When to close

As a young sales person I was told to remember my "ABC's" ALWAYS BE CLOSING. I was also taught a number of "trick closes" such as the "rolling pen close" This involved placing a ballpoint on a contract and letting it roll toward the customer. When the customer picked it up, the salesperson would say "Since you have the pen in your hand already, why not sign the contract right now" Very hokey, but I knew reps who actually closed sales this way. Pressuring or tricking a customer is more likely to get you thrown out rather than close a sale today. Research has found that pressing for a close too early actually increases the customer's resistance.



When should you close? You should close when you have uncovered a problem that you can solve with your product. Most objections are a result of poor timing. If you can uncover a problem and convince the customer that you can solve it for them, closing becomes easy, the customer will want to buy the ad. Most sales people I have observed do not spend enough time probing the customer to uncover opportunities to help them. If you try to close before you can show how your product will make the customer's problems go away, you will get an objection.



Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!



Thanks Jim Busch