5 Steps to Closing a Sale (part 4)

Monday, November 6, 2006 at 12:56pm by Justin Brooke in Presentation

::Asking for the Money::

Often the scariest part of sales is not interacting with others; it’s the part where you have to ask that other person to give you a piece of their hard earned income. You have to learn to get over this if you plan to close sales like the professionals. In fact without asking for the money you are just an order taker, and not a sales person.

If you show the slightest bit of fear or hesitation when asking for the money, the customer will smell your weakness and back out of the sale. Imagine you just gave the greatest sales presentation of your life. You started out by assuming the sale, controlled the conversation, your voice inflection was spot on, and now you have to ask for the money.

When you ask your voice drops down and you speak a little too fast or ask in a round-a-bout fashion. The customer is going to think that it was all a big smoke and mirrors presentation, and there must be something wrong with the product if you’re afraid to make someone pay for that product.

You can slip a little in your presentation, but there is no room for timidity, mediocrity, or errors when you actually go for the close. (Close = asking for the money/sale/decision) You should develop three different ways to asking your clients to finalize the sale, pay, or decide.

When you are developing these simple closing statements, stay away from any questions that can be answered with the word “no.” If the client wants to say “no” let them figure out how to work it into the conversation, don’t help them! Also stay away from words that bring the thoughts of money back into play. (Words like pay, dollars, buy, spend, money, debt, or afford.) Here are some examples that I have used in the past.

We allow you to use Visa, Mastercard, or Discover, which will you be using today?

We accept all major credit cards, does your card expire 06, 07, or 08?

Will you be using a P.O. # or the companies credit card today?

Will you be able to take this with you today or should we deliver to your office?

In the mind of the customer these are much easier questions to answer than “how will you pay for this.” Most of my sample closes don’t even ask the customer for money. The customer knows he will have to use money but technically I am not asking him/her for their money. This nullifies the natural defense mechanism we all have right when we are about to part with our hard earned cash.

Now that you have seen examples copy the format and apply it to your scenarios. Take your new closes into the bathroom or in front of any mirror and practice pitching with them. Observe your body language when you go for the close, make sure you are direct but not confrontational, stern but nonchalant, and make eye contact.

I still shake like a cold poodle in a thunderstorm during every close, but I practice my closes so much that you could not tell what’s going on, on the inside. You MUST portray a person who does this all day, every day. That closing statement needs to just roll off you’re tongue as if everyone is buying and you are just the delivery guy.

The last part of this series is going to lay waste to fearing or floundering when customers begin throwing objections at your sales presentations. Before we get there fully, I want to explain why I told you to develop three different ways to ask for the money. When you go for the initial attempt the customer might still have a question or two. Just answer their question as simply as you can and fire off the next version of your closing statement. For instance:

Me: We allow you to use Visa, Mastercard, or Discover, which will you be using today?
Suzy: Do you back up your service with any guarantee?
Me: We are a member of the BBB, and we also provide a 100% money back guarantee should you not be satisfied. Does your card expire 06,07,or 08?

Go right into the next, let them just roll off your tongue. The more you speak the more chances you have of making a mistake or creating another question. You can also oversell your product which will make the customer think something shady is going on. So practice, speak simply, and ask for the money as if you were a delivery guy and not a sales professional. In no time you notice that you are now closing a lot more of those “almost hadems.”

5 Steps to Closing a Sale:

1. Assuming the Sale
2. Control the Conversation
3. Voice Inflection
4. Ask for the Money
5. No Does not Mean No

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