the hidden costs: background checks, time to productivity, turnover and burnout, etc. impact of poor talent in that role, or worse, no talent in that role. If salespeople can’t articulate the benefits of their solution, the focus solely becomes bill-rate, not total cost. When value is unclear, buyers compare price BUT when value is clear; buyers will justify the cost.
Many sellers “know” what to do but often don’t execute. They have been trained to ask better questions, create a gap, and communicate value. But as I mentioned, we’re a lazy bunch and in live situations, tend to avoid the tough questions and skip the steps that matter.
That’s where Sales Coach AI (SCAI) is a game changer in reinforcing the right behaviors in real time. Sales Coach AI is not just another AI tool in your tech stack, it is a:
No reason to hide from bad role practice with SCAI, it’s available 24/7 to provided real-time role practice. It's designed to make you better before you get in front of your prospects and customers, so the feedback will be swift and real. It’s not designed to beat you up but make you better, so more wins come in real world scenarios.
We have built SCAI to accelerate skill development, accelerate processes, and give time back to salespeople for what’s important. It's continuous reinforcement of the right Habits (another Cornerstone we live by).
No more blaming pricing, competition, or market conditions. In fact, some of your competitors are facing the same thing you are and are winning at a higher rate. They looked in the mirror, understood their clients’ operating reality and sold value; price wasn't an issue because they led with value.
As a leader, are you holding your people accountable for what they said they would do? It’s not always easy, but those hard internal conversations will make them more confident to lead with value and win more deals.
Leaders and salespeople alike, if you want more strategic conversations, move from vendor to trusted partner, and ultimately win more deals; we can help. Reach out to Butler Street today and let us show you how it’s done!