4 unobvious reasons that make your offer land in the basket

Thank you for the offer, we have decided to cooperate with another supplier;
At this point we have suspended the project, we will contact you when we get back to it;
Unfortunately, we are not interested.

Every salesperson has heard these answers.

Often, the reason for refusal is the lack of a real need on the part of the customer, a weak product, or just bad timing.

However, sometimes the reasons for rejecting an offer are less obvious, although customers rarely tell us about them directly.

What are these reasons?

To better understand them, let us quote the story of Will Smith and how he rejected one offer. An offer that could have been the role of his life.

 

How Will Smith rejected the role of his life

It was 1998.

Will Smith established his position as a true Hollywood star with his freshly recorded “Men in Black,” a movie which none other than Steven Spielberg convinced him to do. Nevertheless, when two less widely-known directors offered him a meeting, he decided to accept it.

The day of the meeting came. The directors entered the room, and the first thing that struck him was that they looked quite characteristic. One quite strong, with a beard and a baseball cap, the other smaller, wearing glasses and earrings.

They started to talk about their film, gesturing wildly. They focused on special effects.

Their pitch closed with more or less these words: “Imagine you’re fighting, then jumping, stopping in flight, and the camera shows you from all sides.

The plot of the film itself remained a mystery. Will Smith was very confused and, with little thought, rejected the directors’ offer. After all, as a freshman Hollywood star, he could afford it.

He did not know then that these two directors would soon be known to the world as the Wachowski brothers. And their film, “Matrix,” would become one of the most famous films of the last millennium. [1]

How is it possible that the Wachowski brothers could tell Smith about such a multidimensional film as the Matrix in such an unintelligible and unattractive way? Especially since they wrote the script and knew it through and through?

 

Contrary to appearances, such situations are not so rare.

Sadly – many offers, not just for films, but also business offers, are rejected for similar reasons. 

 

Today’s technology allows us to simulate what the famous Matrix scene with Will Smith would look like as Neo. Source: Shamook YouTube chanel

Reason #1: The curse of knowledge prevents the client from understanding you

In B2B, we often need to provide the customer with a lot of information to complete the sale successfully:

  • What is the business value of our offer,
  • What exactly are we going to deliver,
  • At what time,
  • How,
  • Under what conditions
  • For how much, etc.

And here is where the curse of knowledge stands in our way.

The curse of knowledge is a psychological effect, which means that if we know something, we get the impression that others do too. [More about the curse of knowledge is written here]

It usually takes harmless forms. When we watch the program “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” and we know the answer to the question, we are surprised that the player is even thinking about it. It’s so obvious, right?

For a football fan, it will be “obvious” which football club Robert Lewandowski plays for, for a fan of the Lord Of The Rings, it’s obvious who Faramir was, for an amateur traveler, what the capital of Madagascar is…

As Polish host of “Who Want to Be a Millionaire” Hubert Urbański says:: “That’s the joke of it, that you can find questions that are easy for us and difficult for someone else.” [2]

However, the knowledge curse is very dangerous in the case of marketers and sellers. It can destroy the potential of even the best product.

 

Why?

Marketing and sales materials are usually created by experts. People who know the product through and through. People who may, therefore, get the wrong impression that certain things are “obvious” and there is no need to talk about them.

The result is that they release sales material that omits a lot of important information.

Just like the interactive whiteboard presentation I took part in. The salesman talked for 1.5 hours (!) about how many plugs the product has, how much power it uses, and how to connect it to the phone, but he did not explain how it could help me run my business and why I should buy it – at all.

The Wachowski brothers fell into this trap. The plot of “Matrix” was evident to them, so they focused on discussing the technical details of the film – special effects and individual scenes.

Will Smith, not understanding what the “Matrix” was all about, rejected the offer to play a role in it. In the same way, the client often rejects an offer without understanding the “big picture”, which is seeing what such cooperation can bring him.

 

Often the customer has difficulty in understanding marketing and sales materials. If he wrongly connects the dots we draw for him, he may reject our offer. Even if our product could help his company.

Reason #2: You don’t get to the right people on the purchasing committee

The situation becomes even more difficult with the fact that, in B2B, there are usually several recipients of our materials.

According to Gartner’s research, on average, 7 people are involved in B2B purchases. [3]. These are often people in different positions.

Let us take the CRM system as an example. Apart from people from sales and marketing, the president, purchasing, IT, legal or the finance department may be involved in the process of its purchase.

