Mediquip: “Science of Selling Is in the Process”

It has frequently been thought that the science of exchange is in the physical process. This mantra is precisely what failed the protagonist of the Mediquip case. As with any scientific method, success revolves around a defined process that, when correctly executed, achieves an optimal result. Kurt Thaldorf failed to formulate and follow the correct selling process and resulted in a freeing of barter.The following examines Kurts failure and attempts to identify changes in his processes that much likely than not, could hire contributed to sale success. Sale Starts Before Ever Meeting the Customer Kurt failed to conduct the fitting due diligence before he contacted Lohmann University Hospital. This was his first oversight. He received notice of the customers interest in his product and had adequate time to procure facts about the customer that would hand over affirm the hierarchy within the hospital responsible for buying Mediquips CT scanner.Kurt was not overtly unbiased in his performance, though it did not appear that he was intrinsically motivated. He relied on the records of past gross revenue to the customer, and when he found none, proceeded first to the employee at the hospital (Professor Steinborn) who had first inquired about his product, without ever confirming the employees role in the decision-making process. Kurt failed to identify all fractions of the DMU either before, or during, his first interview.A result of Kurts oversight, parley within the customer organization was in completed and created a power struggle between the three parties responsible for making the purchase decision. Kurts failure to engage and analyze the true DMU resulted in his reliance on secondary information gleaned from interaction with secretaries (gatekeepers) which likely was neither accurate, nor trustworthy and his own assumptions. This was evidenced in his records, when he left meetings believing he had made a positive impact on the DMU, without any no minate evidence of positive persuasion.The Prescription Phase Kurt failed to identify the latent needs of the customer, the DMUs true motivations, or the benefits in buying a CT scanner from Mediquip beyond those offered by its competitors. This lapse led to a failure in identifying the features, advantages and benefits of the Mediquip scanner with respect to each DMU members needs during the prescription manakin of the sale, and ultimately resulted in conflicts within the buying unit.Kurt was responsible for communicating with three members of the DMU the professor (initiator & contain user), the physicist (influencer & end user), and the hospital administrator (buyer) with whom he was deficient in identifying the specific goals of each member. As a result, Kurt offered dual hurt decreases in an attempt to satisfy the administrators needs, but failed to identify the administrators latent need to feel like he was getting the best deal.By offering multiple price reductions he devalued the technical superiority of his product and made the administrator feel as though he may be getting swindled. Kurt should have identified the administrators concern for set and need to feel as though he was getting the best value for his dollar. He should have identified the benefits of Mediquip, in an apples- to- apples comparison to its competitors, showing the long term cost savings associated with the purchase through with(predicate) ease of upgrades and increased processing speed.Once all beneficial characteristics of the Mediquip CT were identified, only then offered the best price possible. Finally, during the prescription phase, Kurt would have benefited had he met with all members of the DMU. Because he overlooked the need to identify each DMU members concerns, he failed to bring them together to facilitate a consensus of Mediquips advantages. Kurt could have served as a mediator helping to solve political conflicts within the DMU and thereby creating additiona l value for his customers.Closing the Sale At the point where Kurt could have invoked open dialogue between the three DMU members, he would have availed himself of the SPIN technique. He could have identified the situation a need for a new CT scanner. He could have asked open-ended questions, engaging the DMU, and simultaneously identified their concerns and needs. He could have addressed the problem not except the idea of not purchasing a CT scanner, but of purchasing an out-of-date model, a send away product, or the benefits of the higher-priced premiumMediquip scanner. Kurt missed the opportunity to identify the implications of not fulfilling their need. He could have questioned the administrator of the potential loss of patients, or lack of reimbursement from insurance companies who would not compensate for a machine that is not as accurate as the Mediquip standard. Lastly, Kurt could have proposed a solution to the customer hospitals concerns by suggesting Mediquip held the answer. Kurt was deficient in formulating and implementing his sales process.He failed in due diligence, prior to meeting with the client, during the prescriptive phase, and ultimately when he overlooked the brilliance of meeting with the DMU, as a group. He was unsuccessful in building up the value align of the cost equation, as it related to each member of the DMU, and continually chose to focus on cost reduction strategies rather than emphasizing the value of Mediquips CT machine. Kurts failure to follow the sales process cost Mediquip a new customer, a future potential business partnership and ultimately the sale of a multi-million dollar machine.