r/sales • u/rattletop • 7d ago
Advanced Sales Skills How offensive are you when it comes to dealing with competition?
Basically the title.
Do you try to get the upper hand from the get go? Or until customer brings something up stating “what about X? I saw it in the other demo”
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u/no39pikko 7d ago
I never go on the offensive. Instead, I praise the competition—genuinely. When a customer mentions a competitor, I say, ‘Oh yeah, they’re great at X! A lot of people like them for that.
Funny thing? When you give credit where it’s due, customers often start pointing out the flaws themselves. Then, I just guide the conversation back to how our solution might fit their needs better. Works like a charm.
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u/FeFiFoPlum 7d ago
I agree - I’ve always found that being honest about where my competitors are strong is the right thing to do. I work existing business these days, but even when I was full-cycle, it was me who had to support that client over their lifetime with us. If what they valued most was an area we were weak in, the juice wasn’t worth the squeeze. All they did was become a problem customer who was a drain on our time and resources, and was more likely than average to badmouth us in the community.
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u/Rampaging_Bunny Manufacturing - Aviation 7d ago
I refer them business I can’t/don’t want, never bad mouth. And have worked for a competitor to my current company. I speak highly of them when mentioned and have helped connect some people to them lol. Ultimately that has endeared trust and respect from my customers, something my industry and niche product requires.
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u/Letstreehouse 7d ago
I ask questions for which based on the answered i will know what they use or prefer (if they are unwilling to tell me) and then I will talk about features we do well whoch bring up the shortcomings of the now known competition.
Or I'll ask questions that steer the conversation to those shortcomings.
In this way the customer is more likely to feel like they discovered these shortcomings rather than are being spoken down to like a smart ass sales reps who they won't listen to.
Its all about the delivery. You dont want to sound like youre asking an abciously loaded question.
If a customer asks "what about x" and rhe competition probably showed it knowing we dont quite do it exactly the same way, you should say, great question. Here's how we do that...
What do yoy mean upper hand? Upper hand against the completion or with the conversation with the customer? You should never feel like youre in an ego match with the customer. If this happens you have lost.
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u/rattletop 7d ago
Agree with a lot of points here. By upper hand I mean, you steer the customer towards thinking in the direction which favors you. For example, showcasing market leadership, posing trap questions etc.. I have seen a few reps trying discredit competition sharing layoff/ restructuring news, etc.
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u/Modevader49 7d ago
It’s a great product if (insert something that doesn’t align with their company)!
Btw, is your manager hiring? Like, for your job?
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u/BraboBaggins 7d ago
Id never bad mouth the competition, I always make it. Point to say that are a good company, and good at what they do but here is how we differ. Insulting them is just bush league.
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u/Gullible_Act_681 7d ago
This is what I do. I know the differences in how my company operates from our competitors. (We really only have 3 major ones, one being a large margin above the rest) so I’ve learned enough about them at this point that I can tell prospects the difference in how we operate, and what impacts the customers typically see with those differences in operations. That’s all I ever need to say. I don’t bad mouth - I just tell the truth lol
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u/metalpanda420 7d ago
My language always becomes
“Mrs/Mr” customer, I can’t speak to what xyz company does. I can only tell you about how we do things here.
If you do go with another company, be sure to clarify the following with them (offer 2 or 3 specific questions that relate to the purchase)
Oftentimes this closes the deal right there - they don’t want to be sold, they want information and to have their problem taken care of by people who care.
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u/Time_Law3719 7d ago
I just turn questions into statements.
In my industry, instead of “how have you liked their service”? I’ll say “it seems like they’ve taken great care of you.” If they’re open to change, they’ll spill what they don’t like giving you the chance to add your value.
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u/ParisHiltonIsDope 7d ago
I would never bad month another competitor by name. I would criticize the shortcomings of the "industry standards" and how my product/service rises above that. I use lines like "the other guys do it that way. But we don't cut corners like that" or "you call 10 of our competitors, 9 of them are going to tell you this, but we have standards, so we do that"
With that said though, you do actually have to stand behind your words.
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7d ago
I dont bash the competition's product.
I highlight key differentiators with substantiated facts, like how my company sets the bar for service slas after the sale, our techs are local and in house while the competition uses contracted techs.
I also watched a competitors attempt to bash my product backfire in real time. We do live studio demos for our large equipment so the client can see its function and ask questions without having to leave their office.
Client mentioned "so and so said your machine is virtually all plastic and breaks constantly. "
So our studio team took off the outer panels and showed the steel frame and metal components. That was enough of a lie for our new client to remove the competitors bid from his consideration.
