Damn. This guy rubbed me the wrong way. I probably could have handled this better, but I find mind games very annoying and let it rattle me...
Me: [Company name]. This is Dips speaking. How can I help you?
SC: Dips, I need to know why I want your product.
Me: You want me to tell you why you want our product?
SC: Yes.
Me: We make [description of software]. Are you looking for something that does that?
SC: Maybe. Tell me why I want it.
Me: Can you tell me a little bit more about what you are looking for?
SC: Dips, do you always answer a question with another question?
Me: If you tell me what you are looking for I can answer some questions about whether [software] does that.
SC: You're not trying very hard to sell me.
Me: I'm not a sales person. We don't employ sales people. If you are interested in [software that does what our does], we are happy to help you decide if ours is best for you. If it's not something that you need, we don't want to sell it to you.
SC launches [finally!] into what kinds of things he does and what he needs. I tell him honestly which things our software can do and which it doesn't.
Naturally he gloms onto the stuff it doesn't do.
SC: So it won't do [blar].
Me: No.
SC:...
Me:...
SC: Does anybody else make something that will do [blar]?
Me: No.
SC:...
Me:...
SC: I see. I'm still not sure.
Me: Perhaps you would like to download the free demo version. It will corrupt the output, but it will also give you a very good idea if [our product] will work with the types of files you use.
SC: I'm not allowed to download anything at work.
Me: Well, I'd be happy to send you a demo disk by mail...
SC: Nope. I'm not allowed to install anything either. I suppose we'll have to buy it and see if it works.
Me: [yeah, and that's different how?] I understand. Perhaps your IT department could contact us about installing an evaluation copy so you can make an informed decision about whether this is the right [description of product] for you.
SC: OK. Just so you know. We are thinking of buying 16 copies.
Me: In that case I'd definitely recommend evaluating it before making a purchase.
SC: Like a test copy?
Me: Yes. From what you're telling me, it sounds like your company has a policy to test all software before installing it on company computers. We can certainly accomodate that.
SC: OK. Thanks for your help.
Me: And thank you for calling.
Fin.
Me: [Company name]. This is Dips speaking. How can I help you?
SC: Dips, I need to know why I want your product.
Me: You want me to tell you why you want our product?
SC: Yes.
Me: We make [description of software]. Are you looking for something that does that?
SC: Maybe. Tell me why I want it.
Me: Can you tell me a little bit more about what you are looking for?
SC: Dips, do you always answer a question with another question?
Me: If you tell me what you are looking for I can answer some questions about whether [software] does that.
SC: You're not trying very hard to sell me.
Me: I'm not a sales person. We don't employ sales people. If you are interested in [software that does what our does], we are happy to help you decide if ours is best for you. If it's not something that you need, we don't want to sell it to you.
SC launches [finally!] into what kinds of things he does and what he needs. I tell him honestly which things our software can do and which it doesn't.
Naturally he gloms onto the stuff it doesn't do.
SC: So it won't do [blar].
Me: No.
SC:...
Me:...
SC: Does anybody else make something that will do [blar]?
Me: No.
SC:...
Me:...
SC: I see. I'm still not sure.
Me: Perhaps you would like to download the free demo version. It will corrupt the output, but it will also give you a very good idea if [our product] will work with the types of files you use.
SC: I'm not allowed to download anything at work.
Me: Well, I'd be happy to send you a demo disk by mail...
SC: Nope. I'm not allowed to install anything either. I suppose we'll have to buy it and see if it works.
Me: [yeah, and that's different how?] I understand. Perhaps your IT department could contact us about installing an evaluation copy so you can make an informed decision about whether this is the right [description of product] for you.
SC: OK. Just so you know. We are thinking of buying 16 copies.
Me: In that case I'd definitely recommend evaluating it before making a purchase.
SC: Like a test copy?
Me: Yes. From what you're telling me, it sounds like your company has a policy to test all software before installing it on company computers. We can certainly accomodate that.
SC: OK. Thanks for your help.
Me: And thank you for calling.
Fin.
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