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5. How much does it cost to switch printers?

These are costs incurred when a customer changes from one supplier to another. The higher these costs are, the more difficult it is to execute the switch. The greater the switching costs—the less price sensitive the customer will be. This is the value of a deep relationship between your company’s work processes and your customer’s.

6. Are you comparing apples to oranges?

Customers are more price sensitive to new ideas or innovative solutions, than to a price of known traditional printing. This is especially true if they have difficulty comparing the two.

For instance, if you are selling a new cross media solution versus a traditional static print direct mail campaign, a customer may have great difficulty justifying the new approach to their management without the salesperson’s help. This often explains why many average salespeople have difficulty selling new products or services.

Don’t underestimate confidence, knowledge and preparation. Don’t assume customers know the obvious differences and benefits between two potential alternatives to a problem or opportunity.

7. Is this the best you can do?

There are always customers who buy solely on price. These customers should be avoided unless the company can differentiate their products and services to obtain acceptable margins.

8. The bigger it is; the more the “bean counters” will be looking.

In print, the sensitivity to price is related to the size of the order. Companies will take a much closer look at large printing expenditures. Senior managers in tough times will look to the vital few opportunities to reduce costs. The higher the expenditures, the more likely it will get visibility from financial managers.

The deeper the salesperson is imbedded in the customer’s decision process and their ability to influence key buying specifications along the way, the harder it will be for others to compete.

9. How do I get a bigger bang for the buck?

The greater the benefit of your offering, such higher return on investment (ROI), better response rates, more perceived value by end customers etc., the less price sensitive the customer will be.

10. It’s cheaper if everyone “chips” in.

In many companies, the total cost of printing solutions is a shared cost between multiple functions, i.e. HR, sales, manufacturing and marketing. The greater the reimbursement by other departments, and the more the costs are shared, the less price sensitivity.

This is reason alone why salespeople must get beyond purchasing departments to gain support for key marketing and graphic communications campaigns.

11. Is this a fair price?

Customers need to believe that the price is fair. Overcharging customers is not only unethical, but will result in an eventual loss of the business. I have heard salespeople explain their strategy by telling me that they get the highest price they can get from the customer. This is not a business strategy.

12. This is not a time to hold any inventory.

In this economy, return on assets (ROA) is a major financial metric. Companies are less inclined to hold inventory. In years past, some customers perceived holding a large inventory of printing as a way of controlling price increases. This is gradually changing with the growth of print on demand. The less the customer needs to hold inventory without losing any capabilities, the higher the price the customer should be willing to pay.

To obtain higher price levels, salespeople must pay attention to the basics, and be consultants to their customers. With superior industry/customer knowledge and mastering the consultative selling process, through practice and continuing education, most salespeople should be able to achieve reasonable price levels. The payback for your effort and skill is greater commissions and happy sales managers and owners.

With the tremendous pressure on prices within the printing industry during this recession, salespeople must learn to sell jobs at acceptable profit margins to survive. Understanding the customer and price sensitivities gives printing salespeople the best chance of winning more deals at higher profit margins.

Joe Rickard is a sales training leader and consultant in the graphic communications industry. He is the founder of Intellective Solutions LLC, a provider of consulting services as well as customized sales and sales management training. Contact Rickard at (845) 753-6156, e-mail him at jrickard@intellectives.com, or visit his site at www.intellectivesolutions.com.