The Sample Opportunity BY MARK NEELY
cost (labor and material) for making a sample. With this understanding as well as an understanding of your plant’s current workload, you are showing respect for your own team. This will be expressed either directly or uncon- sciously to your prospect. You will be more respected by your customers when you communicate confidence in and respect for your own team. Don’t Waste Your Plant’s Or Your Own Time Increasing the probability of success is an essential part of a sales person’s responsibility. Many sales people make the mistake of running themselves and their plant ragged in the hope that, by simply creating a sample, you will get the order. So often this is done without first making sure that you have enough information to know that the opportunity is real. Additionally, all too often the sales person forgets to get pre-commitment from the prospect. This means that before bringing your sample request into the plant, you have to know that, if your sample fits their need at a price that they can live with, the customer will actually give you the order. So, first let’s look at the exploration of the opportunity to see what information you need to capture before you agree to create a sample. Following are questions that will help you qualify the opportunity in a way that will reduce the possibility that you will overtax yourself and your plant without knowing
In sales, when a prospect asks for a sample, generally, this is a good thing. It indicates some interest on the part of the
prospect for what you might have to offer. The customer wants a well- made and cost-effective solution to their packaging needs and you have been put in a position to com- pete for that business.
The goal is to come up with a solution that adds value and reduc- es cost in ways that no one else has found. Don’t just try to make a cheaper box! Differenti- ate your plant and yourself with this opportunity. Don’t Get Taken Advantage Of One of the challenges comes from the fact that it is very easy to be manipulated by customers. Creating a sample is costly and time-consuming. As a sales person, you have to be discerning and thorough in your process to deter- mine if, a, your prospect is not just trying to use you to help them get what they want from someone else and b, that if your design team is capable of creating an effective solution that your sample will give you a good chance to win the business. As a starter, have a clear understanding of your plant’s Mark Neely
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April 8, 2024
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