Selling in Today’s Funding Climate
By Tony Mynsted
Prior to the ongoing credit crisis, a large percentage of your customer’s equipment investments were financed, either “internally” or “externally”. In the past, “internal” financing would look like cash to you and the organizations you called on. It was the funding that they acquired through the capital markets. We now know that those markets are very tight: less is available and it is more expensive.
How do you win business in this funding environment?
You engage your customer’s financial decision makers early in the sales cycle. This will give you the time to ascertain their business and financial requirements and tailor your solution to your customer’s needs. Such an approach allows you to influence your customer’s appropriations process. The good news is that, in most cases, “external” financing will have the credit capacity to help you win. If you work with a captive, quasi-captive, vendor or independent leasing company, it has a vested interest in making your deal work.
How should you change your “selling behavior” to win more business?
There are not any “silver bullets” to win business today, but the following activities would increase your sales in any funding environment:
- Integrate financing early in your sales process of key customers.
- Become the link between the customer’s financial community and your leasing sales organization.
- Develop some basic lease acumen so you will become more comfortable calling on your customer’s financial decision makers.
- Learn the key benefits of financing from the end-user’s perspective.
- Understand your customer’s appropriation process and how you can influence it for your benefit.
- Find out the difference between operating and capital budgets and where your business resides.
- Become familiar with how they choose which equipment investments secure approval.
- Tailor your sale to meet the needs of the customer’s investment strategy. You need to call the customer’s financial decision maker to obtain the requirements.
- Make the integration of financing a high priority in your selling process.
- Gather customer business and financial requirements early in the sale cycle, prior to developing your proposal.
- Develop financial structures that meet your customer’s business and financial needs. Be creative.
- Do not wait until the transaction is in purchasing to provide the lowest price.
- If you wait until the end of your sales cycle to engage financing, you have lost the opportunity to protect your profit.
I understand that you may indeed already be doing some or most of the above, but it is critical in today’s environment to integrate financing early. Remember, a customer may not approve your equipment proposal because they cannot access money in today’s limited capital markets.
Sales representatives who integrate financing early in their sale cycle say their customers’ financial decision makers often embrace “external” financing as a way to invest in the growth of their business during this challenging period. The sales representatives suggest this approach has become a significant competitive advantage and added revenue and profit to their sales. What about you?
A few comments and activities for the financial selling representation that will help equipment sales representatives drive more business:
- Reach out and show them that you are eager to support their selling activities. They need to understand your offerings and promotions and what you bring to the table.
- Sell them on how you can add value to the sales process.
- Do not wait for them to send you deals. You will not engage in a high percentage of the transactions, since the customer will not have the internal financing available or the sales representative is uncomfortable with discussing financing with their customer.
- Be available and lead sales calls with financial decision makers.
- Be creative and responsive. Bring winning financial structure to their customers.
- Be part of their sales planning activities.
It has been my experience that customers like doing business with vendors that take the time to understand their business and provide solutions that meet their needs. They will treat you differently than other vendor sales representatives that are just selling products, for you will be helping them develop an equipment acquisition solution in these challenging times.
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