No, Just a Word

Have you ever said “No” to a prospect when they asked for a reduced rate for a product or service? As a prospect have you ever said “No” to someone who was attempting to market something to you? Does “No” mean that anyone should get their feelings injured or believe that they are inadequate in some manner?

As a marketer, I was taught that I should never allow anyone to walk away from me when they say “No”. Is there a limit as to how low you will reduce your price just to make the sale? At what level does the sale mean that you will lose money that you will never make up no matter how many sales you make? Have you ever “fired” a customer?

These are questions that are fraught with negativity, but they must be asked when a business owner is attempting to market a product or service. They also must be considered when customers keep asking for lower and lower prices or greater discounts. When do you reach that point where you just cannot stay in business if you continue to lower your prices?

Staying in business is one of the main objectives of your business, if not the most important one. If you cannot make enough money to stay in business, you will not benefit anyone, especially yourself. You must make enough money on your sales to pay your bills, including salaries, rent, maintenance, etc. You also should gain enough profit to put back into yourself and into your business to improve both.

You must be able to tell prospects that you cannot, and will not, reduce your prices just to gain their business. You must set your prices at a level that will maintain your viability to continue in business. If you discount a price for someone once, they should not bully you into continuing to discount your prices just to keep their business if it will not provide you enough funds to stay open.

I have “fired” customers who believed that they could bully me into reducing my prices below what was fair and equitable. I also know that no one else would permanently do the same just to keep their business. I want to do business with people who are fair, honest, and understand what a product or service is worth. Anyone else is just into a quick sale with no long term relationship in mind.

I meet people who agree with every point that I have made here, but when they are the prospect, they want everything discounted because they believe that they “deserve it”. When asked, they cannot tell you why they “deserve it”. However, while their prices are “set in concrete”, they believe that they should “wrangle blood” out of others. Good luck with your long term relationships and the referrals that you will never receive.

As a business person what principles do you follow when you are marketing to others, and do they remain the same when you are the prospect? Can you say ‘No” when marketing to your prospects, and can you understand it when you hear it from someone who is marketing to you? Remember you are known by your actions, all of them.

Please leave your comments here, or email me at Jim@SOC4Now.com, or call me at 360-314-8691. The word “No” can be viewed as steeped in negativity, or it can be seen as just another word in a relationship benefiting all parties. “No” is not the end of the world, but the word should never be ignored when you are in a business relationship. It is just another word in the language of business.