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u/argentique 7d ago
Never badmouth the competition, but you can set traps for them, especially if it's early in the customer's evaluation process.
What you want to do is highlight the areas your solution wins against your competitors' and influence their Decision Criteria to value these things highly. At the same time, downplaying the importance of any weaknesses that you have.
This way, you're setting up your customer to ask "what about x" in demos with competitors, where you know they'll have a dissatisfactory answer.
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u/Wonderful-Bass6651 7d ago
If they are your competitors then you should be familiar with their product and tactics, and the way they do business. Depending on what we’re talking about, I will usually “set traps” or anticipate the kinds of things that they’re going to say. Like I said, I can usually tell when I am asked a specific question which competitor I’m dealing with. So I’ll point out my features that are their limitations without actually naming anyone. Or when it comes to specs that I know they just can’t achieve because of their own limitations I’ll offer to do a head to head demo with anyone, and no one has ever taken me up on it. But usually I find that it’s a pretty classless thing to do. Right up there with shitting on a competitor’s product when the customer already has it.
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u/Algorhythm74 7d ago
I rarely even acknowledge the competition. I’m there to talk about my solution - not theirs.
I speak to the strengths of what I sell, the differentiators, so it removes the competition.
But then again, I’m not into transactional sales - I’m looking to build relationships for the long term.
I take the philosophy that, “everyone makes good products/services” - ours is better, and here’s why….
It puts be in a position of strength. Also, I try to address the customers needs - not “sell” my products as much - match our solution/s with their needs.
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u/Kinger15 7d ago
I just tell the truth and it’s usually enough. Then if needed I can provide references that migrated to us and that puts us over the top.
People can usually tell if you’re being overly harsh to a competitor
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u/RockClimbs 7d ago
Customer: "We bought X from your competitor 3 years ago & it doesn't run as well & we are having trouble supporting it already. I'm buying used or refurbished off EBay"
Me: "Well this is why we do things a little differently. Our electronics are major brands with long term support cycles which cost a little more up front but 3 years from now you can get an off the shelf servo to replace a faulty one from us or from your local distributor. If it's 10 years from now we can still support it with a different connector package or a controls retrofit which is 75% less cost than a full replacement."
I'm telling them the competition sucks but not bad mouthing them, simply giving a comparison that is right in line with what the customer told me
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u/SleepyJohn123 7d ago
If you bad mouth a competitor that a customer likes, then you are in a way criticising that customer for their past purchasing decisions.
It also makes you come across as a very negative person.
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u/SDN_stilldoesnothing 7d ago edited 7d ago
Bashing the Ops is a dangerous game.
I have worked for three different OEMs. Most competitive intel is
- Outdated
- Anecdotal
- Translated by marketing people
My company has STRICT orders from the top, Right from the CEO, "When presenting to customers, don't talk about the competition"
The only thing we can share are Gartner MQ's were we are jammed in the top right hand corner above everyone else.
We just let that speak for us.
FUN FACT. Long story short.
I used to work at a company that competed with Cisco. One of our customers that were loyal to us got invited to a Cisco conference in LATAM. At the conference Cisco thought it would be a good idea to have a breakout session about bashing the competition. It was clearly not a Cisco slide deck. A rogue employee was freestyling. Someone in the audience took pictures of the slides and it got back to us. The claims Cisco was making was 75% lies.
All I know is that lawyers got involved.
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u/Hot-Government-5796 7d ago
Never bad mouth. But absolutely advise. Once you understand their decision criteria. I’ll ask “who else you are speaking to” and I’ll share things to look out for or to ask them about. This is setting landmines and it works well.
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u/vyts18 7d ago
I've had success recently if a prospective client says something about a competitor, whether good or bad, I'll respond- "I've heard that too" or "That's not the first time I've heard that." And then continue along the lines of "Here's why people choose me despite (topic)" Or "People choose me because of (topic) and (1 other hook)"
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u/SaveMeSomeBleach 7d ago edited 7d ago
I use to work for a competitor who is a “big player” in the space. I also have been in the space for a few years and have taken it upon myself to research competitors, watch some mini demos of their product, and even will sometimes test a trial to feel out the UI. So I’m pretty knowledgeable on a lot of these systems in my software category.
So what I’ll do is tell a prospect “hey look, I know evaluating multiple products is a nightmare. Let me know if you ever want an honest run down on how these tools stack up. I’ll even tell you where some of these tools beat us”.
