{"id":2110,"date":"2006-04-01T21:36:00","date_gmt":"2006-04-01T21:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.certitrek.com\/nlpa\/2006\/04\/01\/back-door-selling\/"},"modified":"2021-07-28T08:12:20","modified_gmt":"2021-07-28T12:12:20","slug":"back-door-selling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.certitrek.com\/nlpa\/blog\/back-door-selling\/","title":{"rendered":"Back Door Selling"},"content":{"rendered":"

OK. I have another comment about the book \u201cSelling To Big Companies.\u201d<\/p>\n

On page 100, Jill Konrath writes, \u201cWith so many possible entry points into a big company, many sellers make the mistake of going to the purchasing or human resources (HR) departments first. This is a fatal error. Let me repeat that. This is a fatal error. The purchasing folks are looking for the best possible pricing for a particular solution. Despite all your best efforts to bring value and be consultative, they will force you into competing on price alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

I have several thoughts about this excerpt, in no particular order.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Back door selling is the circumvention of a purchasing department’s standard purchasing process. Purchasing departments and companies hate back door selling. In fact, some corporate policies prohibit back door selling and may ban suppliers that engage in back door selling.<\/li>\n
  2. At first, I was offended. Professional purchasers consider more than just price. Of course, I help teach that, so maybe not all purchasers have previously learned world-class supplier selection criteria and practices. So I\u2019m not offended.<\/li>\n
  3. Yes, professional purchasers do select suppliers based on price. But this isn\u2019t necessarily because they are uneducated or that they have some fault. Many suppliers cannot communicate how the non-price variables of their offering can contribute to the success of our organizations. So you have better quality? What does that mean to me in terms of profit per year? What financial advantage in terms of my company\u2019s profit does your better quality mean? If you, as a seller, cannot communicate the measurable financial benefits of your offering, don\u2019t expect it to be the buyer\u2019s job to figure it out on your behalf.<\/li>\n
  4. However, teaching back door selling as the best approach?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    I\u2019m not sure that\u2019s the best idea with the amount of control (i.e., ability to ban a supplier from future business) that purchasing departments have.<\/p>\n

    Become a member of one of the world\u2019s largest procurement associations today.<\/a><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Recommended Reading<\/strong><\/p>\n