The 6 Essential Rules for Closing Deals: Part 1 of 6 Parts

bNet
By Geoffrey James | July 18, 2011

While the blog of LeNoble’s Media Sales Insights is directed to media management and sales and marketing professionals within its framework.. I believe our readers will enjoy this special edition which will be broken into 6 different articles. Philip Jay LeNoble, Ph.D. Publisher: LeNoble's Media Sales Insights and CEO Executive Decision Systems, Inc. Littleton, CO.

RULE #1: Trick Closes Don’t Work

The sales world is full of lore about how to close. Most of it is pure nonsense. Specifically, the following trick closes keep popping up, sometimes in major sales seminars. Here the are:
• The assumptive close. Ask the customer to make a meaningless decision that assumes a decision has been made. Example: “Do you want that in the hunter green or the hunter orange?”
• The flyfish close. Promise something valuable then take it away if a decision isn’t made now. Example: “We have a special offer – a 15 percent discount – but only if you decide to buy now.”
• The puppy-dog close. Let the customer try the product for free in the hopes the customer will fall in love with it. Example: “We’ll give you the product free for your evaluation and only charge you if you don’t return it.
• The reverse close. Ask a customer who’s saying “no” a question intended to elicit a “no” that actually means “yes.” Example: “Is there any reason that you wouldn’t do business with our company?”
These “trick closes” are stupid and ineffective. Any buyer with an ounce of sophistication will see a trick close coming a mile away — and is likely to think you’re a fool for trying it.
Of course, saying something is ineffective isn’t the same thing as saying it doesn’t work. A trick close can definitely generate a sale, especially if the buyer isn’t too bright. Even so, trick closes are insulting to the customer and destructive to the long-term customer relationship. Here’s why:
If a customer has already decided to buy, then a trick close (by definition) isn’t necessary. The only reason to use a trick close is if the customer has not yet decided to buy, hence the need to trick the customer into making a decision. With the trick close, you’ve forced the customer to buy something that he doesn’t yet want.
Now, it’s perfectly true that the customer may really need your offering and after delivery be satisfied (even delighted) with what it does for him, but at some level or another he will always know that you tricked him into buying before he was ready.
But that’s the best case scenario. If the customer doesn’t really need your offering, and only bought because you tricked him (and he didn’t know how to gracefully get out of the deal), that’s going to create massive resentment.
And you’ll end up losing in the long run. So if you’re serious about really learning how to close, forget the tricks and learn the other five rules. (More to come tomorrow)