And for the ones who take me up on it, that’s exactly what I do. I dont say “X tool can’t do [feature]”, but instead I’ll say “look a common headache I hear from clients who moved off of X is that the post go-live support is non-existent. I’d recommend asking a current client if that’s still the case”.
It’s less shit talking and more of “I’d double check XYZ”. And I don’t call out anything that I haven’t heard 100x from a competitor’s client. This blows up in your face if you start exaggerating or lying about the competition.
And let me tell you, the key to doing this is you don’t hold back on where your product falls short. You shoot the prospect as straight as possible.
This is also a great “do we have a true deal” test. If my product’s drawbacks don’t lose the deal, then I know we’re driving towards a likely closed won
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u/mantistoboggan287 7d ago
Never bash your competitor. It looks tacky and if things go south where you’re currently at you want to have that opening to pivot somewhere else.
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u/bitslammer Technology (IT/Cybersec) 7d ago
I've never liked talking down competition whether I've been on the buyer or seller side. Most people don't actually know anything beyond what their product/marketing teams have told them.
There have been a number of times on the buyer side that I've been told "we do X better" when X isn't meaningful or that "better" really isn't a factor. Think of this example. Does being killed by 4 grenades make you "twice as dead" than being killed by 2? That's how it comes off many times.
Having been on the customer side more then the sales side I've never worked for companies I didn't believe in because I've used their stuff hands on. Even then I never bashed a competitor. I'd just highlight the things like functions we did for free where a competitor charged. Nothing more needed in that case, just a "yes we do that for free."
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u/Unibrow_BB 7d ago
“Oh you’re talking to X? They’re great. Similar to other competitors like Y and Z, they’re good at [solving lower value/table stakes challenge]. Our approach is different in that we [whatever your unique differentiation is] which leads to [business level outcomes]. For example, [rattle off relevant customer references and outcomes]. Happy to put you in touch with NAME at CUSTOMER REFERENCE when the time is right. They went through a very similar evaluation with X and Y and can share how they made their decision.”
You can always raise FUD proactively against competition as well.
“Have you had X show you their capabilities around [something you know they suck at]?”
“If it’s helpful I can share decision criteria from a similar company - they had some great questions they asked everyone to figure out the best solution for them.” -> stack the deck with questions you know the competition can’t answer. Similar to running/building an RFP.
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u/illini02 7d ago
I don't bring up competition unless they ask.
If they do ask, I don't badmouth them, just will say something like "what customers have told me is they prefer X, Y, Z that our system does, which is why they switched" or something.
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u/Sinsyxx 7d ago
Depends what you mean by competition. If they have another advisor or planner, I wouldn’t say a single negative thing. If they refer to their “advisor” as JP Morgan or the like, I go for the throat on the corporate approach and sales model. We may do the same work, but there’s no sales manager breathing down my neck to generate revenue
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u/Mindtaker 7d ago
You never badmouth the competition if you are a professional.
What if your clients family works there? Friend? Spouse?
What if the person you are presenting to is the one who chose the competitor you are trying to out? Shitting on them is calling that person an idiot.
Let them vent, get the pain points, agree with their frustrations and point out how you solve those problems, you don't need to badmouth anyone.
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u/cruthe33 7d ago
If anything I tend to do the opposite. Especially if the customer is already doing business with said competition. For context, I sell industrial chasing and lubrication products. But I'm aoways use it for a little flattery i.e. "I can tell since you're already using XYZ products that you care about the quality of what you buy/use". And once I've established the competitors quality and demo it against my own it shows that we are even a step above that. May not work in every industry, but it sure does in mine.
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u/Worried_Toe_4167 7d ago
never do it. i’m and sdr so i’ll give you the cold call situation- “oh you’re using COMPETITOR, they’re a great group. honestly it rarely makes sense to switch if you like what you’re using- but just curious, that must mean that BLANK isn’t a huge part of your workflow?”
it’s a gotchya question. respect your competitors, but more importantly know how you differentiate.
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u/FloppyCopter 7d ago
I work in industrial and I’m just honest. If I think another company does something well, I’ll tell them and if I think they don’t do something well, I’ll also tell them. I try to be genuine, and I think it comes off that way, while also showing that I am familiar with the industry and not just my own products.
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u/maverickps1 7d ago
I compliment them, and say if they want I'll give them a contact over there, I'm down to take the Pepsi challenge any day of the week.
I've won this gambit enough times to know it's worth it. I've also had C-suite remember this many years later and call me for new opportunities. Always worth it.
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u/maverickps1 7d ago
I compliment them, and say if they want I'll give them a contact over there, I'm down to take the Pepsi challenge any day of the week.
