According to HubSpot, 36% of salespeople find closing the most challenging part of doing a sales job.
The top 5 most common reasons for this are:
- They don’t have a defined closing process;
- The opportunity to make a sell was really never there in the first place;
- The sale was set up poorly;
- The salesperson is afraid of being rejected; and,
- The salesperson “buys” into objections.
This week we are going to tackle the first one, by walking through a couple of different types of closing techniques. This is not an exhaustive list, by any means, but it is a list of some of the more engaging ones.
- Summary Close – This is where a salesperson summarizes all the benefits of a product or service, highlighting the main value points important to the prospect (gathered throughout the discussion in the meeting). This summary is done at the end of the meeting allowing you to emphasize the benefits, providing real impact in making a positive decision. This type of close works really well if you know your product or service is a great fit and your prospect is simply needing a quick reminder of the things, they thought were interesting in your discussion. This type of close is more difficult, if you haven’t had a lot of time or talk or where you were unable to get a read on what it is important to the prospect in looking at your type of solution.
- Assumptive Close – This closing technique requires the salesperson to firmly believe they are going to make the sale right from the beginning and to have a clear step through process in completing the sale. The language used throughout the process, is “forward” moving. The salesperson is required to continually gauge the prospect and to listen for objections to make sure everyone stays in the process. It is critical for the salesperson to remain confident in the fit. This type of technique works best if you have taken the time to build a relationship with the prospect and can use that personal connection to move things forward.
- Alternative Choice Close – This technique requires that at the time of close, the prospect is give a choice, whereby in them choosing either, they affirm the sale. The choices can be between two different pricing options, delivery dates, types of services, or even something as simple as “would you like to sign the order with your pen or mine?” In providing an option, the prospect’s attention is move from the decision of “should or shouldn’t I” to one of “which option makes sense to me”. This one works great when you offer a product or service that has options or different pricing levels.
- Order Blank Close – This closing technique requires the salesperson to have a predefined order form and, in the sales process, to simply start filling it out, basically assuming the sale. This technique works great if there is a contract that needs to be completed with simple step by step questions and check boxes. The deeper you go down the form, the further the prospect is in and the more difficult it is for them to object. This technique works well if you have a standard product or service offering.
Regardless of the type of close you use it is important to have a number of techniques in your back pocket because any salesperson is going to run into different scenarios. Of course, any close is easier once you have built a level of trust with your prospect and this means spending a little bit of time either getting to know them or in doing a little homework. The reality is only about 50% of prospects are a good fit for the product or service you provide, but you will never know who they are until you are willing to close the deal.
