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Has the economy affected your sales approaches?

Tim Connor, CSP
Speaker/Author/Trainer
704-895-1230

In the last sixty years we have been through four recessions that have had a tremendous impact on consumers buying habits, trends and style. The question every salesperson needs to ask themselves is – How has the economy affected how I prospect, present, close and handle price resistance?

Let me ask you – have any of your approaches or strategies changed, improved, been modified during the past two years or are you stuck in habit patterns, attitudes, approaches and responses to the marketplace as if nothing has changed?

There are two approaches in a challenging economy – circle the wagons, reduce prices, hope and pray and just keep on doing what you have always been doing in the same old ways. The other is to re-invent yourself and your selling behaviors so that you can continue to compete, grow your business and prosper regardless of what is going on around you either in your industry or marketplace.

I have weathered four economic downturns since beginning my speaking and training career in 1973 and I can tell you I have learned a great deal – some things I am ashamed to admit and others that I am proud of. The simple fact is that I’m still here selling, training, speaking and writing full time after almost forty years in spite of these economic ebb and flows.

How about you? Need to upgrade, change, let go of some attitudes or tactics that just are not working like they used to or just simply re-invent yourself and/or your career?

Let me tell you a few things that don’t change and do change during challenging economic times and then I’ll close with a few things you can consider if your business is suffering in any way. But the general rule that can serve as a benchmark for the following is simply – don’t wait – or it will be too late.

So, what doesn’t change in difficult economic times?

• Consumers still need to buy stuff.
• Everyone defines what it is important to buy differently.
• The competition will do anything to get or steal business from you.
• Consumers have a variety of choices when it comes to purchasing.
• Necessities are not defined by the marketplace but by the purchaser.
• Most organizations are willing to negotiate terms, prices and added benefits.
• Consumers are more discretionary in their spending.
• The longer a poor economy lasts the less patient consumers are in waiting for recovery.
• There are major buying groups and all have different agendas.
• There will always be consumers and business with loads of money stashed away.

So, what does change in difficult economic times?

• People tend to buy only what they believe are necessities.
• Consumers tend to shop more.
• Consumers know that most organizations will drop prices and improve terms so they will ask more for these considerations.
• People tend to wait longer to purchase.
• Buying priorities change.
• People have less discretionary spending ability.
• The fear of continued or future uncertainty is what prevents prospects from buying.
• Consumers will tend to play one supplier against another more frequently.
• Prospects are less willing to enter into long-term agreements or contracts.

Ok, what can you do to continue to win your fair share of the business that is always out there?

• Spend more of your sales time prospecting than usual.
• If you must lower price have a pricing strategy and don’t do it as a knee-jerk response.
• Accept the fact that normal buying cycles will change.
• Stay focused on what you can do and is working and not what you can’t do or isn’t working.
• Keep working on your attitude development, control and improvement.
• Turn off the naysayers. Surround yourself only with positive and optimistic people.
• Don’t stick your head in the sand hoping all will get better by doing nothing new or different.
• Stay focused on the long-term opportunities and not the short-term circumstances.
• Spend more time each day in creative thinking and problem solving.
• Keep re-inventing yourself whatever that means to you and requires of you.
• Don’t develop a victim mentality.

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