Quantum Sales, UK business sales and marketing consultants

THE MYTH OF PRICE PRESSURE

(Was Goebbels right?)

An article for Institute of Directors magazine

Steve Jessop

It was Goebbels who said that ‘A lie repeated often enough will be regarded as the truth’. In modern business we can see that, on the subject of price at least, he had a point.

Do these phrases sound familiar?

"We must ensure that we are competitive."
"It’s all down to the best price."
"They’ve told me to go away and sharpen my pencil."

We may sometimes find it hard to accept, but they are all euphemisms for our inability to sell the value of what we do. With this continual drive to condition us to compromise on our prices, is it any small wonder that all too often we believe the propaganda?

During the summer of 1989 I found myself in a very pleasant Berkshire hotel for three days coaching a group of sales managers. In the next room was a purchasing managers’ training programme, being run on behalf of a high profile British multinational. Some of the visual aids I saw and conversations I heard taking place, would have made Goebbels proud:

"Never smile at a salesperson."
"Never accept the first price offered."
"Visibly and negatively, change your body language, when the subject of price reaches the agenda."

As the Americans might say:
"GO FIGURE!"

It was all so transparent that it was oddly reassuring!

In selling we must accept that handling some form of pressure on our prices goes with the territory. Succumbing to the pressure however, is not a pre-requisite. The key is to fit meticulously the value of our solution to the needs and wants of our customer. This in turn provides us with the platform and credibility to politely and professionally resist pressure to compromise on our prices.

It is worth noting, too, that if we sold the value of our offering effectively, (groundless) price pressure may be the only tool of resistance for which our customer can reach!

In summary therefore consider the following:

Believe in the value of what you do, not the propaganda. If you expect price pressure your expectation will often be satisfied.
Accept that selling and the professional handling of pressure to reduce prices will always be closely related.
The high ground provides the most rewarding view. Who wants to be �cheap� anyway?
Finally, the fact that we all make price-versus-value judgements does not mean that we �buy on price�. It means that we will opt for the lower price if we do not perceive there to be extra value in the potential supplier�s offering.