  • 7 different people.
  • 7 different goals.
  • 7 different levels of CRM knowledge.

Although there is usually one decision-maker, every person involved in the process has more or less of an influence on it. It is, therefore, worthwhile for marketing and sales materials to meet the needs of at least some of them.
Especially since products must meet many criteria – RODO compatibility, functionality, ease of integration, the convenience of use, etc.

Example criteria for decision makers when purchasing a CRM.

If our offer does not include information on data integration or RODO, people responsible for these elements may delay the purchase process… or even sabotage it.

Especially since meetings of the purchasing committee usually take place behind closed doors.

 

Reason #3: Most sales take place when you are not there.

This is best illustrated by an experienced industrial sales manager, Neil Rackham, who wrote “SPIN sales”:

 

I’m convinced that the reason I managed to sell the system for many millions of dollars was that I spent a lot of time making sure that people I talked to knew how to sell for me. I was like a theater director. I worked during rehearsals – I wasn’t on stage when it was time for the show.” [4]

 

Interestingly, this is a statement from over 30 years ago.

Today, customers are even less willing to involve the salesman in making decisions. On average, purchasing committees spend only 17% of their time on meetings with suppliers. [5] And 60% prefer not to treat a salesperson as their main source of information. [6]

Therefore, it is our customer contact person who will convince others to choose us, which means that he or she will de facto be selling. As if he or she were our distributor.

Our contact person’s role is to make the whole Purchasing Committee connect the dots precisely the way we want them. Misunderstanding our offer can sometimes be worse than not understanding.

 

It is our contact person who will be under fire from questions about ROI, integration with other systems, FAMILY, etc. If we don’t prepare him or her for this and provide the right marketing materials, he or she will fail.

And we will hear “thank you for the offer, we decided to cooperate with another supplier” or “for this moment, we have suspended the project, we will contact you when we return to the topic”.

That is why it is so important that our contact person on the client-facing side understands our offer well. And he or she can explain it neatly and convincingly.

It’s up to us to make sure he or she gets it right.

 

Reason #4: Your offer does not stand out from the (numerous) competitors

Let’s go back to Will Smith.

When he talked to the Wachowski family, he was already a star. But the Hollywood world is merciless. One, two bad decisions, and you fall off the pedestal. In such a situation, playing in a film by unknown directors, which you are not convinced of, sounds very risky. It makes more sense to wait for something that will be an obvious hit.*

*Fifty thousand scripts are made in the US every year. Only 150 of them are produced in Hollywood. That’s less than 0.3%. [7]

 

In today’s hyper-competitive environment, the buyer feels the same way.

He has many offers to choose from, and he has to know exactly how the product will help him just as Will Smith can afford to reject an offer whose benefits are not entirely clear to him.

And this is the fourth reason why our offer can land in the basket. Multiple suppliers’ offers and minimzation risk.

As they say, no one was fired for buying IBM products. So, if we don’t have a position like IBM or Microsoft, we have to make up for it with clarity and consistency of message. Especially today, when no one has time to analyze 50-page offers. And according to Gartner, customers who found the vendor’s sales materials consistent, bought from them 4.5 times more often on average! [8]

 

If the Wachowski brothers had been able to talk about the plot of the Matrix, Will Smith would probably have accepted the role. However, they presented it in such a way that their film seemed to be just “another action film.”

The same goes for business. If our offer seems to be “just another offer from a company in this industry,” it is difficult for customers to choose us instead of the more secure market leader option.

 So the situation is more or less like this:

 

 

If your offer is rejected the next time, think about whether you have taken care of these 4 elements.
This is not an easy task. But the trend is clear and difficult to fight. That’s why we can only adapt to it.

 

That’s also why we’ve built a list of questions that will help you prepare an offer that fits these realities.

Among the questions, you will also find good examples of offers from companies such as Wells Fargo, CallPage, IBM, Microsoft or Brand24, which will help you get inspired.

If you would like to receive such a list, please enter your e-mail address below:

 

 

[FM_form id="11"]

Bibliography

[1] Will Smith interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hm2szuXKgL8

[2] Hubert Urbański himself mentions this effect (without calling it that) when they ask him about the most difficult question in Millionaires [link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhMD6I4O5jc].

