Hearing “maybe” from a buyer is more common than hearing a yes or no. Sometimes maybes are just a disguise for a lack of authority or an aversion to saying ‘no’. Other times maybes disguise a real need to delay a purchase until a later time. Most often, maybes disguise a real problem or set of problems that you can and must address immediately, even though the very purpose of a ‘maybe’ is to buy more time.
Let’s take a look at a real-life scenario. Jonathan (the buyer) took the time to talk with Heidi (the seller) and liked what she had to say. The conversation was prompted when Heidi phoned to follow-up after Jonathan signed up for a free trial. Heidi took the opportunity to explain features and to learn about Jonathan. She asked how many people would be users of the system. She asked about his time-frame. She even asked probing questions about Jonathan’s current processes and the challenges he wanted to overcome.
In closing, Jonathan suggested that Heidi check back in two weeks’ time.
Why did Jonathan ask for Heidi to give him two weeks? Please take your best guess:
a) He is genuinely interested and expects to make a decision in two weeks
b) He is genuinely interested but he doesn’t really know what will happen next.
c) He is not interested but doesn’t know how to say ‘no.’
For this situation and many like it, the answer is both a) and b).
Jonathan—like most buyers—estimated how much time he thought he would need to complete his evaluation and arrive at a conclusion. To him, conclusion and decision mean the same thing. And they are the same thing when the conclusion is a negative. If you conclude as a buyer that the product won’t meet your needs, then you will pretty easily arrive at a purchase decision of ‘no.’
If on the other hand, if you conclude “yes, I like the product,” or “yes, I think others will like the product,” or “Yes, I think we should purchase,” it’s not the same thing as deciding to purchase.
Deciding to purchase is often a much longer journey than concluding a product’s usefulness and value.
Jonathan didn’t think through the various emotional, intellectual, or mechanical layers of a purchase decision (buyers rarely do) when he asked Heidi for two weeks.
So when Heidi called back in two weeks, Jonathan wasn’t ready with a purchase decision. He didn’t yet know if he wanted to buy. Nor did he know whether he didn’t want to buy. All he could say is “Maybe.”
As I’ve repeated many times in my posts, “Time Kills Deals.” If Heidi doesn’t handle this situation the right way, this sale is destined for ‘Maybe Purgatory.’
Jonathan knew he wasn’t ready to make a yes decision but he wasn’t ready to say no either. Jonathan’s big “maybe” wasn’t indecision, however. It was a lack of focus disguised as indecision.
Heidi needed to turn the big maybe into a small yes. Heidi thought of the possibilities. What if, instead of buying into Jonathan’s uncertainty and waiting on the sidelines while time marched by, she could get Jonathan to take a specific action that would help him gain clarity one step at a time?
Here’s what Heidi said that turned the situation around, “Jonathan, I understand that it can take time to make such an important decision. Why don’t we put the decision aside for a short time, and run a simple test. Let’s see how just one of your folks responds to the system. It’s a great way to quickly learn whether you’re on the right track. Would it be worth getting that feedback before going any further?”
Heidi pushed for a small (but important) yes. She eliminated any hidden decision anxiety Jonathan was experiencing by removing the decision from the process for the time being. She offered a precise next step that told Jonathan where to focus—one that would actually be helpful to Jonathan (and to her). Jonathan agreed her suggestion was a good idea.
‘Maybes’ are disguises for the real—sometimes unrecognized—objections. They are tangible evidence that uneasiness, or uncertainty are lurking within. Maybes drain your sales capacity and put the accuracy of your forecast at risk. As I once heard Jim Dickie of CSO Insights say, “It’s not a crime to take a long time to get a ‘yes’ but it is a crime to take a long time to get a ‘no’.” If you can turn big maybes into small yeses, you can keep time from killing your deals and push the sales process forward.
Nancy Nardin is the foremost expert increasing sales productivity through the use of tools. As President of Smart Selling Tools, she consults with many of the top sales productivity software vendors as well as end-user organizations looking to select the right tools. Click to get Nancy’s What & When weekly digest with invitations to complimentary webinars and informative publications. Follow Nancy on Twitter @sellingtools or subscribe to her Sales Productivity blog. Nancy can be reached at 916-596-3035. To schedule a free 30 minute consultation click here.
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