Being Proactive Pays Off

Customer: "Okay, we finally got funds approved for that project. Can we get a fresh quote?"

Sales Person: "No problem, here you go."

Customer: "Wait, this is $500K more than we budgeted. What happened?"

You: "Well, everything was such a rush to get in the budgetary quote last February, but now that I've done a full assessment, I realized there were some extra things needed."

Customer: "Why didn't you do a full assessment last time? Now we can't afford the project!"

Customers don't remember that they FORCED you to do a quote in one day when they asked for a budgetary quote a year ago. But now everyone is in a pickle.

Even if it's uncomfortable, ask the right questions the FIRST time around. Push back, and explain this scenario, and ask for more time.

Better yet, be proactive in January, and explain you'll need enough time to do budgetary quotes. That way, the customer has enough money, and projects don't get stalled.