The job of a salesperson is one of highs and lows. Great deals alternate with unpleasant defeats. You often have the impression that a potential customer is pushing for an agreement. You can submit a quote, the omens are good. And yet the customer suddenly chooses your competitor, or decides not to purchase your type of service at all. Despite all the good omens, your chance seems lost. Frustrating! The temptation is then great to leave the customer for what he is. But: don't do that. Why not? We will explain that to you!
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Defeat can be frustrating! You are still convinced that your offer is the best for your customer, but 'they don't get it'. You can always lose to a good competitor. The most frustrating are the cases where your customer does not go to a competitor, but simply withdraws his request. 'I should have said that earlier' is a logical first reaction.
But don't let it get to you! It is not a good idea to stop communicating out of frustration. We all know the 'service recovery paradox,' where you help complaining customers effectively and thereby make them even more satisfied than they were before. Every complaint is an opportunity to recruit a brand ambassador. The same applies to sales processes. A rejection is the perfect opportunity to show your best side and work on a lasting relationship.
Instead of ignoring your customer, send them a thank you note. Thank him for the opportunity and make sure you maintain the relationship. You show yourself to be a good loser and also come across as a real professional. The examples of long-term customer relationships that started with a rejection are countless. Take an example of successful startups such as Airbnb. They first launched their platform twice unsuccessfully, before growing into a game changer. Persistence is crucial in your relationship management.
Why do people drop out?
Instead of doing nothing, you should ask yourself why the customer dropped out. This knowledge can be of great value in future processes. You must learn from mistakes and defeats to sharpen yourself and your offering. What could have gone wrong? Perhaps you spoke to the wrong person and did not get the right DMU. Perhaps your product ultimately does not exactly match what your customer expects. Or perhaps the customer mainly used you as a benchmark for the current supplier. All possible reasons for an unsuccessful sale. You cannot always do anything about it yourself, but it is very useful information for you and your organization.
How do you deal with dropouts?
It is clear that when we lose a sales process, we want to continue investing in the relationship, no matter how great the frustration is. But what exactly can you do? Request a meeting with the dropped customer. Usually they will be open to that. During that conversation, which can also take place by telephone, try to find out why you have not been chosen as a supplier. Make a rational analysis based on that data.
The frustration is a lot less when you know that there is actually nothing you can do about it if it didn't work out! If you have made a mistake, you can learn from it. And last but not least, realize that you can never win all the time. In sales, the quote “You win some, you lose some” applies more than ever.
