How to Successfully Close All Your Sales With No Worries!
Ask most powersports dealers what they fear most about the sales process and more often than not they say, “Closing!” I find that no matter what the business environment or type of product or service, more sales are lost not because of a poor product or too high of a price, but because of the failure to successfully close. I’ve actually watched promising sales go out the door because the sales person feared to move into the final stage and ask for the sale!
It’s unfortunate that so many talented people can perform most of their job very well but are so uncomfortable with the closing process. Closing is nothing more than getting a final agreement, which is a natural conclusion to a well-structured presentation. It is important to mention here that closing need not be such a monumental task if the sales process is broken down into manageable segments. Sales is not just greeting people and asking, “Can I help you?” The sales process is really a progression of discovering customer’s needs and wants and then identifying how your product or service satisfies those needs and wants. At each stage you’ve received agreements from your customer. Therefore, getting a yes is really just a logical conclusion to the groundwork you’ve already laid. Learning how to actually ask for the “yes” will take the pressure off and help make it as pleasant as any other part of your presentation.
HOW TO ASK FOR A YES
Ask 20 leading business owners about their most successful closing techniques and you’ll no doubt come away with 20 different approaches. However, in all my years of experience I’ve found that regardless of the type of sales the following three approaches work best.
Alternate Choice Decision. The goal here is to give your customer two or three choices, any one of which should generate a yes response. If you feel you’re not as close to getting the final response you’d like; you may want to offer three options. However, if you judge you’re close to a positive response, take the more aggressive approach and offer only two. Just remember Ray Kroc’s rule of “three, never more than four choices”.
Minor Choice – Minor Conclusion. The second approach breaks down the final agreement into two or three minor decisions. Most people can make a few small decisions along the way rather than one overwhelming choice all at once. Getting an agreement on the smaller steps is an important part of the overall decision.
Example: “Mr. Smith, if you were going to purchase this boat today, would you choose the burgundy color package or the blue one? Another example of a minor choice might be, “Mike, if you were going to purchase this cruise package today, would you prefer the three or seven day cruise?”
Decisive Action. The third way to ask for an agreement is by decisive action. This approach requires you to do something, and you continue as long as your customers do not stop you. Their action or inaction will clue you as to whether they are going ahead or not.
Example: “Bob, I can have this car ready for delivery on Friday. I can schedule a 3:00 delivery. Will that be a good time for you?” Your remark says you’re moving ahead. Your action is to schedule the delivery. Another example of a decisive action may be to put a special SOLD sign on the item and ask your customer’s permission to put his or her name on it.
CLOSING – MAKE IT NATURAL
Getting to the “yes” in the sales process doesn’t happen automatically. It comes with practice and requires making it a natural conclusion. Following a few simple sell easy rules will make getting to the “yes” a lot easier.
Rule Number One: Don’t ask for a yes in a negative environment. Not every customer comes into your business in a positive position. You may encounter someone who is unsatisfied either with your product or with an experience they may have had with you or something similar in the past. Sometimes right during a presentation, a trigger can go off and you find your customer bringing up a complaint. You often can salvage a sale and turn a negative environment around. Stop the progression and get a verification to something they may have already agreed to, such as a color choice. Anchor that to your final goal and then rebuild from there. Example: “Mr. Adams, I understand your reluctance. Let me go back and verify, you prefer the freezer on the bottom style of refrigerator, is that correct?”
Rule Number Two:Get pre-agreement in the closing process. Because of this strong economy, customers often find themselves confused by a profusion of products in the marketplace. They often have just too much from which to choose. It is critical that we as successful leaders help remove the confusion by determining their needs and wants and then getting a series of pre-agreements along the way to the close. The goal is to get your customer to explain themselves where they are in the decision-making process. It takes the pressure off of them because you merely ask them for their preferences – not a final decision.
Rule Number Three: Get advances if you can’t close. In a challenging presentation, you may have to get to the close by keeping your customer in the decision-making mode. The goal is to ask your customer to make a minor decision that can be applied to the final agreement. Example: “Joe, who else do you want to share this information with before making your final decision? I can meet with him (or her) on Tuesday afternoon to answer any questions.” Another example might be, “Joe, if you went ahead and placed the order today, would you want to pick it up here on your way to the office or may we deliver it for you?”
All of these steps take the apprehension out of closing. Remember, closing should be nothing more than a natural conclusion to a well-structured sales presentation.
Thomas J. Winninger, CSP, CPAE, and member of the Speaker Hall of Fame is the president of Winninger Institute for Brand Strategy and over 70 major companies in North America depend on him to assist them in maintaining their market dominance. Thom is the author of best selling “Price Wars”, “Sell Easy”, and new in 2000, “Full Price!” Contact the Winninger Institute at (612) 896-1900
E-mail: thomas@winninger.com; or visit our website.