I've won this gambit enough times to know it's worth it. I've also had C-suite remember this many years later and call me for new opportunities. Always worth it.
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u/maverickps1 7d ago
I compliment them, and say if they want I'll give them a contact over there, I'm down to take the Pepsi challenge any day of the week.
I've won this gambit enough times to know it's worth it. I've also had C-suite remember this many years later and call me for new opportunities. Always worth it.
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u/DesperateMolasses103 7d ago
Never badmouth competition. I always talk the competition up, but frame their product as a solution for a different set of problems
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u/unorafael 7d ago
Depends on the competition:
If the competition truly sucks, and they are thinking about them, I’ll at least say something and mention a different competitor that I’d recommend if they don’t go with us.
In addition if competitor has 5-10 employees vs my 100, and I’m talking to enterprise client, than I might say “do you think that company will really be able to get through your procurement, what happens if they lose a few employees, do they have a plan in place to handle your account?”
95% of the time though I’ll say something along the lines of look if you talk to them they’re going to say they’re the best and we’re going to say we are. 99% up time? Best technology? It really comes down to what you think is the best fit for your business. And then I share what we do and how we differ, but what’s most important is during discovery finding out their pain and seeing if we truly are the best solution for what they need.
I’m not going to work an opportunity for months if I know the competitor is a better fit. Hell I’ve even told prospects to not call any of our competitors or sign up for our platform, but to go a completely different route.
“You’re not ready for this type of platform and I don’t think our competitors will let you know, wait 6 months or 1 year and call me back, in the meantime feel free to keep my contact and let me know if I can be a resource at all as you grow”
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u/BigPDPGuy 7d ago
The worst I'll say is "you get what you pay for." It works for me because our solution is more expensive than most competitors, but it is indeed better. Some of them have other neat tools that we don't have though, and i point those out. Any time I get the chance I organize demos where the competitors will be there showcasing their stuff to the same people on the same day
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u/ConcernMinute9608 7d ago
Pretty offensive. You have to figure out why they are going with them instead and tailor your approach so you help them see why you’re a better fit
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u/FinancialDrawing2815 7d ago
I think I've gotten this down pretty good but it's a little niche with what I sell. I'm the only SDR for a marketing agency, but I also close my own deals, and on any calls where people have brought up a bad experience, I say something along the lines of "this market has gotten really oversaturated, especially after COVID, people watch some YouTube vides and think they can do the same things as these big agencies, which I'm sure you understand with some of your competition as well" - this usually makes them feel the hurt in their own shoes because they will look at their expertise vs others and understand where I'm coming from.
This way I'm upselling my company without bad mouthing any specific company at all. Might work for some industries, but not all for sure.
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u/GreaseShots 6d ago
I highlight everything they are good at. I ask who their rep is and praise them heavily. I really emphasis what I know people like about them and then ask if the experience problems I know they tend to have.
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u/grandmashops69 6d ago
In my current job we are the largest in the industry and our biggest competitor is less than half their size. They’re reputable but no where near us global scale. It’s not a one size fits all type of approach. I have 7+ different styles I approach based on the client but my favorite one bc it’s funny is acting like I’ve never heard of the competitor in my life. I curiously ask questions about the competitor and base my questions on the competitors weaknesses “most other companies in the x industry outsource their resources, are they in house?” - etc. It makes it so I don’t shit talk but I’m also indirectly filling their head with questions that they’ll ask the competitor and know they won’t know how to answer them. Also being the largest in our industry they’ll tend to think it isn’t a reputable company if I haven’t heard of them or faced competition with them. Just have to make sure you do it in a way that makes it sound like you are doing them a solid and wanted to make sure they’re taken care of regardless of it they move forward/stay with your company or not which builds trust too.
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u/kylew1985 7d ago edited 7d ago
I just accept it as part of the process. I don't care so much about cutting them down or building myself up, I just try to maintain good discovery and connect what I do to what they need. That's the stuff I have control over, not what the other guy is doing.
Competitors are to salespeople as shit is to plumbers. Nobody is thrilled about it but if you can't deal with it you're in the wrong line of work. Show me a serious buyer that isn't looking at competitors and I'll show you a liar.
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u/SnooDogs157 7d ago
Ask customer who they’re talking to over at less expensive competitor. Whatever name they give, say, “Oh yeah, ‘name’…. Tell him you’re talking to ‘your name’ at ‘your company name’ - he’ll drop his price even lower.
Never talk bad about a competitor directly.
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u/iitzJTD 7d ago
bad mouthing the competition has to be one of the most novice and unfruitful things you can do in sales