Why you?

brian warrick
June 06, 2025

Me: "I see some overlap between your proposal and the work our team is already doing. How do you see us working together?"

"Uhh..." - Bob the Independent Sales Professional pitching me their services.

No sale, Bob.*

*Name chosen at random, no offense meant to any Bob, Robert, Roberto, Roberta, or any other name that somehow becomes Bob.

Some context. I was working with a software startup primarily seeking feedback from the market. Sure, sales and revenue were good to have, but the company wanted to avoid a lot of bespoke deals that would drag down operations and distract the product team. We were looking at options to get the feedback we wanted, and this Independent Sales Pro came recommended. We were quite clear that lead generation was our primary need, yet the pitch was a full cycle approach - opening through closing.

Point being: At some, er, point in every sale, the 'Why You?' question will come up. Or, in the case of B2B- 'Why Your Company?". In some deals, it will come up multiple times. In extreme cases, it will come up in every interaction. Of course it does not always come packaged as neatly as 'Why You?', but it's there. Just like the example above.

I wanted to understand 2 things from Bob. 1) How they genuinely saw themselves adding value, and B) how they handle objections. More on tactics for handling B in a future post. On number 1, I really was open to hear is how they would help with our challenge. Maybe I would have been open to more than just lead generation. I probably would not have relinquished negotiating terms, but I may have let them manage the sale up to that point so that our team could fucs efforts elsewhere. After all, hand-offs are risky (for another newsletter as well).

At the very least I wanted to hear what skills Bob brought to our challenge. Instead I got a long ramble that I couldn't really follow, and therefore cannot repeat. It's not material anyway.

Point actually being: Know your strengths and why someone should choose you or your company. Show you understand the job to be done, and explain why you are the best for the job. Instill confidence that you understand the metrics you will measured on, and how you typically meet or exceed them.

This is a good skill for life, this isn't just for sales. It applies to job interviews, dating (ok, kind of a job interview), volunteering, and many other occasions.

In case you are wondering, here are other examples of the 'Why You?' questions be ready for.

I already have an X...
I received a lower estimate/proposal...
Who have you worked with in my industry / geography / neighborhood...
What's your methodology...
Do we get a defined account manager / team / support person
what's the most challenging project you've encountered...

So, the next time you encounter 'Why You?', be prepared with a 'Why not me' response.