Let Go of the GNPWs

My friend Tony and I have an age-old discussion about a certain type of potential customer. This is the one that will never buy anything, but they always act interested. Yet, they have neither the financial means nor intestinal fortitude to move forward with a purchase. As a group, they are assigned the acronym, GNPWs. It stands for The Great Non-Purchasers of the World. This tribe exhibits the initial characteristics we look for in a customer. Often, they have a problem that needs solving. They ask copious amounts of questions about the product or the service. This is especially true in a public-facing forum. But once the opportunity for showcase goes away, these ‘prospects’ turn into ostriches. And they are never to be heard from again. Months can go by with no return phone calls or e-mails. The enthusiasm once shown in public has gone by the wayside. Likely because there was never a purchase intent to begin with. Thus, the title of GNPWs gets assigned to this group, for all eternity.

You may have them in your sales department, too. They are the people who may show up to all our outward-facing events. They come for the free meal and the cookie. They will accept your cup of coffee. They will be polite and listen to your presentations and your offer. But have no intention of ever doing business with you. Sure, they like the attention you pay to them each month. The extra attention you give them when you are trying to make your goal. But this type of prospect doesn’t belong in your pipeline to begin with. They are time killers and time wasters. While they look and act like real customers, a deeper investigation will reveal their lack of commitment to making a real choice. This is the type of person who has no intention of making any kind of commitment to you or your company. Once identified, you should avoid this type of business, both now and in the future.

While we should avoid them, we do not. In every sales organization, on every continent, we will find them. These non-players continue to populate prospect lists. Why is this? Salespeople resist removing unresponsive or unlikely prospects from their lists. Despite all evidence pointing to the never purchasing strategy of the prospect. This hesitation is driven by both psychological and emotional factors. For one, we are optimists in sales. We have to be. The odds are long, depending on your product offering. Remember the average closing ratio across all industries is ten percent. So, we must be optimists to keep going against these long odds. Then there is our belief in our own ability. We have all reached the apex of Mountain of Foolish. We are forever convinced that with the right pitch or a little more time, we can convert any lead. This optimism can prevent us from accepting that a prospect is not worth pursuing.
Then there is the sunk cost fallacy. When we have invested significant time and effort into nurturing a prospect, it makes it difficult to cut them loose. It is downright impossible. Letting go feels like admitting the time and resources spent are a waste. This would make us uncomfortable. And we never want to feel uncomfortable. In a related act of foolishness, we cling to the fallacy of FOMO, or fear of missing out. It is our belief that the karma gods will strike us down when we abandon the non-prospect. As soon as we remove a prospect from our list, they will have a sudden and abrupt change of heart. They will change affiliations from the GNPWs to actual purchasers. We will miss out on all the time and effort we put into this person. But in the history of ever, this has happened once. The fear is unfounded. Yet, the time wasted on this person is real. The time cost is real.

Sellers are under pressure to maintain a robust pipeline. A longer prospect list gives the appearance of more opportunities. It is delusion at its finest. This long list is reassuring to the salesperson. We look productive on paper. And forget about the managers. Most don’t know how to ask the right questions to determine prospect viability. This group is easily fooled by the length and breadth of potential assembled on a list. They will fall for this illusion and rubber stamp this list of false hope. Meanwhile, months may pass without productive activity from one or more of their sellers. By the time this canard reveals itself, it is too late. Both the seller and the manager have moved to another company to repeat the same mistakes.

The Great Non-Purchasers of the World bear some responsibility. But it is not their problem. Some of this is driven by general human behavior. Some by social dynamics. And others by an odd strategic motivation. Some prospects may engage with salespeople out of curiosity. They might want to gather information about a product or service. And they want to do so without any real intention to buy. This is particularly common when the prospect is researching options. They may be comparing solutions but don’t have an intention of making a commitment. The salesperson becomes a resource for free information. It allows a prospect to educate themselves without any obligation to move forward. It is one of the reasons fifty percent of all sales calls end in no action at all.

Some prospects feel a social obligation to engage with salespeople. That is even if they have no buying intent. Some of it is politeness. Most people are raised to be polite. And some of that is obligation, especially if the salesperson has been persistent. And that goes times two if there is a personal relationship involved. Others lack the guts to say no. They might find it difficult to say no outright. What happens next is more prolonged conversations. Sellers will schedule more meetings that lead to the land of nowhere.

