Qualification is process by which we determine if it is worth our time and effort to continue to pursue a sales opportunity. It’s a process, not an event. That means you don't qualify your sales prospect once, when initial contact is made and then, with a smile on your face and your head in sand, blindly do whatever you believe (or your prospect tells you) it takes to win their business. You qualify vigilantly and consistently. Why? Because things change. Because buyers have been known to mislead sellers. Because sometimes a buyer doesn’t even know who in his own company is going to make real decision favoring one supplier over another. When you are qualifying your prospect, you are asking them, and yourself, questions like: When are they going to buy? Why are they going to buy? What are they going to buy? Does our product or service fit their requirements? Who is making final decision? What is decision process? Who is competition? And certainly, how will they pay for what it is that I am selling? There are many, many more. Qualification criteria for smaller companies who compete against big guys must contain questions about prospect's buying preferences. For example, you need to ask yourself, "What evidence do I have that prospect will do business with a company of our size?" Also you'll need to know what guidelines they must follow in terms of suppliers' company size, revenues or financial viability.

Does size matter? (Knowing when to move on)

It's hard to ask these questions, but it is irresponsible not to. You must be certain that if you meet or exceed all prospect's requirements, size does not matter. You may have greatest product, innovative services, committed people, stellar customer satisfaction levels, top product quality or anything else that you consider of value—but if size matters, little else will measure up. And if size does matter—and if you can’t convince prospect fairly quickly that it shouldn't—hit road and move on to another opportunity. You'll need to be careful here. Sometimes size issue is less obvious. For example, your prospect may have a requirement that you implement their Supply Chain Management System in twenty-five plants within a year's time. That's a legitimate business requirement that is directly related to size. And if you are a smaller supplier, without pre-established partners with service firms who are capable of delivering service levels required, for example, your chances of winning are remote. What all this means is that there are certain opportunities for which you should not compete, because you cannot win. Sorry, but that's a fact.

Once they’re qualified, what do you do? Answer: competitive selling.