[3] Garner’s reasearch about decision making in B2B: https://blogs.gartner.com/hank-barnes/2016/09/27/in-enteprise-tech-sell-broadly-is-the-only-answer/

[4] Rackham, Neil. SPIN Selling: Situation Problem Implication Need-Payoff (p. 85).

[5] Garner’s research about shopping time spent on meetings with the seller:
https://www.gartner.com/en/sales-service/insights/b2b-buying-journey

[6] Forrester’s article about the client-seller relations https://go.forrester.com/blogs/the-ways-and-means-of-b2b-buyer-journey-maps-were-going-deep-at-forresters-b2b-forum/

[7] Number of scripts produced in Hollywood: https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/09/how-hollywood-chooses-scripts-the-insider-list-that-led-to-abduction/245541/

[8] Gartner’s research about buyer’s behavior: https://www.gartner.com/smarterwithgartner/what-sales-should-know-about-b2b-buyers-in-2019/

[9] Graphic metarials used to promote the article: Actor Will Smith lights up the stage as he hosted the 2011 Walmart Shareholders Meeting; Walmart Stores; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Will_Smith_2011,_3.jpg

 

 

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About the author

Oscar Krysik

With over 10 years of experience working with renowned brands such as Lipton, Listerine, and Ben & Jerry’s, I have developed comprehensive communication plans, executed brand launches, and devised effective brand strategies. I am committed to understanding key messages and ensuring they reach the right audience. My experience also includes brand creation, exemplified by the launch of Benji’s Planet, a premium dog food brand. As a brand and marketing consultant, I help businesses craft their brand identity and communicate their value propositions effectively. I regularly update my skills with new certifications and stay abreast of marketing trends to ensure my strategies are cutting-edge. Outside of work, I am passionate about design, graphic arts, and enjoy bouldering in my free time. Contact me for expert brand and marketing consultation.

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As we wrote earlier in the text about explainer video, the production of such an animation usually costs from 2 000 to 7 000 EUR. How to calculate whether this expense will pay off? And how to estimate the explainer video's possible results?   In this text, we...

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Rypple, which provides cloud services, wanted to show that its solution increases the efficiency of managers and employees. The B2B business was showing more and more interest in modern ways of storing data, but the competition was not idle and more and more similar...

Product videos—types, prices, advantages and disadvantages (classic film, whiteboard animation, vector animation, and 3D animation)

Product videos are becoming more and more popular because they help to tell about the product in a few minutes. Thanks to them, the customer does not have to read a wall of text on the website or in the brochure. Sellers also feel relieved because they don't have to...

11 tips and tricks that will make it easier for you to make an explainer video

You want to commission a explainer video production. It is an important project because you need to talk about a strategic initiative, generate more leads, or implement a new procedure. You gave the company a general idea and...wait until they hit your vision? This is...

Our Team

Claudia Together with the late Michael (my fiancé at the time), I am a co-founder of ExplainVisually. At the beginning of the company's existence, I was a creative 3-in-1: I wrote scripts, storyboards, and drew films. This was the case with the first 84 films, but in...

The cooperation between TESCO and ExplainVisually has been extended to the Czech Republic and Slovakia

The shelves of supermarkets bend under the food. But what happens to food that is not bought? The last project in cooperation with TESCO brought us the answer to this question. We got a call from Gosia Tokarz, who asked us if we can prepare 7 by 2 meters infographics...

How did Millenium Bank educate its employees on standards of customer service? [Case Study]

About the company: Millenium Bank – one of the main banks in Poland, part of Banco Commercial Portuges. Department: Department of Quality–responsible for providing equal and high level of customer and sales service in the bank’s facilities.   Problem: Keeping the...

Our video telling a story about the most creative Polish School

Among dozens of projects that we have carried out this year, the film for the Kornel Makuszyński Elementary School in Radowo Małe is one of our favourites. And not only our favourite: the video scored over 1300 shares on Facebook. Why this project is so important to...

How did Orange tell their employees about the Continuous Improvement? [Case Study]

About the company: Orange – the biggest telecommunication operator in Poland and one of the main companies in the world, made it to the Fortune Global 500 list. Department: Customer Experience, trying to design the ideal customer experience and supporting the...

What is Graphic Recording (and Graphic Facilitation)?

When the lecturer starts his speech on the stage, the atmosphere of concentration fills the lecture hall. It is his name that brought the crowd to this conference. The slides complete his words, and hundreds of people are focused on him and try to remember as much as...

