Lost
Sales
We all lose sales, we
have in the past and, unfortunately, we will in the future. But, do
we know why we lost those sales?
You may not know why,
and that's OK. To get to the why, it can help to establish the other
four Ws. After each lost sale, write down a few facts:
WHO?
Who did you lose the
sale to? Was it a different company who offers the same product or
was it an entirely different service? If it was a different service,
then this company was never a real prospect to begin with. You may
need to fine-tune your prospecting.
WHAT?
What did you offer? For
what price? What did the prospect end up buying? For what price? What
objections were raised? Did you eliminate them? If not, make sure you
are prepared for that objection again in the future.
WHERE?
Where is the merchant
located? Does the social climate require you to tweak your
presentation in any way?
WHEN?
When did you lose the
sale; what was the defining moment when the prospect decided not to
buy? Knowing when the sale took a turn for the worse will help you
identify what to do to make it go the right way next
time.
As you gather this data,
you can refer to it, look for trends, and see where and to whom
you're losing sales and why. Simply writing this data down as you go
will create a database of information you can use to identify any
patterns that are interfering with your sales and determine if there
are any recurring problems. Then, you can change them and close the
sale!
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