Has this ever happened to you? You’ve finally obtained the appointment. You’re looking forward to meeting with the prospect and asking the questions you carefully prepared in order to qualify the opportunity. You arrive at the appointment on time (or start the videoconference on time) ... but before you can ask you first question, the prospect says, “OK, take it from the top. Show me what you’ve got.”
And the meeting goes downhill from there.
It’s an all too common pattern. You invest time and energy gathering information, working up prices, and putting together your presentation. Then you deliver the presentation in a competent, professional manner. You believe that you are going to get the sale, or at the very least, obtain a clear decision. Instead, you get one objection after another, followed by a series of stalls, and finally, you leave with nothing more than the prospect’s promise to give your presentation some “careful thought”.
