Don't reach in your customer's pocket

The other day I was on the phone with a "professional services" person who decided that what I was looking for was not financially worthwhile. Without asking, he reached in my pocket, looked in my wallet, and decided that I didn't want to spend the money.  Well, he didn't physically do this (we were on the phone), but he did it mentally.  What's ironic is, I've paid for this service many times in the past, at a price that was twice what he was asking.  Unfortunately for him, we didn't do business and I moved on to another provider.

In the book "The Millionaire Next Door" researchers found that the most common vehicle driven by millionaires was the Ford -150 pickup. This is not what they expected. The conventional wisdom was that wealthy people all drove something along the lines of a foreign sport car.

The lesson for sales people is that your customers have the right to spend their money how they see fit. It's your job to help educate them about your product and service, but in the end it's their decision. Next time you are face to face with a client that doesn't seem to "fit the bill," stop yourself, stick to your sales system and don't skip any steps. You'll avoid losing business, and may even surprise yourself with a new piece of business.