Small-business owners — especially those who are naturally curious— are often shopping for products and services that’ll help them save time, be more efficient, and speed up growth.
Could be anything from ERP software to time management tips, career coaching to highly specialized marketing help.
In the game of business-to-business sales there’s always some kind of problem that needs solving. And there’s no shortage of sales people aggressively promoting solutions to those problems.
Many of those people mean well. They genuinely want to help you succeed.
Others are not so authentic. In fact, you could say they’re just modern day snake oil salesmen, preying on busy business owners who can’t possibly do it all themselves.
They lure you in with a YouTube video, LinkedIn post or an ad that strikes a nerve. Then they dog you with targeted ads, sms messages, emails and social.
Eventually you might sit through their free webinar, where they pile on social proof that confirms the value of their product or service. (Beware of testimonials from people in their flip flops who claim that their “business literally runs itself”)
It’s easy for entrepreneurially-minded people to get sucked in.
So let’s say you’ve been through a webinar and you’ve agreed to the next step in their sales funnel. Usually it’s a Zoom call. That’s where they put the screws to you, and deliver the hard sell. Or the upsell. Or the old switcharoony.
Here are some tips on how to spot a shyster, avoid a bad purchase, and not get exploited in business-to-business sales situations.
• Do some research before the meeting… Dig up reviews on the company. Go to Glassdoor and see what past employees have to say. Look up the person you’ll be meeting with. I did that recently and I found that the company was not focused on what they were pitching me. It was also doing this, that and the other thing, which was cause for concern. Not only that, the company was nothing more than a loosely affiliated group of freelancers. You gotta read between the lines!
• Go into it with a healthy dose of skepticism and a well-thought-out list of questions, observations, objections and feelings. Yes, sometimes you just have to trust your gut. Might be a great service from an accomplished team of people, but if it does not feel right for you, that’s okay. You don’t need a long, analytical list of reasons to say no.
• During the sales call go through your list of concerns and determine if the sales person is addressing them. Does he answer questions directly, or dodge and deflect? Is his offer getting more clear, or more confusing? If your questions keep piling up, that’s a sure sign that he’s not listening — not genuinely concerned about anything beyond making the close.
• Find out who’s really going to do the work. Let’s say you’re buying a high-ticket coaching program… who exactly will be your coach in one-on-one sessions? It doesn’t matter what kind of system or process they’re touting, if you don’t like your coach you won’t get your money’s worth. Some companies won’t even divulge that information until you’ve signed an agreement.
If you’re buying highly specialized digital marketing services, find out who’s behind the curtain. In many cases the work is outsourced oversees. Is the sales person transparent about that?
If it’s software as a service, find out how much service they really provide. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a tech tool that never lives up to its potential. (Buyer’s remorse applies to business purchases too.)
There’s a reason why large companies have dedicated purchasing departments. Buying decisions can be time consuming and angst producing. Just because it’s coming out of company funds doesn’t mean the decision-making process is easier. In fact, it might make things harder.
We all make bad purchases from time to time, at home and at work. The key is learning from our mistakes and not getting into a pattern of buying ill-advised impulse items.
So the next time you’re tempted to buy a solution to a problem you think you have, remember that snake oil has been rebranded many times over the centuries. Today it comes with a slick funnel, a Calendly link, and a money-back guarantee.
The pitch may be more sophisticated, but the game is the same. Do your homework, trust your gut, ask the hard questions — and don’t get took.
If you have a team doing business-to-business sales, I can help them refine the pitch and incvrease closing rates. Without being sleezy! Contact me here.
