This is the old need vs want thought process. You buy things you need (gas, food, shelter, internet, cell phones) without thinking. They are bought out of survival. Things you want, however, are not needed to survive.
Survival is the key word here. As a sales person, we need to identify how our products, or services are critical to their survival. We do that by asking great questions to understand the client’s goals and objectives, and then marry the success of those objectives to something only our product or service could guarantee.
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There are two realities here. One is that the customer is right, and they don’t need your product or service to achieve their goals. You would need to determine this in your evaluation. You would need to be able to logically justify your solution to their decision makers. Would you buy your product if you were them? If you don’t have a good reason or explanation, it makes sense that this isn’t a priority. Often we come to this conclusion by having happy-ear-syndrome, where we only hear what we want to hear from the client. This is a common listening skill set issue.
Food for thought here is, why is the customer entertaining your product or service then? Do they think this could be something that could contribute to their success down the road? Maybe you should ask them that question.
The other reality is that the customer is wrong. Your service is a 100% guarantee to impact their business and help them reach their business objectives. They just don’t see the connection. The number one reason for this outcome is your method of delivering the information. Did you provide them with proof through a test, trial, demo, relevant case study or testimonial? That must be part of your process.
However, I’m willing to bet your proposal is where your problem lies. Maybe you should have your manager take another look at it to see if it logically shares this story of how your offering is valuable and a contributor to hitting their goals.