“When our German colleagues give presentations they are so unemotional, scientific, almost detached. Why? Is that convincing in the German context?”
It baffles us
“It always baffles us Americans when our German colleagues attempt to persuade by referring to processes and certificates. That is certainly a cultural issue which even after many years of collaboration we have difficulty accepting. What’s the German thinking here?”
Power of personality
“When Americans are in persuasion-mode the power of personality is more important than the power of facts and argumentation. Why is this the case?
Persuasive nonetheless
“How is it that certain Americans ﹣ although they do not understand the subject matter as well as their German counterparts, and have less experience ﹣ are still able to persuade me that their concept, product or service is better?”
Aggressive sales
“The Germans do not feel comfortable with aggressive, hard sales, including the American version of it. Americans, on the other hand, perceive their German colleagues as being sales-shy.
Taking this important cultural difference into account, how can we maintain forward movement in the U.S., especially since we often cannot predict whether a customer will commit or the size of the opportunity?”
