FOUNDER’S GUIDE TO B2B SALES TALKING ABOUT THE COMPETITION Don’t talk about the competition unless asked Your company may (and usually should) invest a lot of time in understanding competitive offerings. But you need to be careful about how and if you share that knowledge as it comes with risks. You could: • Accidentally introduce a competitor into a deal (“what was that name again?”) • Appear competitor-focused, not customer-focused (“all they talked about was us; all you talked about was them.”) • Seem afraid (“maybe the other company is the real leader?”) • Stop getting invited on sales calls Three rules of speaking about the competition 1. Generally don’t do it – raise a mental yellow flag for every second you spend discussing them 2. Be sure everything you say is true and defensible – credibility is critical 3. Only say the name of a competitor when it’s been said to you first – avoid accidental introductions Talking competition: methinks thou doth protest too much. In this post, Dave Kellogg looks at discussing the competition in investor, partner, and analyst meetings READ THE ARTICLE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SELLING • The Qualified Sales Leader by John McMahon • MEDDIC & MEDDPIC by the MEDDIC Academy • The Top 18 Sales Blogs by Gong • Selling Through Curiosity by Barry Rhein via SalesHood • The Art of Asking Open-Ended Questions by Hubspot SPRING 2023 .10