{"id":15028,"date":"2018-04-09T17:00:46","date_gmt":"2018-04-09T16:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.intercom.com\/?p=15028"},"modified":"2020-07-30T12:57:00","modified_gmt":"2020-07-30T11:57:00","slug":"the-art-of-competitive-selling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intercom.com\/blog\/the-art-of-competitive-selling\/","title":{"rendered":"How to master competitive selling in a crowded marketplace"},"content":{"rendered":"

The SaaS industry has exploded in recent years due to relatively low barriers to entry, readily available venture capital funding and a deeper, more conscientious understanding of problems faced by internet businesses.<\/p>\n

With this explosion comes a proliferation in the number of competitors in every area<\/a>, both direct and indirect. In today\u2019s market, there is no such thing as a software company that doesn\u2019t have any competitors. However, at a high level, competition is a good thing. It means that whatever problem you are solving is a problem worth solving.<\/p>\n

Live chat also allows the consumer to evaluate more solutions at once.<\/p>\n

Along with increased competition, many companies are getting closer than ever to their customers and prospects. The advent of modern messengers, in particular, has removed so much friction from the process of buying software. For a sales rep, live chat allows you to sell to 5 customers at once versus a single customer on a phone call or in a face-to-face meeting. Less widely acknowledged is that while you can sell to more people at once, live chat also allows the consumer to evaluate more solutions at once. As a rep, your job is both more interesting and more challenging as a result.<\/p>\n

What is competitive selling?<\/h2>\n

Competitive selling is about improving your company’s ability to beat the competition by developing stronger, longer-term relationships with customers. The rise in the number of competitors and the increasing ease with which customers can research and compare their options means that you will have to acknowledge your rivals. But what is the best way to sell your solution over a competitor’s?<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to remember that your competitors deserve respect.<\/p>\n

While we have all experienced that deal where a prospect comes to you with their research already done and fully committed to buying and using your software, this is not the norm. A prospect almost certainly will be evaluating you alongside one or more competitors. For the customer, the sales cycle is about how they can gather all of the relevant information and make an informed decision as to their optimal solution. So as a sales rep, what do you do when you hear \u201cHow do you compare against X or Y?\u201d<\/p>\n

This situation is challenging because we\u2019re pulled away from focusing on how we can solve the customer\u2019s problem and instead tend to focus on our competition. You may try to counteract this using different evasion or offensive tactics:<\/p>\n