How to get ahead of customer price objections
Elizabeth Hilla
Last month, this column talked about the time and money healthcare providers may be wasting when they shop for medical supply or equipment discounts on their own. Let’s face it: a top priority for anyone is to save money, but this can easily cloud your customer’s better judgment if they are only focusing on price and don’t consider the total value you provide as a service solutions partner.
No amount of convincing will ever completely remove the fact that your customers have the freedom to price shop any time they want. But there are proactive steps you can take to limit the allure of discount-seeking and help you answer potential price objections before they’re even raised.
- Embrace objections: Savvy customers should always question your prices, so you must be prepared to demonstrate your value proposition at any given time. It’s okay to agree with these objections, but then immediately follow that up with justification for why your services may cost more than a lower-priced option. Chances are, your customer isn’t thinking about all of the factors that can influence a product’s total cost to them – equipment assembly, item pre-sorting, product education, shipping costs and coordination – and may need a quick reminder that their time, and their employees’ time, is much more valuable than any savings they can gain on item price alone.
- Do your homework: During a product demonstration, have you ever had a customer ask, “Didn’t I just see that for $500 less on the Internet?” If you don’t have a good grasp of the environment in which you sell, you may find yourself coming up short when trying to answer these types of questions. Put in the time beforehand and compare your prices to competitors’ to gain a better understanding of the market. A prepared sales rep will be able to respond to these objections quickly but confidently, demonstrating product expertise and customer value.
- Know your customer, know yourself: Just as no two providers are the same, no two distributors are alike. Don’t assume your customer knows everything about your organization and the services you provide, especially if they weren’t involved in the original or subsequent negotiations between your company and theirs. Your customer may take for granted that all medical products come prepackaged regardless of supplier, for example, or you may presume they’re already well aware of the total value you provide over others when, in fact, they’re not. Sometimes clarifying these facts just once with a customer is enough to assure them that they’ve made the right business partner choice.
No matter what you do or say, your customers will always want to look for a better deal. But if you proactively work with them to address their concerns before they start shopping elsewhere, you will soon find your customers chasing discounts less often.