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The goal is not just to seal the deal but also to build an ongoing relationship with the customer.
If you work in sales, you know how critical it is to improve your closing rate. Getting better at closing deals helps you increase sales and meet quotas, and it makes you more valuable to the company you work for.
Learning how to close sales takes time effectively, but it’s possible to become a master salesperson with the right strategies. As a bonus, you won’t just seal a one-time deal but also develop better relationships with prospects and clients.
While the sales process itself has a fairly standard format, there’s no one way to close a sale. Your approach may need to vary depending on who you’re talking to. But if you’re new to sales, the following steps will get you started on the right closing path.
The preclose approach allows you to develop rapport with your prospect and understand their needs better. It involves asking short, open-ended questions to get the prospect talking. The most critical part of the preclose approach is to do more listening than talking. After you ask a question, listen to everything the prospect has to say — don’t interrupt or comment. Your only goal is to engage with them and make them feel part of the process.
The discovery stage is where you’ll qualify your prospect and determine whether they’re a good fit for your product or service. You’ll ask questions about them and determine what problem they’re trying to solve. This involves more back and forth between you and the prospect. You’re still asking questions, but you’re always trying to demonstrate your expertise and that you have a high-level understanding of their needs. The ultimate goal of this step is to show your prospect why they need your product and how it will benefit them.
Now that you’ve warmed up and qualified your prospect, you’ll move into the presentation stage. This could be a slide deck or a product demo. Whatever the format, make sure your presentation is compelling, informative and rooted in fact. You should print out and bring a copy of your slides for each person in the room, including every individual present for interactive portions of your pitch. This is vital to sales methodology because it provides a better customer experience right from the presentation phase.
Make eye contact with every decision-maker when you present key points. Your objective is to show the prospect how your product or service is the answer to their problem without overselling it. It’s a tricky balance but one that’s possible to achieve. However, if you haven’t provided a clear solution by the end of your presentation, it was a failure.
One of the most common issues with closing a sale is handling objections. Most people will not buy a product or service without at least asking some questions or voicing some concerns to the salesperson. Make sure to respond to these objections calmly and politely. Address objections head-on and provide facts that show the prospect their objection should not be a concern.
You can prepare for this by going over your presentation with a colleague or friend beforehand. Any objections or problems they raise are areas you need to prepare answers and solutions for. You can also look at past presentations, whether yours or someone else’s on your sales team and identify objections to prepare for similar situations.
Your closing words to the prospect should be powerful and show you’re providing them with a solution to their problem. Be confident when you close without coming across as arrogant. Most crucially, make sure you ask for the sale — you want to receive a clear “yes” or “no” so you know what steps to take next. It’s OK if you can’t close the sale that day; that just means you need to follow up with the prospect at a later date.
This five-step sales process can help you cultivate a relationship with your prospect that will turn them into a client. The key to its success? You aren’t giving them a hard pitch from the jump. Instead, you’re taking the time to get to know the prospect and building toward the close.
Give a great amount of attention to each of the above steps for every deal you attempt to close. Your prospects will appreciate your preparation and professionalism and want to do business with you.
The specific product or service you’re selling could necessitate a tweak to the sales process or you may have to alter your closing technique to fit the prospect you’re dealing with. Even so, there are some general practices you should follow across the board:
Here are some common mistakes to avoid when you’re trying to close a sale:
Max Freedman and Doug Dvorak contributed to this article.