A first kiss is so crucial in dating. It is a way of closing the deal on all the fun and hard work you did going on all of those dates. It is the moment of truth when we find out that someone, in this case the prospect, feels the same way about you as you do them. Closing the deal is a sensitive subject for most sales people. Not everyone has a defined method and many of us hope and pray that the prospect will make the first move and take the pressure off us. Closing the deal means asking for what you want and getting it. In this case you want to close the deal and win someone’s business. It’s at this point where the risk of rejection runs high and it begins to get personal for some of us. In many ways, if we courted someone properly and asked all of the right questions along the way, closing the deal and going in for the kiss should be easy. It is at this point that our confidence comes into play and our prospect can sense that. Some of us do not have that confidence, never ask for the business, and find ourselves eternally in the friend zone of sales with that prospect. Others of us have ‘kissed’ so many times before that asking for the business is second nature. Some of could use a little coaching to help us develop this skills. Learn more about Scorecard Sales training and coaching. The question for many of us is how do we go in for that sales kiss? What if they say ‘no’? What if they say ‘yes’? How do you go about it so you don’t seem to be too pushy or just a pushover. Assuming that we kiss like a gentleman or a lady, we’ll use that same approach in sales. You’ll want to follow a pre-close checklist.
- Have you asked one another all the relevant questions you can think of?
- Do you feel you have gotten to know one another well enough?
- Do you still believe that you and the prospect are still a good fit for one another?
- Have you heard, and worked through, their objections?
- Are you confident that the prospect is ready to buy?
If you can answer ‘yes’ to all of these questions, then you are ready to make your move. That is a matter of picking a phrase that gets the point across by being assertive enough in a way that you are comfortable with. Here are some examples:
- “I believe that we have covered all of your concerns through this process. Based on each of our criteria we are a great fit for one another. Let’s discuss signing the contract so we can begin.”
- “Based on everything you have shared we should be ready to move forward with services. Can you think of any reason to not get started today?’
- I know decisions like this are not easy to make when trying something new, but by now you have seen that the risk of not changing will be even more painful and expensive. Let’s seal the deal today and start making things better.
It is all about style; just like dating. But what happens if you are told ‘no’ or ‘I am not ready yet’. No is actually better because you know it is time to move on. When someone is still not ready, does that mean it is over, maybe. It may be time to ask that question if you have been courting someone for a long time and they still can’t make a commitment. We’ll talk about that in our upcoming article ‘Know When It Is Time To End The Date’. Most likely is that you will get the ‘yes’ that you have worked so hard for. Remember to ask and do it with confidence and style. 😎
