You know what really grinds my gears?!

[WRXtranceformed]

Maybe just another sales-related gripe here, but when people ask you to build an integrated, visualized component that doesn't technically exist yet into a custom software platform that was already built for them by another company. And then are anxious about the time it takes to scope / price it, and then aren't willing to share what budget they can allocate to it. Really? So you're going to ask a company to build something that isn't an off the shelf product, and you aren't willing to at least offer up a range that you can invest in it so that time is not mutually wasted on both sides (with sales, engineering teams, client side, etc.)? I have a feeling Gerald feels me on this per some of the conversations we have had in the past.

I mean come on, I get holding your cards a little close to your chest if you're negotiating on a used car lot or something but we are talking about corporate budgets here. You know it's going to be expensive by nature and yet all you offer up is that you want to spend "as little as possible". It's an annoying part of the job when you have to go through a long song and dance for a customer that mostly likely will end up balking at the price anyway.

I'm 100% sure your situations are a lot more delicate than what I deal with advance but have you ever played "well you're gonna get what you pay for" kind of reasoning on them? Or are your situations too delicate for that kind of ultimatum speak.

Exact conversation i had:
Me: alright it's $42.99
Customer: FORTY TWO NINETY NINE?! you don't have anything cheaper?
Me: yeah we have one for $15.39, it doesn't have a warranty.
Customer: OK are those good ones? can i bring it back if I don't need it?
Me: no they're cheaper and probably going to break and you can't bring it back that's why it's priced that way
Customer: *blank stare*
Me: I'll go grab them for...
Customer: ALRIGHT ALRIGHT ALRIGHT JUST GIMME THE OTHER ONE

Humans. So easy to guilt trip into my sale lol.

Yeah, there are a host of sales techniques we use on any objection you can imagine. We operate almost entirely now in the "solution selling" world and a lot of our products are pretty complex so you have to be willing to lay it all out there as a customer and a provider. Frankly I think that's where the frustration comes in because a very select few buyers (and some procurement departments :evil: :evil: ) try to marginalize the client / partner relationship into a buyer / vendor relationship and it almost never goes smoothly. Again, it's really different if you're just buying a commodity but when you're trying to purchase something that literally nobody else in the world can provide at a level of quality, it just doesn't make sense to try to do business like you're bargaining with Randy the Used Car Dealer. I guess to put it more bluntly, our time is valuable (probably more valuable than theirs) and it doesn't make sense to him and haw if you're not willing to be realistic to a seller about whether or not you can afford that type of work. (ie would you go to a Ferrari dealership not just to test drive but to string along a salesperson for a few weeks knowing you really can't afford one?)