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“What is your price?” That question can really get to be annoying to sales professionals because:

1. We’re tired of having to respond to it.
2. We know that price isn’t really the most important issue to our prospects and customers. Risk, service, quality and availability always come in ahead of price in virtually every study that’s ever been done of buyers’ real concerns.

“You’ve just dodged a bullet.”

We know not to answer a price question without first getting all the information we need. We also know to provide price information only when we are ready. These are just basic sales tips. However, what are the
sales skills to effectively do this?

Step 1
If the customer pops the “What is your price?” question on a product or service, then simply respond with, “How many do you need and when do you need them?” This will lead into one of two directions. If they say they don’t need any, this indicates they’re just price shopping and you can respond with something like, “When you know the quantity you need and the delivery timeframe, I’ll be happy to research a price for you.” You’ve just dodged a bullet. If they do have the answer to those questions then move on to Step 2.

Step 2
Now that they’ve told you how many they need and when they need them you can continue the conversation by asking, “Can I ask you some questions in order to get the information I need to price correctly?” You then proceed to ask them about whether the purchase is budgeted, how they are currently being supplied, who the decision makers are, etc. All of this buys you time to get more information, demonstrate your added value and negotiate the details.

The best part about this technique is that it gives you some control over when and how you quote pricing to a customer, ideally when you are ready and when you have enough data.

Further reading: How to handle: “Tell me your price right now.”, Here’s some fact-filled sales help about price objections.

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Tags: pricing

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