If you don’t ask for a sale, you don’t get one…

You’ve done it all – prospected, qualified, presented, handled objections, sent a proposal and maybe even asked for a referral. The only thing left to do is “close the sale” and this is an area that often could use some sales coaching training.

Closing the sale is an important part of doing business but a critical part of staying in business. Unless you can close the sale, you’re like a baseball player who didn’t touch home plate or a golfer who only played 16 holes. You’re not done, you didn’t score, you didn’t finish what you started, you didn’t ask for the sale. Welcome to the exciting and sometimes scary world of asking for the sale. For many people, it’s the hardest part of the sales process but it can easily be remedied by taking some sales coaching advice.

There never seems to be problem telling your customer all the great value your product or service brings or telling them about the wonderful feedback you’ve received from satisfied customers. You’ve answered all their questions and accommodated every request. Now it’s time for the next step – to ask for the business and close the sale. But the reluctant salesperson who has trouble taking that final step in sealing the deal and closing the sale will lose the sale at that precise moment. If you can’t close the sale, why bother opening it? The reluctant salesperson ends up limiting his or her success and choking off new business. If you can’t, don’t, or won’t ask for the business, you won’t have a business. Asking for the sale is the most avoided question in sales and it’s the most powerful.

What’s the cause of this hesitation in asking for the sale?

Fear of rejection is a common reason for delaying asking for the sale. Fear shows up in the darndest places. But fear is no excuse for not asking for the sale. Fear is among the top reasons many fail to close and if there’s one major sales coach tip it is to ask for the sales close. You should never be afraid to ask for a customer’s business; after all, that’s why you’re there. Plus, they’re expecting that at some point in the sales process you’re going to ask for their business. Many of the business owners I coach have recognized the costly consequences of being the reluctant salesperson. Together, we have implemented programs to help them immunize themselves and their sales teams against its deadly effects. Learning the principles of closing and asking for the sale is important for any business owner. This is true whether sales are your primary business function or just one of many tasks you do, maybe even reluctantly. Most businesses involve sales that could use some sales coaching advice, but in many of those businesses the owner is wearing other hats.

Business owner often focus on other tasks for the bulk of their day when sales should be their number one goal and priority. The owner might be a web designer, landscaper, dentist or banker. Imagine a website designer who starts her own business and spends most of the day creating websites. While she might be a master at web design, she has not mastered selling her talent or skill. But in order to make any money, sales need to be made. So sales, while not her primary activity, are vital for the success of her business. If you don’t ask for the business, you will never get the business. That’s it. It’s that simple. One of the biggest mistakes made in sales or business is not taking the initiative to close the sale. While even seasoned salespeople struggle with the reluctance issue from time to time, it is most noticeable in people who only make sales once in a while. You can’t expect your potential customer to jump up and say, “I am ready to buy.”

It’s up to you to push past the fear and ask for what you want. Remember, it’s not what you sell, it’s how you sell.

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To be successful in sales you must overcome 7 obstacles. Almost every sales professional runs into these obstacles at some point in their career. For many these obstacles continue to reoccur. These obstacles are not always addressed in sales training, which is why we advocate an ongoing sales coaching relationship. As you read, assess your sales skills and your effectiveness at overcoming these challenges. By conquering them you will be able to take your sales performance to a whole new level.

Obstacle #1: Fear of the “No”. Much has been written about the fear of rejection but it still remains an issue for many sales people. I find that it is helpful to give my prospects a “no-option” right up front! My product/service is not for everyone. I don’t want anyone to feel manipulated or disrespectfully coerced. Neither do I want any “buyers-remorse.” When people say “yes” to me I want them to truly want what I am offering. I want it to be a “win-win” situation. Otherwise there is no hope for a long-term relationship.

As a sales professional you need to truly believe in your product or service. You need to be passionate and enthusiastic about what you are offering. You need to communicate the unique benefits of buying from you. But in the end, if the prospect says “no” it does not diminish the value of your product/service, and it is not a personal rejection of you. You must differentiate that within yourself in order to succeed.

