When Should I Discount to Close a Deal?

Let’s face it — there’s not one salesperson who has not struggled with this issue.

You’re thinking, “If I just discount the price, I will be able to close the deal.”  Does this hit home with you?  I suspect it does, as it’s one of the most common issues thrown at me when I’m speaking to a group of salespeople.

Before you even think about discounting a price to close a sale, stop and ask yourself if you’re doing it to help yourself feel better.  The ability to simply offer a discount does something in our mind to make us feel like we’re doing the customer a favor.  I hate to break the news to you, but that is a pretty dumb reason to discount!

Discounting a price means you haven’t done your job selling.  The selling process is about helping the customer understand the value of what they will receive when they choose to do business with you. When you close the sale based on a discounted price, you’re telling yourself you can’t sell.  Wow, that’s a great way to feel about the job you’re paid to do!

Discounting a price is never an option.

Once you start discounting your price, you’ll never stop.  Discounting is an addictive behavior, and trust me, it can be extremely hard to break.  Your entire focus needs to be on helping the customer see value.  High value will always trump low price. Which one would you rather be working toward as a salesperson?

Never discount your price. If lowering the price is required to close a deal, then it must be met with a corresponding decrease in what the customer will receive.   If you follow this strategy, what you have is pricing integrity, which allows you to not develop a discounting mindset.

When I say “decrease the value,” it’s about taking something out of the package to allow the customer to realize that they will pay less, but in so doing, they also will receive less of something.

What I’ve found is by presenting the customer with a lower price option with something missing, they will many times realize what’s missing is what they need and they buy at the original price.  The beauty of this is now the customer has made the decision based on an option they had, which allows them to feel in control.

Discounting your price without taking something out of the package is simply not an option, as all you’ll do to yourself long-term is reduce your profit and ultimately destroy any level of price integrity you had.

A coach can help you excel in your sales career! Invest in yourself by checking out my coaching program today!

Copyright 2017, Mark Hunter “The Sales Hunter.” Sales Motivation Blog. Mark Hunter is the author of High-Profit Prospecting: Powerful Strategies to Find the Best Leads and Drive Breakthrough Sales Results.