If your team is regularly stuck in ‘early-stage’ calls, tailoring proposals that go nowhere, or creating spec work “to show what we can do”, there’s a problem.

It’s called free consulting. And it’s hurting your sales performance more than you think.

Let’s get clear: demonstrating expertise is important. But giving too much, too soon, creates a perception that your value is free and that’s a hard reputation to recover from.

The Hidden Cost of Over-Serving

In technical sales, particularly in engineering and automotive, it’s easy to fall into the trap of being helpful to win trust.

But here’s what happens behind the scenes:

🔻 Your team is spending high-value time with prospects who may never buy

🔻 Your subject matter expertise is devalued

🔻 You create a ‘wait and see’ culture where prospects ask for more info, not action

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You wouldn’t let an engineer run hours of diagnostics for free. So why do we keep doing the commercial equivalent?

This isn’t just inefficient. It’s dangerous. You’re burning energy without momentum and undoing all the positioning work that your marketing and outreach have built.

Why It Kills Sales Efficiency

Let’s look at the impact in real terms:

⚠️ Sales and engineering teams are pulled into multiple time-draining conversations with unqualified leads.

⚠️ Projects stall out because there’s no commitment from the buyer.

⚠️ You lose leverage in the deal. The more you give away, the harder it is to ask for something in return.

It’s like trying to hit your revenue targets with the brakes on.

Free consulting creates a culture of overwork, uncertainty, and missed opportunities, especially in businesses where delivery and sales rely on the same people.

So… How Do You Demonstrate Value Without Over-Giving?

It’s all about structure and boundaries. Here’s how:

1️⃣ Introduce a Pre-Qualification Process

Before you allocate time or resources, have a clear set of criteria:

  • Does this prospect have the budget, authority and urgency?
  • Is their problem aligned with your solution?
  • Are they ready to take action?

A short qualification call or digital form is often all you need.

2️⃣ Offer Paid Discovery or Design Phases

Turn early-stage advice into a formalised, paid engagement. Even a small investment helps set the tone:

“We typically start with a diagnostic phase so we can tailor the right solution for you, here’s how it works.”

If they’re not ready to invest, they’re not ready to buy.

3️⃣ Productise the First Step

Create a low-friction, paid entry point:

  • An audit
  • A workshop
  • A technical review

Package it. Price it. Present it. You’ll get serious buyers who are ready to move and you’ll stop wasting time on those who aren’t.

Engineer Your Process for Value and Velocity

In complex B2B sales, value isn’t just what you deliver. It’s also how you deliver it. That includes respecting your own time and expertise.

Here’s what I see top-performing sales teams doing:

✅ Setting clear boundaries around time and resource allocation

✅ Using early-stage engagements to qualify and generate revenue

✅ Focusing efforts on prospects that match their ideal customer profile

Take Action This Month

🔹 Review the last 10 prospects you spoke to. How many converted? How much free work was given?

🔹 Build a basic qualification framework and introduce it to your team

🔹 Create a paid discovery offer you can use to turn “let’s have a quick chat” into “here’s how we start working together”

If you’re not sure exactly where to start with the action points, get in touch, I’d be happy to discuss how I could help you get to your next step without all the over-serving.

Until next time,

Mark

P.S. What’s the biggest time drain in your sales process right now? Hit reply or send a message –  I read every one.