Throughout the last several months ago, many CEOs have asked me if there is anything they can do to deal with the increasing number of sales delays and putoffs.  They would like to know if there is anything that can be done to increase urgency. 

There are MANY things you can do today to begin to shorten sales cycles, but here are some things that can get you started…

Increasing Urgency with Slow Decision Makers

Firstly, it is important that you have really covered all the basics:

–Who is the TRUE Decision Maker (DM)?

–What is the REAL Decision Process?

–Does the DM perceive there is a problem and is he/she willing to fix it?

–Do you really understand how much the DM is willing to invest to fix it?

–Are YOU differentiated?  In other words, does the DM really trust you more than your competitors?

Remember, hope is not a strategy and you can’t lose what you don’t have, so if you do not have the answers to these questions and if you have not uncovered the compelling reasons that the prospect has to buy (and buy from YOU), there is still plenty of work to do.

If you do have these answers and are looking to increase urgency, it is important to remember three principles:

• Organizations never make decisions.  An individual who works there does.
• ALL decisions are made emotionally.
• A person will never change unless the pain of changing is exceeded by the pain of not changing.    

So, if you are looking to get the Decision Maker to change and to act NOW, it is vital to appeal to their emotions and to help them discover more about their personal, emotional pain.  Doing so requires some skill, lots of listening, and some courage to ask what some people feel to be difficult questions.  I will be blogging more on this soon, so stay tuned…

Copyright © Joe Zente 2009.  All Rights Reserved.

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