Close early and close often |
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 According to the myth, closing is the most important part of the call – the way you close determines how successful you will be. The reality is that closing is far less important than what happens early in the sales cycle. The most successful calls close themselves. And while Huthwaite sales training goes to great lengths to stress the importance of asking questions in a call, top performers don’t ask for the order. This is the one time when you should suggest rather than ask. There are three steps in bringing a call to a successful conclusion:
- Check for other concerns. The buyer may have other According to the myth, closing is the most important part of the call – the way you close determines how successful you will be. The reality is that closing is far less important than what happens early in the sales cycle. 4 issues that have not yet been addressed.
- Summarise or re-emphasise the key points. (“It’s clear, then, that if we implement this, in the first phase it’s going to increase your efficiency by 15 percent, and save you about $120,000 in the first year…”)
- Propose an action that advances the sale. (“So, a good next step would be for us to get a meeting with your boss to go over these figures.”)
With regard to the third step, please note that the salesperson proposes, or suggests, an “action.” Here again, there is a difference between small and large sales. In small sales, the only action is likely to be an order. In large sales, there are a number of possible intermediate actions that move you closer to the order. Huthwaite calls these actions “advances.” Neil recommends that rather than worrying about the close, salespeople should prepare for the call by thinking of as many different advances as possible. The “best practice” here is to plan a variety of flexible advances for each call. Aim for the biggest “increment of commitment” that you think you can realistically achieve.
Mythbusters: How Major Sales are Really Made
Read the rest of the Mythbusters Sales Tips series here.
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