What is whiteboard animation (and how your business can benefit from it)?

Whiteboard animation is becoming more and more popular in business because of the clear and transparent way it provides information. Research shows that it has an advantage over text messages, and often also over static images and ordinary films. That is why it is...

What is explainer video (and how your business can benefit from it)?

  Explainer videos are short movies which explain complicated issues in an easy way. Typically they deliver information about companies, products and services. Today, explainer videos are used by thousands of companies around the world, including the largest...

The curse of knowledge: How it affects managers & marketers

Klątwa wiedzy jest efektem psychologicznym, który w ogromnym stopniu wpływa na naszą pracę oraz życie osobiste. W wielu wypadkach niestety negatywnie. Szczególnie narażone na jego skutki są osoby odpowiedzialne za komunikację w firmie – managerowanie, marketerzy,...

Goodbye to the best boss I’ve ever had

“I heard that you quit your job,” the words echoed in my ears. It was a call from Michał. How on earth did he already know?, I thought. It must have been our Lebanese friend who told him. He was the only person who knew. “Yes, that’s true. The message was being...

Klaudia Tolman of ExplainVisually in the jury of 50 Top Creative list

Klaudia Tolman, our Creative Director, is going to be one of the jurors in the 9th edition of the ranking of 50 Top Creative in Business. The ranking aims to honour companies and people: put their money on innovations and out-of-the-box solutions in their businesses,...

We got the results of the first nationwide research on Visual Thinking

Last year we co-created the very first nationwide research on Visual Thinking. Why did we decide to take part in reliable research on the effectiveness of visual thinking? For years now we have been hearing from our clients, that what we do, works. But it’s one thing...

Maciej Budkowski and Klaudia Tolman to host an “Expert” cycle meeting for Brief.pl

For the last 5 years, we have been building and developing our know-how. During that time we’ve carried out over 200 projects in 19 languages for dozens of corporations, startups and GOs. But never before have we publicly spoken about our agency experiences. This time...

Maciej Budkowski and Klaudia Tolman in the #agencja podcast

Just released, there’s an #agencja podcast featuring our managing team, Klaudia and Maciek. In the podcast we’re telling about our daily work. Link to the podcast –...

ExplainVisually’s film about European Funds submitted to Camerimage

In 2015 we made a film with the Mazovian Unit of EU Programmes Implementation in Warsaw. Its aim was to tell in a simple way how to gain European Funds. The project went very well and many organisations associated with European Funds considered it to set a good...

ExplainVisually’s infographics to support Polish Football Association

Maciek, our Managing Director, has been a huge fan of football for over 20 years and he’s always been dreaming about cooperation with the Polish Football Association. So when they actually called us to say that they needed to explain to football coaches complex...

ExplainVisually a laureate of the competition 50 Most Creative in Polish Business!

We are a laureate of this year’s ranking of 50 Most Creative in Business. 50 Creative is the biggest competition in its field in Poland. The ranking is carried out each year by Brief.pl. Amongst former laureates are CD Project, Brand24, iTaxi, LifeTube, Booksy or...

How to spend money to be happy? Our infographic in “Głos Mordoru” (“Voice of Mordor”)

“Money doesn’t bring happiness” or “You cannot have too much of a good thing”? Turns out, it depends on what you do with it. Those are the conclusions of Elizabeth Dunn and Michael Norton, Professors of British Columbia University and Harvard University. In their book...

Summary 2017

Christmas time has passed, so it’s time for some summary. We can’t describe this year with one word. 2017 was demanding, tragic, developing, successful, sad and joyful. In the period of 12 months we made over 70 films, which means we scored almost 200 total since the...

Our video helped to win 1,000,000$ in a Israeli’s startup competition

A week ago Seegnature, an Israeli InsurTech start-up, used our whiteboard animation during a pitch - presentation to the investors. The stake was high. Pitch is a key moment for a start-up. Several minutes of presentation may determine the company’s future. Especially...

HR Case Study: recruitment video

It was the end of May 2016, when we realized we could not put it off any longer. Everybody took their place, and we started the meeting. “We have to recruit new drawing artists! I can’t do it by myself any longer! We won’t manage when the new projects come…!” Klaudia...

Explainer video production process

Explainer video production process typically takes a few weeks (3-8). The production time depends on the film's duration, its complexity, the flow of works, communication between both parties (or three parties if an Agency also takes part in the discussion), work...