Price is obviously an important part of any enterprise sales package. Prices need to be fair, competitive and most importantly deliver a high ROI to customers. In most enterprise sales situations, price is discussed twice. The first discussion takes place early in the sales process. I call this first discussion the sanity check. The customer needs to verify that your price falls within expectations. I like to communicate whatever price I give at this stage as a ballpark number and ideally not put the price in writing. I also like to verify that my ballpark price is in line with my customer’s ballpark budget. The second discussion takes place toward the end of the sales process. The customer wants the best price possible in exchange for the entire package required. At this stage the customer may make a serious effort using a virtual toolbox of negotiating skills to bring the price significantly below your ballpark price. Such high-pressure negotiations are normal at the end of the sales process. However, every so often a potential customer will want to aggressively negotiate down the price at the beginning of the sales cycle. With little information about the customer’s actual need or situation, such aggressive negotiation tactics can be difficult for the sales executive. Here’s how I deal with such situations.
