Sales Process for Consultants: Why a No Wins Deals
Eric Michael Shulman shares truth-based selling, a four-step sales process for consultants. Learn why asking for a no wins more deals.
Host: Bernie Franzgrote
Sales process tips for consultants from Eric Michael Shulman on the Knack 4 Business podcast. Learn truth-based selling, ask for the no, and stop losing deals.
GROWTH CATEGORY: Sales & Revenue
Brought to you by Notionhive, Profit10™, and Web Indexer.
You send the proposal. You follow up twice. Then you hear, “Let me think it over.”
Sales trainer Eric Michael Shulman has heard that line for fifty years. He says the real problem starts much earlier in the conversation. In this episode, he shows how to find out in one talk whether someone truly needs what you offer.
Eric Michael Shulman is a sales trainer and the founder of Consultants Can Sell. He has spent over fifty years in business and has built and sold five companies. In this episode, he shares truth-based selling, a simple sales process with four steps. He explains why he asks for a no instead of a yes. He also tells how a two-by-four in the mail got him through to 87 percent of the buyers he called. That story is a lesson in lead generation that breaks the pattern. He shows how cold calling can sound less like a pitch. This episode is for consultants, business owners, and sales professionals who want business growth and fewer lost deals, without the pressure.
Watch the full conversation here:
Many consultants lose deals because they chase a yes before they know if the buyer has a real problem. Sales trainer Eric Michael Shulman, founder of Consultants Can Sell, teaches truth-based selling in four steps. You will learn how to raise budget and decision makers early, ask for a no, and close more business without pressure.
Who This Is For
Consultants, SMB owners, solopreneurs, and leaders building a sales system.
Key Lessons
1. Ask for the no, not the yes.
Every salesperson hopes to hear yes. Eric tries to hear no. A true no saves everyone time. A pushback tells you the buyer does need help. Eric might say, “You probably don’t need any help in this area, do you?” Then he stops talking and listens. Eric says nature hates a vacuum. When you back up and make space, the buyer fills it if it is in their best interest.
2. Talk about money and decision makers early.
Eric’s four Ds are develop a relationship, diagnose the situation, deliver their solution, and help them make a decision. The diagnose step covers pain, budget, and who else decides. To get a budget range, he offers two far-apart numbers, like a hundred dollars or a hundred thousand. The buyer usually names a real figure. Raising money early also saves you from writing seven proposals for buyers who have no budget.
3. Break the pattern.
Eric once mailed a two-by-four to 200 marketing directors in Orlando. A larger one came three days later, then a phone call. He got through to 87 percent of them on the first call. The first sale paid for the whole program ten times over. Buyers know how to answer a pitch. They do not know how to answer something new. You do not need a two-by-four. You need a small, odd, memorable touch that fits your buyer.
Practical Steps
- Add one money question to your next call: “What budget is set aside to fix this?”
- Ask who else helps make the decision before you write a proposal.
- Rewrite your cold call opener as a question about the other person, not a pitch about you.
About the Guest
Eric Michael Shulman is the founder of Consultants Can Sell, and he teaches truth-based selling to owners and consultants. Connect: LinkedIn · Facebook · Book a free intro session.
Listen on Audio
Partners on this episode
Notionhive — websites built to perform, not just look good.
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FAQ
What are the four Ds of truth-based selling?
Develop a relationship, diagnose the situation, deliver their solution, and help them make a decision. Each step builds on the one before it.
What does “let me think it over” usually mean?
Eric says it most often means no. He teaches how to ask for a clear yes or no, kindly, so you can move on.
How can cold calling sound less like a pitch?
Skip the script. Show real interest in the other person and ask what they do. Eric says buyers have no defense for a non-pitch.
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K4B ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Thank you to Lisa Snow of On The Mend Wellness for the introduction.
