Chapter 1
Surveying the Anatomy of a Close
In This Chapter
Clarifying just what closing is
Observing customersâ verbal and visual buying signs
Picking the perfect closing spot
Employing the test close before segueing into your final close
One of the first things you have to do in the sales business is fall in love with selling; selling isnât something you can be somewhat so-so about. To become a top producer in the sales field, you also have to devote time and attention to selling. Just as a gardener watches and studies his plants, you have to study your customers â observe their behaviors, watch for their buying signs, and evaluate their emotions.
This chapter offers you an overview of the most important part of the sales game: closing the sale. In it, you find out exactly what closing is (and what it isnât), how to recognize customersâ buying signs, where you should close your sales, how to go about a test close, and how to seal the deal and get the customerâs 100-percent commitment to your product.
Defining Closing
Closing means different things to different people. For some, itâs simply taking an order or ringing up a sale on the cash register. For others, closing is the culmination of hours spent researching, planning, presenting, questioning, persuading, discovering, and finally helping the prospective buyer to own your offering.
In the following sections, I define closing â both what it isnât and what it is.
What closing isnât
You can often get a clear picture of what something is by knowing what it isnât. So hereâs what closing is not:
Comfortable (in the beginning): Closing will be extremely uncomfortable for you at times, and I wonât promise that it gets a whole lot better the tenth time you do it. However, the more successes you experience, the more eager youâll be to turn those
no answers into
yes answers.
Magical: Some salespeople would have you believe that what they do is mystical and magical and that the ability to close is something you either have or you donât have. Not so. Everyone has the ability to be a competent â even talented â closer. A certain personality type doesnât close better than another. (Case in point: Iâve seen a very reserved, almost introverted salesperson be an incredible closer.) And the good closers arenât always the 20-year veterans whoâve cornered the market on closing.
What closing is
Closing is all of the following:
An art: Although closing isnât magical, there is an art to it. Every word you say creates an image, either from memory or from experience. You construct a picture with your words, and you attempt to get your customers to catch your vision. How? Well, you appeal to their senses. You build and build the vision and excitement until customers are emotionally peaked to own.
Something thatâs enhanced by practice: Boy, is that low-tech or what? Many people have the knowledge and skill to close a transaction but donât implement what they know. The bad thing about closing is that itâs difficult to practice without doing so on live customers. You have to take a chance and make yourself ask for the business, make yourself close. Donât worry that it isnât the right time, place, or person â just keep closing. The more you close, the more you develop your closing instinct.
Natural: Closing should be a logical move, a natural progression to the final step of the selling process. If closing doesnât feel natural now, that doesnât mean itâll never feel natural. It simply means that you need to figure out what youâre doing right when closing
does feel natural â and continue to do more of the same.
Fun: I believe successfully closing a sale is very fun. Iâve met especially challenging prospects before and persuaded them to get happily involved in my product and/or service. When they decided to own, I walked away about 10 feet off the ground â it was a kick! Now, Iâll agree that attempting to close and not closing isnât a lot of fun, and thatâs where the frustration comes in. Keep practicing. I promise you, all the practice and effort will be worth your time when you experience the fun of a great close.
Always possible: Iâm sure youâve heard that some people just canât be closed. Not true! Everybody wants to own, but not everybody wants to buy. If you successfully set up an appointment with clients, they want to own what youâre offering, and they can be closed. Maybe not on the first visit, and maybe not by you, but they can be closed when the time is right. Even though temporary conditions on a sale may prevent the customer from owning now, your job is to try to remove those obstacles and close the sale. If you never try to close, I can guarantee you that youâll be the...
