as a new company how do you answer: how big is your company?

We are a relatively new and small software company, 3 years in business with 8 employees.

We have been approached by a very large multinational company wanting to use our software - one of the key questions they want an answer to is:

"How big is your company?"

I am not exactly sure how to answer this question. We are small and lean because we do not need a lot of support because everything runs smoothly. We have lost business before because someone assumed we were to small to handle their business. I do not want to lose this account, it would be huge for us but I am not sure how to convey that we are small growing company and that is a good thing.

Not sure which angle to take here.

I think, and this is just my opinion, that the real question they're asking is "are you still going to be in business in X years?" So I recommend you answer the question by first disclosing the actual size as it is, with full disclosure, and then by explaining how you plan to stay in business in the long run. For instance, you could say that you've built your business with minimal overhead specifically because you wanted your business to survive the inevitable downturns of the economy's cycles.

They probably care less about your business than they care about how you can solve their problems, and one of their problems in choosing your software is long-term maintenance.

Good luck.

In your case, a simple answer won't do.

It would be best to describe your plans and goals for the coming 3 years after you tell them that you're a team of 8 people. Perhaps it would also help if you guys can soon partake in rotating shifts, so that there is some assurance that there is 24/7 coverage. Of course, that is just a suggestion, but something you can consider if you'll begin to hire more.

A company will always want support, and will rarely believe that a vendor's products are without their flaws. Also, even if the software is flawless, it won't mean they will want support in terms of questions on how to do something another way, or if you can do an upgrade or add a feature. These things come from clients who may want to automate as much as can be automated, or if they themselves discover new and possible ways to effectively do something your software provides.

That is to say, don't be afraid to tell them how young and few you are. Not disclosing the truth will only harm you :(

Good luck and I hope you guys land the client!

Don't mean to be flippant here, but to reinforce what Yasker Yasker and Frenchie posted, think about Microsoft in the beginning, or Android, or yikes, Facebook ... Zuckerburg was essentially a lone hacker Telling the truth proudly and enthusiastically is much more effective than that weird twinkle you might get in your eye if you feel like you're fudging facts. Wouldn't you want your investors, partners, employees, and clients to be direct and honest ?

Best of luck !

You certainly should not lie but, as someone who has worked extensively for large global companies, you can turn your size into a real advantage - big companies take months to make decisions and that's before they actually DO anything (assuming they actually do)!

There will be some companies who will want a large company with global presence and 24x7 multi lingual support which you cannot offer and you just have to accept that you will lose those.

For everyone else, have a succinct answer which answers the question but which turns into to your favour and makes the client realise the benefit they have of choosing you over Goliath.