It is so important to understand closing techniques, yet there are no magic words to guarantee that you make the sale. Start with identifying customer’s needs and demonstrate that your product/service offers an attainable solution that addresses their needs. With that groundwork, a good closing will help you lock the deal and grow your business.
When the deal is set with your clients, step up with closing strategies to lock in the agreement. Closing the deal is the key to your business success. As without the close, you might have wasted time, effort and money behind. Set the stage, when the time is right. Prep up and stay equipped from the start.
How To Excel At Closing Deals?
- Identify Your Goals
Before you approach a potential client/customer, identify your goals well. Note precisely what you want to have achieved as soon as you walk away from the discussion. Make sure the goals are measurable in order to close a deal.
Achieving sales goals for your business is one of the major challenges owners face. Even there are other factors that come in the way are beyond control. Such as: Economy, weather and competition. There is one manageable factor called a sales team that is in direct contact.
Your salespeople are crucial to help your business grow and get the desired results. Let your sales team be in complete control of their goals by tracking their goals every month.
Also Read: How To Align Your Sales & Marketing Towards A Common Goal – A Kickstart
- Acknowledge Their Issues
The key to closing a sale is to acknowledge the other person’s issues. It is to offer solutions your business can offer to ease their expectations. An effective acknowledgement means the customers know we heard them and what they said is important to us.
Firstly, be genuine to your customers. You are letting them know that, you heard them. Regardless of the words you choose it is time to build a bond with them. Slow down a bit, listen and acknowledge their concerns. Also, you don’t need to acknowledge all the time a customer speaks. But only when you handle objections, resistance, anger or when the talk is about building a new customer relationship.
Thus, before you enter your next sales meeting, anticipate in the times where customer acknowledgement is done in a different way. Become the medium of excellence by which your competitors are judged.
Also Read: Marketing Tips To Make 2021 Your Year
- Ask For The Sale
While you’re setting out a sales proposal to your customers, it is required to ask for a sale or get the signature done. A request for your potential customer to make a decision. Asking for a sale represents a moment in the relationship between you and the buyer.
When you facilitate sales training, emphasizing on asking for the sale shifts the ownership of the situation to the buyer and empowers them with responsibility to say ‘yes’ or give good reason for a ‘no’. Either a successful close or insights into what else the buyer might be looking for to make a decision to buy. To us, asking for the sale is a hallmark of a proactive and professional salesperson.
Asking for the sale is one of the most effective things to do. If you truly believe in your product and you successfully meet the needs of many prospects and customers, then asking for sale will help you encounter the questions.
- Grab Their Attention
Any good sales representative sees a sales opportunity for every call. They should be aware that the first 30 seconds are crucial in locking or losing the attention of the prospect forever. A positive attitude does 70% of the work into grabbing their attention and closing deals.
It’s not just about you, it is for them as well. Everything a potential client speaks is important and is viable to be used for a future call. Connect with them well so they’ll see that you really want to help them and that you’re engrossed in what they’re saying. The rest is to get yourself comfortable that lets you move about.
At the time of communication, have a positive attitude that redefines security and don’t forget to smile. Use a professional language with a hint of humour to get through effectively. Important of them all, thank them for their time and how you look forward to the next. Note that every conversation is different, so prepare yourself for different ones with the people from different roles and positions.
Sales Closing Techniques To Lock The Deal
You must be into relationship building and believe in developing strong personal and professional relationships with customers, or a hard worker willing to go the extra mile or a problem solver who focuses more on customer service. Irrespective of the kind of sales rep you are, it doesn’t make you a great one until you have mastered the art of closing.
Reach the final stretch using the below sales closing techniques:
1. The Testimonial Way
It is a powerful technique to help you build trust and credibility with your prospects that serve as key factors for any business relationship. When using this closing sale technique you share the experiences of actual users, instead of talking about the product itself.
Testimonials are effective as they come from people who have actually used the product and fell in love with it. Their opinions are neutral, genuine and bias free. The other reason why this technique is known effective is when you share the success stories of your users to the prospects. In a way you ease their concerns and doubts on whether your product can help live up to their expectation or not.
2. The Assumptive Way
The assumptive close is a popular technique where the salesperson assumes that the deal has been made. Most of the sales reps use this technique when the prospect has checked most of the boxes in every step of the sales process but has not confirmed the deal.
Going the assumptive way you allow the prospect to sit on your offer by giving them a time to evoke the issues and objections that can result in backing out of the deal completely. This close helps put the sales rep in a better state of mind because they assume that the customer is going to make a purchase. Keep a frequent check on your customer to make sure even they are following the assumption of sale.
Not every call should be closed under pressure, sometimes it is good to go the empathy way. This closing technique allows you to use emotion to understand the situation of your prospect. When the prospect tells you that they aren’t ready to make a decision, give them more time to think rather than pushing for a close.
Empathy doesn’t mean to be emotional, instead it absorbs emotions and helps prospects get to a place of negotiation instead of complaints. It is important to address problems with an empathetic point of view to increase the likelihood of retaining customers. Undoubtedly, empathetic service enriches the bond between you and your customers.
4. The Alternate Way
This technique is a variant of the Assumption close, where you assume that the prospects are interested in your product and you provide them 2 alternative choices. Here the catch is, whatever they choose, it should invariably take you a step closer to the close.
This closing technique works best for the customers who don’t have any queries for your product or any objection with the price, features, etc. By giving them choices, you simplify the process of making decisions and get them to make a commitment to your product.
5. The Sharp Way
This closing technique is best used when the prospect is most likely to buy your product, but they have one objection that might be stopping them. That brings to this objection in the form of a challenge like ‘can you deliver’. By going the shape way you can answer this with another relevant question in the hopes of closing the deal.
If you get a positive reaction, then the deal is done and locked. Otherwise, if you happen to get a negative reaction, you know that they’re either not serious or there is any other issue. Now you have a second chance to clarify any other issues they have. Since they are looking for a likely response to their idea of delivery, you can promise what’s in it for them.
6. The Opportunity Way
This closing technique focuses on the opportunity cost of forgoing something i.e. the cost you incur by not doing something. It taps into the principle of not stressing on what the prospect will miss out if they do not act on your solution. When using this technique, make them realize that they are not spending but investing in your product.
Highlight the ROI metric they will enjoy such as higher efficiency, saving time, etc. and which is more valuable in the long run, compared to spending on your product. Want more ideas? Let’s connect! Don’t forget, The idea is to make them realize that the longer they take to purchase, the more they tend to lose.