Summertime is the perfect time to talk about PROCESS, your customer’s purchasing process!
Right now you (if you’re a leader a salesperson on your team) have a deal you want to close.
You’re beginning to worry.
No one answers the phone… you get an out of office message to your email follow up… you try someone you know in purchasing and they don’t have the requisition in their system… their boss doesn’t answer either.
The crazy thing is, their delay probably has nothing to do with you OR even the deal.
Somewhere in the decision or approval chain, there is a missing link off on vacation.
Here is a real life example from 2024:
- The salesperson, based on conversations they’d been having, believed they’d close the deal in JUNE.
May 30th – June 4th The main contact was off for his son’s high school graduation and an impromptu family reunion at his house.
Had a great conversation when he was back about how the event went and asked about the deal, which is when the salesperson learned…
June 15th – 23rd The CIO for North America was getting married and took the next week off for her honeymoon.
Followed up on the 26th to get a better feel for what would happen next, to be reminded…
June 29th – July 7th Independence Day holiday week the plant was closed for maintenance.
For the next two weeks the salesperson with their main contact: met with stakeholders, finalized the details, put a proposal together, and set a meeting up with the CIO for the following week…
July 23rd Presented the final proposal to the North American CIO and her team. In the meeting everyone loved the solution and agreed they’d get the PO in process.
THEN crickets, no one answering calls or emails…
Finally caught up with their main contact and champion who said
“I don’t know why you sound worried – we are just waiting for global headquarters to get back from their summer holiday for the final signature.”
August 3rd – 25th Global corporate headquarters in Italy closed for their summer holiday.
Then that last week of August they we’re ramping back up and getting caught up.
September 2nd Labor Day holiday in the US.
- The PO was received Wednesday September 4th
Why did I give you that entire story?
While your customers may not have European headquarters, that deal still wouldn’t have closed in June, it might have squeaked in by the end of July. My bet it would have been August.
That’s two months after your emotional feeling on the close date.
Two months of worry. Two months of doubt.
All of which can be eliminated if you understood the customers purchasing process and built in summer vacations and time off to your close date.
Time to have those conversations,
Lynn