Potential customers who are too afraid to tell you they are purchasing another product and continue to string you along.


We have an industrial client we've sold equipment to a couple of different times who has been in the market for some replacement breathing apparatus sets for their internal response team. They've made their decision and placed an order already with a competitor. I know this because the rep handling their order is a friend of mine and he told me. Yet I've already fielded two phone calls today making BS technical inquiries that are answered in both the brochure and the offer packet we submitted to them. I just got off the phone with my boss and reminded him why I hate sales and telling him the next phone call I'm calling their bluff and telling them I know they've already ordered and that their regular salesman is back after back surgery so they can start contacting him instead of me. If they get pissed they aren't a high enough volume customer to worry about anyway.

Between this salesman's surgery and the damned flu this year so far has sucked. I absolutely hate being involved in the deal making part of sales. Just let me go back to writing out the technical specs and delivery training and I'll be happy. If this keeps up I'm going to start picking up cans off the side of the road instead.