There is an Art to Sales

As I talked about last time, sometimes you have to walk away from an opportunity when it is not a good fit for you and the potential client. However, there is an art to sales that should sit on top of your sales process. Sometimes, it makes sense to assemble the right team for an opportunity that could be a good fit.

Recently, I was referred an opportunity with a company that wanted some market research done. I have done my fair share of market research for B2B companies, so it sounded like a good fit. However, the head of marketing had some very specific deliverables she was looking for. This included things I was very comfortable doing and others that were outside my core skill set.

It became obvious that if I wanted to work with this client, I would need some help. What I needed was to assemble the right team to address this opportunity.

My friend, who had originally referred me the business, wanted me to take it on since she already had too much on her plate. I was able to convince her that with her oversight and connections, we could put a team together to get this done right.

She had a couple of other people that could work on the project. Two weeks later, we had a lunch meeting between my contact, someone she had worked with in the past, and me. Over lunch, we discussed the outcomes the client was looking for. We realized that by working together, we could help the client with their goals and we could help them see some things they were not even looking for and could work to their advantage.

By the time we had finished the conversation, we had come to agreement on how we would work together and what was the best process for the client to achieve a solid ROI on the project.

So even when you feel that you alone cannot do the job that a prospect is looking for, it can make sense to assemble the right team… if it is a close fit with what you already do well. It makes even more sense if it provides a strategic move that allows you to build on your existing offering. Then, you have a Right Opportunity on your hands.