The Top 3 Reasons Why Clients Don’t Buy

Handling a sales opportunity is like juggling five balls at once.

You’ve got to forge a relationship with the client, work through the client’s issue, conjure up a solution, draft a proposal, and sell the project.

With everything you must do to navigate a client’s decision-making process, it may seem like a mysterious journey to convert a prospective buyer into a paying client. But some things about the process are knowable, including why a client might not buy from you. It’s always helpful to keep in mind the three factors that will derail any sales process.

They Don’t Really Understand Your Offer

In my experience, a common reason clients walk away from a proposal is that they don’t thoroughly comprehend the ramifications of what you plan to do. To develop that understanding, clients need to actively engage with you in the design of the project.

Maybe this “truth” seems self-evident, but I’ve seen too many consultants drop the ball on this seemingly simple point. Most often, consultants befuddle clients’ understanding in one of two ways.

First, consultants fall into the knowledge trap. We see this problem in other fields too. Medical specialists, for example, routinely use incomprehensible language and images to brief patients. They make the flawed assumption that patients can follow along with highly advanced medical terminology that specialists spend years mastering.

Consultants often do the same thing. In meetings, they zip through the basics, dive into the detail, and lose the client’s attention (and the sale).

Second, some attempt to dazzle clients with their brilliance. I’ve been in meetings with consultants who have so much to say about themselves and their experience that the client has trouble getting a word in.

In both cases, clients end up scratching their heads after the meeting, and then go looking for help elsewhere.

In the early part of your sales process, focus on conveying a deep understanding and achieving consensus on three aspects of your proposed work: project outcome, its expected value, and your preliminary approach for completing the work. Preferably, you’ll achieve this consensus before you start writing a proposal.

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