Competing in Crowded Markets:
Three Criteria All Busy Buyers Use
RainToday.com, May 2009
By Vickie K. Sullivan
I get too many calls from professional service experts who
are brilliant, who are talented, who do good work...and they
are stuck. They are restless with the projects they have,
or they want more clients at higher price points. They feel
that there is something "bigger" out there. They
want to get to the "next level," but everything
they try doesn't seem to work.
There are bigger opportunities out there for us if we are
willing to do one thing: reach out to buyers who don't see
us as the only option -- yet. And this is much easier said
than done.
Decision makers with many options are a very different animal.
They don't assume our value. They are hard to pin down. Crowded
markets are chaotic and frankly, can be daunting. It's like
walking into a crowded room without knowing a soul. You need
to be there; business growth depends on it. But because these
buyers have so many other options, it feels like you don't
have an advantage. It can feel vulnerable; and for those of
us who like to be in control, that rarely feels good.
When buyers have lots of choices, they behave in very illogical,
but predictable, ways. When we get a bead on how they decide,
we can turn turmoil into opportunity. Below are three things
all buyers do in competitive environments.
Are you really competing?
Competition is another one of those big words that can mean
anything we want. My definition: competition is all about
comparisons. Competition is a situation where a decision maker
choose to consider a variety of options. There is not a sole
source provider. The buyers sees many alternatives and weighs
those options to make the best choice. Whoever controls the
criteria controls the comparisons. Whoever controls the comparisons
controls the competition.
The key words here are "chooses to consider." Not
every buyer looks at all their options. Sometimes, they take
the path of least resistance for several reasons, such as
political expediency. We've all had situations where we are
the sole source provider. We've become known in a few companies,
and get hired time and time again. Especially in the beginning,
we build our business with what I call "here's my check"
situations. There's nothing wrong with that; it's our reward
for doing good work. It's just not competition.
Taking those assignments will only grow our business so far.
When that's not enough, we have to compete in a completely
different environment, where the sale isn't a given. Where
buyers are overwhelmed with choices. Where we are being compared
to criteria we don't control.
How buyers decide
When faced with options from all directions, buyers feel
under siege. To manage the situation and make the best choice,
many decision makers base their criteria on three things --
their need for control, their past experiences, and current
situation. Here's how it works:
First thing buyers do when they have a lot of options is
to simplify the decision. The more options they have, the
easier it is to become overwhelmed. The choices have to be
cut down to a more manageable level quickly and easily.
I'll never forget the years I chaired the program committee
for an international conference. I was the point person for
speaker selection and it felt like standing in front of a
tidal wave. Ideas and suggestions coming fast, furious and
from all sides. Board members were making requests, sponsors
were demanding speaking slots, speaking proposals were flooding
in. It was overwhelming! The first thing I did was to list
very simple standards in the RFP (request for presentations).
I was shocked by how many suggestions and proposals didn't
fit. But that made it easy to quickly "thin the herd."
The second thing buyers do when faced with a lot of alternatives
is they trust their instinct. They have strong opinions about
what they need and what they don't. The latter is usually
the result of lessons learned the hard way. I call these "deals
with the Almighty." You've made these before. When something
goes horribly wrong, you look up to the sky and say, "If
you just let me get through this I will never do (fill in
the blank) again." And it goes beyond bad habits like
smoking and drinking. It's promises like, "I'll be far
more careful before I hire anyone again."
Saying these decision makers are jaded is an understatement.
They have their guard up. They trust their past experiences
more than they trust what we tell them. Result: we can't assume
our message will be heard. Our credibility does not precede
our conversations.
The third thing buyers do is go micro. Because in the final
round of consideration, there's not that much difference between
the options. Any difference is so small that it's basically
a coin toss. Therefore, the smallest criteria will tip the
scale. You can win or lose the deal based on the tiniest,
most illogical thing.
So don't try to figure out why. You rarely get an answer
that will satisfy you. Trust me, their explanation just won't
make sense. Expect something nebulous such as, "Weeellll,
this person had blue eyes and yours are brown." And you'll
think to yourself, "Hey! You knew my eyes were brown
when we started this." Yes, it will be that silly.
Show up and compete
No matter what field you are in, or how good you are, there
will come a time that you will have to compete for buyers
who have alternatives. Being able to show up and compete in
a crowded environment is a skill that will break you out of
any kind of rut. It will help you withstand any economy and
market dynamic. Your business can not get to the next level
until we can get the speaking invitation, the consulting assignment,
the coaching contract in the face of other choices.
Since 1987, Vickie K. Sullivan, President of Sullivan Speaker
Services, has generated millions of dollars in speaking fees,
book advances and ancillary income for her clients. Sign up
for her free market intelligence at http://www.SullivanSpeaker.com
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