While closing may be the hardest part of a sales representative’s job, it is also the most important. Without closing new customers and upselling existing accounts, a sales representative will not hit their quotas.
The mistakes below are common among sales representatives and can be devastating to your success.
Avoid the following closing fumbles to increase your chances of success.
1. Discounting the Importance of the Discovery Call
Most prospects believe that they are in the same group as their competitors. The person who does the best job during the first part of the sales process is usually the one who ends up closing the deal. Therefore, if you don’t ask the right questions during the discovery call, it is unlikely that the deal will go through.
When you find a prospect that seems like a good fit, it’s important to be specific about your expertise and experience. Two great questions to ask are:
- What do you love about your new business development efforts?
- What do you want to improve?
You can address the “we have decided not to start” objection — which is universal — right upfront. You can ask the following questions:
- When do you need the problem solved?
- When do you need to see the cost reduction?
- When do you need to get the customers by?
Questions like these create a mindset of solving the problem as soon as possible rather than later.
We recommend you remember the importance of the discovery call early on in your process, this way you’ll be more likely to win the deal.
2. Closing Only Once
You should consistently “close” throughout the sales process for three main reasons:
- You’ll secure greater and greater buy-in from your prospect.
- You’ll filter out tire kickers.
- You’ll get key information, meetings, introductions, and more.
For example, when you first talk to the buyer, you might ask for their cell phone number. This way, you can call or text them directly instead of going through their assistant or calling their work line. This will make them much easier to contact.
By the end of the third meeting, you should ask to be put in touch with procurement so you can learn about their purchasing requirements.
Your process should include “soft closes” because it gives you an advantage over other vendors and makes you seem more prepared and experienced.
3. Not Asking for What You Want
Asking for what you want is something that makes sense, but it is not something that people do often.
It is possible that the prospect does not know what they want. Part of your job is to clarify and bring out what they want. Another part is understand what your goal is. Not having both clear is a mistake that salespeople should avoid because they will go into a meeting without any understanding of what they hope to achieve. If you don’t know what you want, how can you get it from the prospect?
Each time you interact with someone, go in with a specific goal in mind, and don’t waste time beating around the bush when asking for what you want. For example, it’s best to say something like, “Will you be signing and sending the proposal today?” because it tells the person you’re trying to sell to what you’re hoping to accomplish without beating around the bush.
Asking for what you want makes it more likely that you’ll get it. You have to be willing to ask the prospect for what you want without being afraid of hearing “no.”
4. Using Statements Instead of Questions
Always phrase closes as questions, not statements. This is more effective because questions require a direct response, whereas statements do not.
The sales representative’s question gives the prospect two options to choose from, instead of the multitude of options if the sales representative had made a statement instead of a question.
I’d like to close this deal. Maybe, we can close this deal. Questions that start with “Are you,” “Can you,” or “Will you” close this deal.
It is better to ask direct questions because it helps you close the deal more effectively than making broad statements. The questions also allow you to get a direct answer, and if needed, a follow-up from the sales representative if they need more time.
5. Not Getting a Personal Buy-In From a Prospect
A common mistake during the sales process is not getting the prospect to buy for their own personal gain. To make the sale more valuable to the prospect, offer them a personal stake in the process.
To get a good sales close with personal gain, ask:
- How can we make you look good in the process and when you start?
- How can we make your boss and team look good?
The questions should be focused on the benefits that the prospect and their team will receive from moving forward.
We prefer when prospects are asked what they will gain personally as this provides them an opportunity to assess all the benefits and moving forward continue doing business with us.
6. Not Creating a Sense of Urgency
There are two things that drive sales: need and timing. If a potential customer has a great need for a product but other priorities are more important, they will likely not purchase the product. Similarly, if a potential customer has a great need for a product but does not understand why they need to purchase it immediately, they will likely not make the purchase.
To close a deal, you need to do more than just identify pain points. You also need to create a sense of urgency by explaining why the customer should act now.
Creating a sense of urgency emphasizes that the need must be solved now and that the company’s revenue is at stake, which will allow us to close earlier than otherwise.
7. Offering too much for nothing
This is the result of talking too much. Some salespeople try to help the customer too much without being asked and without being paid. If you’re in this situation, it’s best to excuse yourself and let the customer know that you’re willing to answer questions, but you can’t provide free consulting services.
It’s great to be helpful, but there needs to be a limit. Prospects love getting sales reps to give them information and advice, even when they’re not actually planning to buy anything.
Don’t forget that information is power!