Think about the power dynamic. Some prospects enjoy the attention. They enjoy the attention and the sense of control they experience when a salesperson is pursuing them. By leading the salesperson on, they maintain a position of authority. This is gratifying to the psyche. Other prospects are leveraging the interaction to gain negotiating power with another supplier. They may engage with a salesperson to gather quotes. They gather offers to be used as bargaining chips in discussions with their preferred vendor. This tactic allows them to extract the best possible deal. And they can do it without any genuine intention to switch providers. You become the stalking horse in a negotiation you are not privy to.

Some prospects don't focus on the decision-making process. They express interest without urgency. This leads to an extended engagement. It almost never results in a sale. This can happen when there's no immediate need. It can happen when the decision-maker is distracted by other issues. This leaves the seller, you, in a perpetual waiting game. Your time and resources are consumed without any prospect of closing the deal. But most of this can be prevented. Learn to spot these types early in your conversations. Ask the right questions to determine need, fit, timing, urgency, and execution.

To determine whether a prospect has a genuine interest in making a purchase or is wasting time, you can ask a series of strategic questions. These questions are designed to reveal the prospect’s true intentions. And reveal their level of commitment. Aside from your normal qualifying questions to determine need and fit, these are other questions you can ask. These questions will act as a time saver for you. This way you can avoid wasting your valuable time resource on someone who does not have any intention of working with you. And that is both now and in the future.

Once you uncover the opportunity, begin to probe for more information. Ask about specifics. The more specific you are the more it will reveal. Ask, “When we come with a solution to solve xxx problem, what specifically will that do for your business?” This question allows the prospect to articulate their plans. A genuine prospect will be able to identify their needs. They can talk about what success means to them and how it could impact their business, both now and in the future. It allows them to project success and talk about the impact of implementation. If the prospect struggles to answer, they might not have a pressing need. They could be in the very early stages of exploration. Or they have no intention of ever doing business with you. Keep asking more questions to determine what or whom you are dealing with.

I like to ask the timeline question. Someone who is serious about solving a problem will have at least thought about the why and when. Even if they don’t know the how. Ask “What is your timeline for making a decision?” Understanding the prospect’s timeline is a critical first step. A serious buyer will have a sense of urgency or at least a general time frame for making a decision. If the prospect provides vague answers like “sometime in the future” or “we’re just looking around,” it could indicate that they are not ready to buy. They are gathering information. Or they have no intention of doing business with you.

To ensure you are dealing with the right people to collaborate with on problem-solving, ask a process question. “What is the process you will go through in making this decision?” It will help determine whether the person you’re speaking with has the authority to make a decision. Or should we be having this conversation with some other person or persons? A serious prospect will know who the key stakeholders are. Someone who is serious will bring them into the conversation. A prospect who is unsure or evasive might not be far along in their decision-making process. Or they could be the wrong person, one without authority. They have no intention of doing business with you.

At some point, the financial consideration needs to make it on the table. But be careful how you ask it. Most were taught to ask the budget question. “What is your budget to solve the problem?” might be one way to ask. But this answer is not enough. This question assumes the other person is an expert in your business. Instead, you should know what it takes to solve this problem. And recommend a financial commitment level based on some actual evidence. You could say, “Our customers who had similar problems committed XXX dollars to solving it. Is your company prepared to do this, at the minimum, or more to make that happen?” A genuine prospect will have a commitment level in mind, even if it is inaccurate. If they avoid the question or claim to have no money, it might suggest that they aren’t serious. They could be wasting your time.

At some point, you will want to find out where you stand in the process. You need to know what you must bring to the table beyond the normal. You can ask, “What criteria will you use to evaluate potential solutions?” This question gives insight into how the prospect is approaching their decision. A serious buyer will have specific criteria or a checklist they are working through. If the prospect can’t articulate their evaluation process, it could mean they haven’t given it serious consideration. Or they have no intention of doing business with you, at all.

The Great Non-Purchasers of the World have eaten up much time and effort from sellers, over the years. But part of this is our fault. We let them hang around our prospect lists much longer than we should, if only to make ourselves feel better. It gives us a sense of accomplishment to go see these people. It feels productive to talk to these types of people, if only for the hour of veiled interest. We act like Sally Field at the Oscars telling ourselves, “They like me, they really, really like me.” The reality is this group has no intention of purchasing from us. If we ask a few more probing questions and listen to the answers with a keen ear, we can separate the pretenders from the real prospects. We can purge the great non-purchasers of the world. And then direct our efforts into more lucrative partnerships.