People do not know what they want until you show it to them – Steve Jobs.

Think twice about what the Apple Inc. founder said and think about it in the lines of business. Customers would not know if they need or desire a product/ service until you show it to them.

This is exactly what you should be doing at your B2B sales meetings – you need to show companies that they need your products or services to run better. If you fail to do so, there are fair chances you will lose the deal.

Are you failing to close your B2B sales deals? This article will highlight the top 10 reasons you are losing your B2B sales deals. Further, the blog also provides you with some valuable tips to help you close more deals.

Top 10 Reasons Behind Lost B2B Sales Deals (and what you could do instead)

1. Going with the wrong approach

Now, one of the biggest mistakes that you could be doing wrong in sales dealings is to get the sales psychology wrong. When talking about sales psychology, most B2B sales personnel are under the impression that the customers understand their needs and would like you to be in charge of their buying process.

Well, if you, too, were someone with a similar belief, you could not be more wrong! Customers do not always know what they want. They do not know/ understand their pain points and seek experts to enlighten them.

At the same time, when it comes to purchases, they might be seeking a quick response whenever required; however, they do not like to be controlled. And today’s customers make decisions as quickly as possible and do not wish to mule over things for long.

Considering these points, you need to come up with a pitch that helps identify their pain points and gives them all the information so they can make quick purchase decisions without being imposed.

2. Not showing them the value at the very first sight

When handling B2B sales, you will have to be aware that the people you are dealing with are experts looking to derive value from their purchase. There is every chance that your sales pitch would not work if you kept centering the topic around things that do not directly convey the value.

Therefore, consider coming up with a pitch that shows your products’ value from the word go.

3. Not being assertive when necessary

For B2B product companies, being assertive and showing your authority (when necessary) is extremely important. Imagine that you are at a sales pitch meeting, and everything is going well, but you are asked about something. Now, instead of being assertive, you hold back the information. This can be viewed as a lack of confidence when discussing that subject. This would show your lack of knowledge in that area. You could end up losing the sales deal because of this.

You must remember that your prospects would also evaluate your experience and expertise. To establish this, you must be assertive and provide them with the right information. That brings us to the next point – not having enough information.

4. Focussing on selling the product rather than solving a problem

This is one of the main reasons why companies lose sales deals. During a sales pitch, you may be talking more about the features and how robust your product is. Everything about your speech is directly aimed at selling the product. This is the wrong approach. Your prospects can simply browse your website to get this information; they do not have to sit in a meeting for it.

Instead, you should discuss specifics and how the product solves their problems and addresses their pain points. This way, the prospects will be able to see the value without being fed. so you have a better chance of closing the deal.

5. Not asking enough questions

When you do not have enough knowledge about the prospect, it is difficult to understand their needs; when you do not know their needs, you may not be able to judge how well your products fit with them. So what can you do – Ask and listen.

Ask and listen! You should be doing these two important tasks to crack the sales deal. Asking questions shows that you want to know more about your prospects and listening to them shows that you are genuinely interested in understanding them.

6. Failing to create a sense of urgency

“Act now or pay double,” “Offer valid for 24 hours,” … do not these sentences induce a sense of emergency to act immediately? This is exactly what works to crack sales deals. While imposing prospects to accept your offering is a complete no, creating a sense of urgency works like a charm.

Unfortunately, most sales representatives today fail to understand the technique. They either confuse it for persuasion or focus on logic and facts to make the sale causing prospects to walk away from closing the deal. Avoid this from happening to you.

7. Not coming up with an easier sales process

Having an inaccessible sales process or something that takes several iterations is off-putting! Instead, come up with a sales process that your prospects would enjoy and even stick with you.

For this, you will have to think from their perspective and visualize how they would feel and react to your process. Taking cues from your competitors is also a promising idea when creating a unique sales process.

8. Not having an effective sales pitch

Gone are the days when people followed the notion of ‘one size fits all.’ Following the notion and having the same sales pitch for all your clients does not work. You will have to keep in mind that your clients are quite different in terms of values, ethics, and processes, so having the same sales pitch for all makes it ineffective.

Considering this, you will have to ensure that you draft a sales pitch unique to the client to address their wants and needs.

9. Not speaking the customers’ language

Not this is yet another big mistake that you might be committing in the process of selling your product. As we have said earlier, your B2B prospects are seeking experts to do business with. They may also expect to be dealing with experts before making a purchase. This is also why most sales reps load their communication with heavy jargon.

However, you will have to remember that using sales cliches and jargon does not necessarily make you an expert. However, your true expertise comes out when you understand your customers better and explain how your product benefits them. For this, you will have to use the language they understand rather than the language from your textbook.

10. Not following up

Imagine this scenario, you have delivered a great sales pitch, and the meeting has ended on a good note. However, your prospect did not come back to you as they got busy with something else. What would you do next? Follow up! Neglecting to follow up = slow death! You could be losing on the sales deals because you are not following up enough.

Keep in mind that your prospects might forget you, and you have to remind them, and that is done through following up.

Bottom line

In conclusion, B2B sales deals are not extremely easy to crack; one mistake can cause you to lose the deal. Avoid the mistakes we have mentioned and if you are already doing them, follow our advice.

Good luck!

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