You may try too hard to win a customer’s business and end up giving away too much information without getting anything in return. To avoid this, don’t offer free consultations. Instead, offer solutions to problems in the form of your sales offering.
Talking about solutions…
8. Not focusing on the solution
Although this tip may be old, it is probably still the most important one.
Salespeople who focus on the features of their product or service are less likely to make a sale than those who focus on the benefits.
A product’s bells and whistles are not as important as how well it can solve the customer’s problem.
For example, say you’re selling a people management consultancy. A better way to explain what you can offer is how your services can help decrease staff turnover and increase quarterly KPI (Key Performance Indicator) achievement rates.
Your solution is an easy sell that will motivate your customers to buy!
Your prospects’ main concern is not the method you use to achieve results, but rather the results themselves.
Basically, what this is saying is that features are important, but benefits are what will really convince someone to buy something.
9. Focusing on price not value
People buy value, not price.
If you think that lower prices will help sell more products, you may be mistaken. It may be time to reconsider your opinion.
Offering heavy discounts may bring in bargain hunters who will only buy from you as long as somebody else isn’t offering a better deal.
Do you really need that?
Although price is seen as a key deciding factor, customers will not just purchase a product because it is cheap. They will buy a product that has value to them. If this value is large, most customers will be willing to pay a higher price.
If you want the prospect to buy a more expensive, higher quality product, tell them that it will save them money in the long run, only if it is true of course. Cheaper products may be less expensive initially, but they may also end up costing more in the long run because they are of poor quality.
10. Making promises you can’t keep
Overpromising and underdelivering equals to mere lying in business.
It is not a good idea to lie when trying to sell something because it creates a bad relationship with the customer. It is better to be honest about what the product or service can do.
Would you rather spend your money on something that’s not true? I don’t think so.
But how do you sell then? Here are two suggestions:
- Instead of over-promising, let the prospects sell to themselves. You can do it by asking the right questions that’ll gently push the prospect to the right direction. In the end, they’ll convince themselves that they need your product.
- Another way is particularly suitable for the free trial stage. To make sure your prospects are pleasantly surprised, you can actually under promise and over deliver. If the expectations are low, but the product can actually do more, then prospects will be blown away with the experience they get. This will help you win them over during the next sale stage.
It is better to not sell anything than to make a dishonest sale. If customers later find out about a problem you did not mention, you will not only lose the customer, but also your reputation and future sales.
11. Not having an intention to close a sale
Many salespeople are more concerned with making impressive pitches and slideshows than actually selling.
It is not the number of deals closed that motivates them, but rather the display of their skill in public speaking and their salesmanship.
Leave your ego at the door and go into the sale determined to turn the prospect into a customer. You have to actually ask the prospect to buy. Be direct. The earlier in the sales process you do that, the better.
The only way to close a sale is to go ahead and do it with confidence. Urgency is key to not allowing anything to steal your sale.
12. Not being ready to overcome objections
Nobody likes to get “No” for an answer.
Even though it may not seem beneficial, allowing the customer to say “No” can actually be beneficial. This increases the value of “Yes” when the customer is finally ready to make a purchase. Being rejected multiple times only strengthens the buying decision when the customer finally finds something they like.
An example of this would be if a real estate agent showed you a bunch of houses that weren’t that great, and then saved the best one for last. After saying “no” to so many houses, saying “yes” to the best one would come as a relief.
Sales involves objections, and dealing with them is an art. To be successful, you must be confident and personable while also honest and respectful. You should also be able to sum up your thoughts succinctly. Never say “as I said before” in response to an objection, as this will lose the sale. Acknowledge the objection, restate it in a positive light, and use humor if possible.
If all else fails, it could be that the person you’re trying to sell to isn’t a good match for your product. Knowing when to walk away from a sale that’s unlikely to close is a valuable skill, since research shows that only half of all prospects are actually good candidates for what you’re selling.
13. Arguing with a potential customer
Sales representatives often make the mistake of assuming that their product is the obvious choice, when it may not be.
If a potential customer starts to object to your product or service in an unreasonable way, it can be easy to lose your temper. However, it is important to remain calm and not to try to defend your product.
If you want to make a sale, it is best not to argue with potential customers. Arguing almost always results in the customer choosing not to buy what you’re selling.
If you don’t agree with what the other person is saying, it’s best to either stay silent or say something like “I can see where you’re coming from.” Also, ask questions to get a better understanding of their position, and paraphrase their statements. However, you should never argue with them.
If you find yourself in a situation where you’re up against a wall, it’s usually best to walk away and focus on other, more promising opportunities. You can’t please everyone all the time.
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