Yes, you are laughing at this one because you are living an example of this one right now. If selling was like math or science, using a formula would always produce a sale. Unfortunately, selling is more like philosophy where no formulas exist and there may be a dozen different ways to succeed and a thousand ways to fail. So after spending months working an opportunity, the prospect tells you they are going with another supplier. This announcement surprises all those people who didn’t have time or interest to help you and a flood of criticism rolls over you. The demo jock who didn’t have time to adequately prepare for the demo, now blames you for not rescheduling it. Your boss who felt it wasn’t necessary to accompany you on a CEO call, now thinks you must have blown that call.
All of this reminds me of the age old adage, “A good idea has many fathers, but a bad one is an orphan”.
Knowing this rule, many savvy sales people make sure those who may be tempted to be critical are involved during the sales process and have skin in the game. A mentor early in my career suggested that if the boss was involved in the strategy and tactics, how could she find fault if the outcome is not positive.
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