Business - How To Be a Successful Businessman

By Phil Smithers

In sales the most valuable resource we have is our time, and our biggest and most important decision is how we use our time most efficiently. So the most important question we need to ask ourselves on each and every opportunity is should I Bid or not Bid.

When you're in a new sales role, naturally you want to be active and will talk to anybody who's willing to listen, and you'll work on any projects that come your way.

However it shouldn't take long until your pipeline begins to fill and you start feeling busy. Now you've got important decisions to make about who you're going to invest your time with. You're decision is made all the more urgent when you need the support of other people within your organisation, and you have to consider the impact of their time and the opportunity cost of their efforts.

The decision to bid always requires the expenditure of time, money, and energy that could be invested elsewhere. So your call to either bid or no bid should not be taken lightly or made carelessly.

Sometimes the decision to go ahead or not is a already made, or it's a "no brainer" because of existing relationship or the nature of the potential contract.

But when you have the choice it's an important decision to me and to be successful in sales it's vital you make this assessment intelligently and weigh up your prospects properly.

Here are 10 crucial questions you need to ask yourself when deciding to Bid or not:

1. Is this a "must Bid" opportunity?

2. Is the prospect really ready to buy? And honestly are you really in a position to be able to supply if they do buy?

3. Is the prospect looking for service and value over a simple price comparison? If they are deciding purely on price and you're not the cheapest then save yourself a lot of hassle and effort and bow out now - No Bid!

4. Can you introduce some extra added value to the opportunity? Can you move the goalposts and alter the specification in your favour?

5. Do you have a good relationship in place with the client decision makers?

6. Can you meet the requirement in full?

7. Do you have a defined competitive edge? Do you have a technical or commercial advantage that can add value to the opportunity?

8. Are you competitively priced? Either you have a cost competitive offer or you can tangibly offer added value?

9. Can you meet the timescales of the project?

10. Will this lead to further opportunities?

The more times you can answer 'Yes' the better this prospect is - 10 "Yes" answers and you've got a hot prospect here! Less than 7 and you need to think real hard if this is the best use of your time.

Phil Smithers is one of the UK's leading sales coaches, sharing the most effective and powerful sales tips, training and mentoring you need to boost your results and start achieving your goals, right now! If you want to learn more about improving your win rate and to close more profitable bids then go to http://www.doublebubblesales.com and listen to an in depth interview with Phil.