In many buying cycles, there is a request for references (see the May 2010 Tip, References Required, for thoughts about providing references). Another version of this request is the request for an overview of your relevant industry experience. This can be a loaded question!

Why? What could possibly go wrong here? Well, we may have a few questions to ask before we provide our response:


Who are we competing against, and how does our industry experience compare to that of our competition?
How does our prospect view their competitors? Which ones do they respect, and which ones don't they respect? How do they feel about the ones we've worked with?
How important is our ability to help the customer create or strengthen their competitive advantage?


There is a chance that this is a deal breaker either way, and we need to know before we answer. How does the decision maker feel? Does he think that his competition is well run and that he would like to work with the companies that have helped his competition get ahead? Does he think that he wants to stay ahead of them and continue to out-innovate them, and that he doesn't want to use the same resources they use? Or that he needs to leap-frog the competition with some real unique capabilities? Might he have some concerns about confidentiality or intellectual property that he might not want to trust to a vendor who is close to his competition?

As always, research is critical to help us create the best strategy. We don't just have to answer their questions. We have to fashion our response in a way that gives us an advantage. The answers to these questions can help us determine if we want to tout or underplay our vast industry experience, or cover up or capitalize on our lack of experience with their competitors.