SellToEurope.

Guide

Market entry Germany

Most advice on selling into Germany will tell you "Germans are formal and value quality." That will not help you close anything. As a Brit selling in the DACH market, here are some of the things that caught me out personally.

First-hand account by Richard Williams, Founder, SellToEurope

01From the field

Challenging is a buying signal

When I started selling in DACH, I was struck with how directly buyers would seem to attack my pitch. In other countries I would show a slide, ask "what do you think," and my conversation partner would answer with "looks good" or some other affirmation. In Germany, I seemed to be challenged directly - I felt like the pitch wasn't landing.
Richard Williams, Founder, SellToEurope

Germans are generally deductive thinkers. This means they don't just want to understand the basic output of your product and the results they might expect working with you, they want to know the How and the Why behind it. Combined with German directness, this means challenging can often be a positive - a desire to understand more signals interest.

02From the field

Deadlines are taken seriously

A German buyer once told me he would have a decision for me by the following Friday. I called on the Thursday - a day early, in a friendly way, the sort of nudge that is entirely normal in other markets. He was annoyed with me, and I didn't understand why. He had given me a date and I had implicitly told him I did not believe he would keep it.
Richard Williams, Founder, SellToEurope

Germans take their own deadlines seriously and expect the same respect in return. Do not chase before the date. Do not send a "just checking in" email on day three of a two-week evaluation. If you need to be in contact, agree the check-in point explicitly when the deadline is set, so the follow-up is something you both scheduled rather than something you imposed.

03From the field

Structures are hierarchical - but decisions are made by consensus

German companies look hierarchical from the outside, and that fools people into selling a pure top down approach. In practice, decisions often get made by consensus, which means stakeholders who cannot sign your contract can definitely block you in the background.  In one deal with a cheese company (real story) I waited three weeks for my champion, a junior fresh out of university, to come back from holiday. The CEO had already given the green light, but told me plainly that he wanted my champion comfortable before anything was signed.
Richard Williams, Founder, SellToEurope

Going over your champion's head to speed a deal up is a big no go in DACH. Map who has to be comfortable, not just who has to sign, and build your case with all of them. Also be aware that consensual decision making goes slowly and even the best DACH execution will not result in American deal cycles.

04From the field

Your first price should be close to your last

Selling to Middle Eastern clients, I saw the "40% off if you sign tomorrow" move used constantly, and it worked - it was part of the expected dance. A colleague tried exactly the same thing with a German client and was accused of having quoted a fake price in the first place. From the buyer's point of view, they feel you have tried to scam them. The deal was lost one week later.
Richard Williams, Founder, SellToEurope

In Germany, the opening number is understood as your honest number. The more detail, the better. An ROI case with a multiple will not work here if the number seems to be arbitrary, justify it and break out line items. Steep discounts - especially those that once again, seem to be illogical or arbitrary - will severely damage your credibility in many cases.

05Practical notes

Four things to sort before your first call

Language
A first contact point in German can make a big difference, especially when cold calling. Local dialects are even better. Beyond the first touch however, Germans are generally confident and open to communicate in English.
Sales cycle
Expect a longer cycle than the UK or US for a comparable deal size. More stakeholders have to be comfortable, which simply takes more time. If you can, try to pro actively set up 1:1 with stakeholders from different departments, so they feel they're taken seriously.
Proof and compliance
Data protection, hosting location and security documentation will come up early, not at procurement. Have clear answers ready before the first call, not after.
References
A recognisable local reference is worth more than a much larger foreign one. Your first German customer is a commercial asset, so price and support that deal accordingly.

For more information around our services in the region, read the DACH dossier.

Next step

Need help expanding into Germany?

We audit your readiness for German buyers, build playbooks, then train your team and work in tandem with you in real deals. Native-speaker support is available if needed.

Book a consultation call

Last updated