Rocket Fuel: "Are you the Decision Maker?"
Hi everybody, Julie here, the Sales Ace, bringing you a sales tip of the week, coming back to you after a little bit of a sabbatical, but I'm back and this week is centred around the phrase “Are you the decision maker?”
So one of the things that I talk about in the sales process is being in control of it, being aware of who you're talking to and what part they play.
Now, we do want to know in the sales process if the person that you're sitting in front of or the person that you're talking to is the decision maker because it can put the entire sale into jeopardy if you do all your pitch and everything to that person, and it's not the right person: they're not the one who's going to make the decision at the end of the day.
But one of my pet hates is actually sitting there and listening to somebody say, “Are you the decision maker?” So for me, that's actually a pretty rude way of doing it. You’re almost assuming that these people don't have the power to give you the go ahead.
So here's a better phrase to use:
“What is the buying process within your organisation, and what part do you play within that?”
We're getting the same information. We're getting the answer to that question, we’ll then know where their sphere of influence is, but it's not sitting there going “I'll use a decision maker”.
So next time you have a meeting, try that. And hopefully, it will bring you some good answers. That's it for this week! Short and sweet, and I’ll catch up with you next time.
