Yesterday the House of Representatives failed to pass the bailout / rescue plan causing global frustration and financial angst. What caused this effort to fail despite bi-partisan support and fear of a financial meltdown? In my opinion, the “deal team” of Bush, Pelosi, Bernanke, Paulson, et al don’t know how to sell.

Selling a complex solution to a broad group of stakeholders is no easy task -  but these guys made some rookie mistakes. If they call me in to help, I will advise them to do the following:

-      Define the problem we are solving. Get SPECIFIC about where we are at financially and what will happen if we do   nothing.

-      Detail what options we should consider. Detail the pros and cons of each option.

-      Propose what you think is the best option and why that is so? How will this option solve our problem? What is the cost? What are the risks? What will it take to implement? What results should we expect, when?

-      Define how this option will benefit key stakeholders such as the banks, home owners, tax payers, etc.? Make sure the benefits are greatest for the largest group of stakeholders. Don’t reward those who got us in this mess.

-      Don’t try to sell me something until you can answer the above questions.

-      Understand why congress and the tax payers are not ready to buy

• We are not sure we need to act with such urgency
  
• We don’t understand the solution and see how it will solve the problem
  
• The price is too high. What is our return?
  
• Some people in the thick of this (Bush, certain members of congress, Wall Street) lack credibility with the stakeholders
  
• We believe more due diligence is needed
  

The silver lining in this mess – taxpayers came together and demanded a more thorough plan. Maybe this country will start to get engaged again.