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| Media training - pitching for new business | |
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| Topic Started: Feb 5 2011, 05:12 AM (549 Views) | |
| gregwardnz | Feb 5 2011, 05:12 AM Post #1 |
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I'm sure all trainers on this site have been approached by new clients who are focused entirely on price rather than quality of service or the trainer's reputation. How do you guys respond when clients are only interested in finding the cheapest option? |
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| Steve Wilson | Feb 6 2011, 03:32 PM Post #2 |
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I certainly cannot speak for all media trainers, but if a client is looking for a media training and their primary concern is "How much will this cost me?", I know I am not interested. There are many considerations a client needs to look at before hiring a media training firm and price is one of them, but definitely not the most important. |
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| CrisisMan | Feb 6 2011, 04:01 PM Post #3 |
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Obviously cost is important, but when that is the primary focus, I believe a client would be better off buying a book or watching a video on media training. It would certainly be cheaper than a workshop and it would probably have more value than a cheap workshop. Actually, Steve Wilson wrote a column on the cost of workshops on this forum some time ago. I thought it covered this issue pretty well. Here it is: http://crisismanagementforum.com/blog/entry/332683/22520/ |
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| gregwardnz | Feb 6 2011, 07:49 PM Post #4 |
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Yes, I once had the same attitude. (i.e. If you're only focused on the price, then they're not worth having.) But these requests are now becoming more common in the recessionary climate. And there is simply too much work at stake. The quote requests tend to come from very large clients e.g. local bodies, government departments etc. In this country, public servants are expected to collect quotes (on almost any service) from at least 2 or 3 suppliers. They are not obliged to go with the cheapest. But going for the lowest quote means they'll avoid any criticism of wasting public funds. I don't know the answer. But I do know that being the best no longer gets you the work. And there is no point in offending a potential client by telling them to read a book or watch a video. |
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| Dstevens | Feb 7 2011, 10:19 PM Post #5 |
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Government organizations - along with some corporations - rely too heavily on the cost of the product - assuming all products are created equally. The fact is that they are not. And, if you are having to compete on price, you need to convince the client that your product is the best product - even if it may be more expensive. That being said, in this economy, everyone has had to compete on pricing. That means what you could have charged in 2005 perhaps, may be too expensive in today's market. The end result is that clients - anywhere - want to get value and satisfaction from their purchase. You need to convince them that you can deliver a high quality product at a price that is competitive with their other vendors. |
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| CrisisMan | Feb 8 2011, 02:10 PM Post #6 |
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I'm not sure this will work in all cases, but we've been successful at times in either recommending - or helping - the client draft the Request for Proposal so that it would exclude firms that compete pretty much on price alone. In other words, to the degree possible, try to have the client spell out exactly what they want and make sure that all firms compete on equal ground. For instance, does their RFP state that the course has to include workbooks and other handouts? Does it say that the vendor must provide a television camera and camera operator? It should also require a certain level of credentials and experience and a list of past and current clients, along with references. All that being said, if you know you are competing with other firms that may be less expensive that yours; you might have to take a deep breath and cut your fees to the point that you are also competitive on price as well as content. There has to be a point, however, where you just can't cut your fees anymore without hurting your firm's professional reputation. |
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8:55 AM May 19