During the days of the dotcom boom, anyone and their dog who could spell ‘javascript’ could get a contract – including life’s unemployables and those with highly questionable personal hygiene habits.
In the years that followed the dotcom crash, I personally knew some highly skilled and talented contractors who could not get a contract because they could not get their heads around the contractor sales process.
And some of these brilliant contractors who did get work were being paid very poor rates, not because rates were bad, but because they were not effective negotiators. In other words, hungry agents saw them coming a mile off!
Contractors who have taken the time to teach themselves professional selling skills can secure the best rates, and negotiate down agency’s margins, even when the market is tight. Sales, like poker, is about perception (and not a little nerve!). If you can convince the client and agent that you’ve got the ‘winning hand’, you’re likely to win the contract.
It is much better to say, ‘I have other opportunities and that rate is not attractive’, even if it’s not the truth, rather than saying to an agent ‘I need the work and will take anything you can offer me’.
Whether you are contracting through a limited company, an umbrella company or some other trading solution, you are in business for yourself. Therefore, the sooner you understand that sales is an essential component of YOUR business, then the sooner your business life will become easier and, almost certainly, much more lucrative.
No dog is too old to learn new tricks, and the contractor sales cycle is not beyond any capable contractor. If you don’t know where to start, then take a look at the contractor sales guide on this website or get hold of a copy of the Contractors’ Handbook, which goes into much valuable detail.
Commentators on the current state of the economy don’t all agree when we are likely to see a recovery, but they do all agree that things will get worse before they get better. Despite this, your contracting career does not have to be a casualty if you learn some sales skills.
Because no matter how bad times get, some people in every sector always buck the trend. Nearly always, they’re the canny contractors who understand the contractor sales cycle and apply its lessons. Why not be one of them?