Obstacle #2: Not Being Prepared. It’s very important that you prepare before making the sales contact. I know that there are times when selling opportunities present themselves serendipitously, but most of the time you will have an opportunity to prepare before the contact.

For me, preparation involves going to the prospect’s website, blog, or social media sites before the contact. There I want to learn everything I can about the company and the individual that I will be meeting with. Prospects are typically very impressed if they see that you have done your homework. They feel valued and respected.

I also want to prepare my attitude. I want to go in with the right mindset, being customer-centered and customer-focused. I want to be optimistic and visualize this prospect becoming my customer. I want to anticipate as much as possible what will happen in this conversation. However, I always want to remain flexible and open to the unexpected.

It is very important to be prepared. I would encourage you to develop a system for personal preparation and use that system every time you make a contact.

Obstacle #3: Focusing on Yourself Rather Than Your Prospective Customer. I alluded to this in Obstacle #2. It is very important that you focus on the other person. Your attention and your energy must be directed to understanding them and serving them. This contact is not about me. It is about the prospective customer, about their wants and needs. We must be tuned in to them before and during the contact.

There is a Hebrew Proverb that says “The purposes of a man’s heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.” I want to understand my prospect (if possible) better than he understands himself. I do not want to be preoccupied with my fear, my discomfort, or my ideas. I want to be totally present for my prospect in that moment of contact.

Obstacle #4: Failure to Listen During the Selling Conversation. The most important tools you have in the selling conversation are questions. The quality of your selling is directly related to the quality of your questions. You must go prepared with good questions and then be ready to ask more questions as they surface in the conversation.

Questions are essential to help you get to know your prospect and to understand what their needs are. I always encourage my clients to prepare good questions ahead of time so that they will be asking better questions than their competition.

However, it is not enough to just ask questions. You must also listen carefully to what they are saying. When appropriate, say back to them what you hear them saying. Listen beneath the words. What are they feeling in the moment of the conversation? How is my question impacting them? Listen and observe. Let them do most of the talking as you guide the conversation with powerful questions.

Obstacle #5: Not Keeping Your Promises. It amazes me how many people do not follow through and do what they say they will do. Successful sales professionals keep their word! They stand behind their promises no matter how difficult or inconvenient.

Prospects are asking themselves one primary question, “Can I trust you?” If you fail to keep your word in the initial meetings or the sales process, it is likely that the prospect will assess you as unreliable and/or dishonest. Bottomline: Keep your word!

Obstacle #6: Inability to Close the Sale. In my early days of selling this was a huge problem and I’ve discovered that it is for many other people as well. I could have a great conversation, ask some good questions, and uncover some clear needs that we could meet. But when the time came to close the sale something happened and I walked away empty-handed.

Always remember that people buy based on emotion, and they justify with logic. In other words, every buying decision is an emotional decision. A good selling conversation will guide you into the prospect’s points of pain and passion. If you never uncover pain or passion you will probably never close the sale.

The 3 keys to a successful close are emotions, buying signals, and questions. Through your conversation look for the moments of emotion. Don’t be afraid to linger there. Also be watching for both verbal and visual buying signals. And then, when the time seems right, ask the closing question.

There is an art to this but with practice and evaluation you will be able to improve your ability to close the sale. You might consider engaging a coach to help you with your questions and scripts, as well as to help you increase in your self-awareness and other-awareness.

Obstacle #7: Failure to Continuously Improve. Leaders are learners, and successful sales professionals are always learning and improving their skills and their mindset. Both require attention and intentional development. No doubt you are reading this article because you want to improve. Let me encourage you to continuously read, observe, engage mentors, attend seminars, talk to colleagues, and evaluate your selling experiences. Be an aggressive learner and you will become a top notch sales professional!

As you increasingly overcome these obstacles you will gain more confidence and improve your sales performance. I believe that you will fall in love with selling and begin to see it as “serving” rather than taking! You will gain greater financial success and enjoy the fruit of a growing network of people who appreciate you. And you will realize the enormous potential you have to succeed in sales.

To learn more about how we help sales professionals go to www.TheGrowthCoachHouston.com/increase-your-sales/.

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