At Unitel, we have found that embracing the sticker shock factor can help jump start the right kinds of conversations with our clients.  Since we work in the world of technical solutions, it is vital that we tailor our services to meet the diverse business needs of our clients.  We strive to eliminate the unexpected and bring order to what many clients perceive as a chaotic necessary evil.  After all, our clients business is their business and not the technology that supports it.  Many times they do not have the skill set, time or desire to give technology the attention that it requires, which is why we are there to support them.

When the focus is solution rather than price, you are better able to match the most appropriate long term service, technology or solution to the problem that is affecting your customer’s ability to achieve their business goals (whatever those might be).  At times this approach will elicit a sense of shock and surprise from you customer, the moment the final price tag is revealed.  After all it is not their area of expertise, so for them to assume that the effort or cost necessary to fix their issue is less than what it actually is should be expected.

Open the lines of communication and tackle the concern head on.  Educate the client on what the solution is going to do for their business and how it is going to help improve their bottom line.  This approach may not be the only way to deal with this, but it is the approach we find to be most effective.  If you have taken the time to understand your client’s business and their concerns, then you should be able to assist your customer in shifting their line of thought.  Rather than thinking, “How can I afford this?”  Your client needs to ask themselves, “Can I afford to not do this?”  After all, numbers are just additional pieces of information; they don’t have to be scary.  Business voice and data lines not working, help desk calls going unanswered and critical business servers crashing, now that's scary.