Learn the customer’s buying cycle

by John R. Graham

Every sales person knows it all too well. The message is heard in every sales meeting: “We just can’t seem to close that deal. It’s dragging on longer than we expected. We know they’re going to buy…but we can’t pin it down.”

If all this is upsetting to salespeople, the problem is equally frustrating to those in sales management. What’s wrong? Is the sales force not pushing hard enough? Are we too laid-back? What else should we be doing?

Today, just about every company contends with an extended buying cycle. Customers are in charge of the sale and set the agenda, not the salesperson. This dictates a fundamental change in sales strategy. Successful selling is the result of inordinate patience and a willingness to be the customer’s advisor.

Here are several ways to make a longer buying cycle work to your advantage.

Get a picture of the customer’s buying cycle
Don’t waste time trying to read the customer’s body language or worrying about trial closes. That takes your mind away from the major task of looking for clues to the process the customer is using to make this purchase.

Get a picture of the client as buyer and then you’ll know how to plan your sales strategy. The more you know about how the buyer thinks and acts, the better. This should be the mission in any first meeting with prospects.

Get yourself ready for the long haul
The message of the extended buying cycle is that most salespeople quit too soon. Because they get the message the buyer isn’t about to make a quick decision, they move on.            

There’s a way around this hurdle.

To position yourself properly, share your sales philosophy with the customer. “While I want your business, I’m not just here to sell you something. I’m here to work with you.” This commitment announces to the buyer what to expect from you over a period of time. There’s not going to be any pushing or pressuring.

Become a part of the customer’s thinking
Salespeople should become mentally prepared for long-term selling. The extended buying cycle can be turned into an advantage by the salesperson becoming an indispensable resource for the customer.

The task is to provide regular flow of information. One time it may be a new product sheet with specifications; the next time, a copy of an article relating to the prospect’s business or the product or service under consideration. Perhaps it’s a relevant research report. In the final analysis, the sale itself becomes something of a non-event, the natural outgrowth of a process.

Plan your sales two to five years in advance
The first time a group of salespeople heard the idea of planning sales over several years, they rolled their eyes, slid down in their chairs and almost laughed. If selling is a profession, then managing the process is all-important.

Savvy salespeople never stop thinking about who they want as customers. They plan to be at the customer’s side when a deal is closed, no matter how long it takes. The best customers may be under cultivation for two, three or five years.

Move in on your competitors’ customers
Although planting seeds is critical when it comes to winning customers away from the competition, there is another strategy that comes from longer buying cycles.

Once it’s clear the prospect is not going to buy quickly, a perfect opportunity exists for another salesperson to move in. At this point, customers can feel a sense of let-down, neglect and even rejection.

This leaves a window of opportunity for someone more adept at reading the buyer to move in. The longer the buying cycle, the more vulnerable the prospect can be to what may appear to be new, exciting ideas. This is why it is important to be seen by the prospect as a knowledgeable, interested advisor who is always on the cutting edge.

The more astute salespeople will see the longer buying cycle as an opportunity to educate the customer and to demonstrate professional sales qualities. In the end, these are the people who will be there when the customer signs the order.

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