“What does my prospect stand to gain from my efficiency product or service?” This is a question that many salespeople focus on when presenting a value proposition to their prospects. While it is important to note what is going to be gained in the wake of an efficiency project, it’s equally important to address what could potentially be lost if the prospect doesn’t sign off on the project. Depending on the situation, the avoidance of loss may be the strongest motivator for change. Here are a few examples:
Downtime: If your prospect has an old piece of equipment that needs replacing, what is it going to cost them in the event that the equipment unexpectedly fails? If you’re talking about a data center, the loss could be huge. The cost of data center downtime is $5,600 per minute. If it’s an investment bank’s data center, the loss could exceed $1 million a minute!
Productivity: Some pieces of equipment are vital to the operation of a business. If employees were unable to do their job because of an equipment failure, how much would that cost in lost productivity? In the medical field, for example, the surgical suite must be properly pressurized in order for the surgeons to work. If the fan system fails, the surgeons would lose many days of work, and the hospital would lose a significant amount of revenue.
Damaged goods: Any business that relies on temperature control for the longevity of its products is susceptible to revenue loss in the event of a controls or equipment malfunction. Grocery stores, for example, could lose their entire meat or dairy inventory in a refrigeration failure.
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