Natural Entrepreneur: Shorten Your Sales Cycle

this is a layer

Home

About us

sponsored by:

Important:
Our Privacy Policy

Sales

Shorten Your Sales Cycle

How to close in one call

-- by Kevin Hallenbeck and Kent Malinowski,
Sandler Sales Institute/BestSalesPeople.com,

Author's note: Wimps should not read this article.

The strongest sales superstars close a new prospect in one visit. Why? Any time you set a second, third or fourth meeting it costs you and your prospects money. They lose because you allow them to delay results and you both lose by wasting time. Every sales person wants to shorten his or her sales cycle. Here's how to set the expectations for a one-call close.

How do you close in one call? It's simple, but not easy.

The key is in properly setting expectations. “Begin with the End in Mind” Steven Covey wrote in his highly acclaimed book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Apply his principle in sales by negotiating the outcome in advance of your sales meeting.

After setting the appointment here's an example of setting proper expectations:

“Mr. Prospect, before we agree to meet, can we discuss expectations for our meeting?

May I tell you how I work, and you can tell me if you're comfortable? Ours is a two step process. This phone call is step 1. Step 2 is our meeting. Typically this meeting lasts two to four hours. I'd like to begin our meeting by asking you enough questions to understand your business. Then I'd like you to assemble the right people in the room to ask me enough questions so that at the end of the meeting, you can be comfortable making a Yes or No decision. “No” means you decided you don't need or want what I have, or you cannot find the budget, or just cannot decide right now. I'm okay with a No. I'm also okay with a “Yes”. “Yes” means you want our help and you're ready to make a commitment to solve the business challenges you described. Are you comfortable with that?”

If not, negotiate issues up front. Don't wait until the end of the meeting to decide next steps. The secret to closing in one call is to let your prospect know how things will end before you start.

“Good. I appreciate you being open, honest and up front with me. Let's avoid one thing at the end of the meeting. Let's avoid you telling me you're not sure, or that you want to think about it. If you have any doubts I'll take that as a “No”. I’ll take anything other than a “Yes” as a “No”, OK?”

By allowing your prospect the option of saying “No”, you take the pressure off them. This approach allows you to avoid your biggest sales nightmare: Indecision. As a result, your prospect will be more comfortable. Plus, they'll pay attention (wouldn't you if you knew you had to make a decision?)

Kevin Hallenbeck is the owner of Sandler Sales Institute/ Best Sales People.com. Contact Kevin by phone at 603-472-9195 or email kevinh@bestsalespeople.com To attend a free seminar conducted by Kevin, visit us on our web page: www.bestsalespeople..com. Kent Malinowski is a Sandler Trainer in West Palm Beach, Fl.

Upcoming Events

Feb 21 (8-9:30a): NH Forum on the Future, NHHTC, CR Sparks, Bedford, NH

March 1 (6:30-8:30p): Women's Business Center and MicroCredit-NH Networking Event, Bank of America, Portsmouth, NH

March 6 (10a-noon): Growth Capital Resources in New Hampshire, City of Nashua, Office of Economic Development, Daniel Webster College, Nashua, NH

March 8: (12pm -1pm) Break the Rules and Close More Sales, Amoskeag Business Incubator, Manchester, NH

March 16: Peak Pitch (pitch your plan to invstors on the chairlift), Mt. Sunapee, NH ($)

March 22: Breaking Trends in Web Develoment, UVCIA, Hanover, NH ($)

View Ads