Being able to shorten the sales cycle is a positive ability of the better quality sales staff at your disposal. Having the skills to quickly evaluate the position of a potential lead and close the sale can make a huge difference to the success and growth of your business. Training your staff on how to quickly close a sale will help you to tighten up the sales process for your team, increase standards and effectiveness, and see a rise in profits as a result.
Consumer habits and how they make purchasing decisions is constantly in flux. It is vital for the health of your business and for the management control over your sales staff that you are constantly evaluating your customers and potential customers in order to successfully tweak the sales strategies in place. Whatever the product or service you are attempting to sell there is always a fine balancing act to be had, being persuasive without pushing too hard and scaring the lead away. Let’s take a look at a few simple yet effective sales strategies that can help you close the sale.
Quickly Identify the Decision Maker
Quite often you’ll have to find a way past the ‘gatekeeper’ in order to get to the real decision maker, the person who can authorise a purchase. Even if this is the case, have the decision maker in mind when putting your pitch to the gatekeeper. It’s all about customising your pitch to that person or business so that they can feel that you want to build an honest and long-term relationship with them, and that it isn’t solely about gaining that next sale. Do your utmost to setup a meeting with the decision maker whenever possible, but be prepared to sell to others first.
Be Honest to You
The majority of your potential customers will be able to feel it in your voice and manners whether you are being genuine during the sales pitch and process. You need to be empathetic to their cause as well as having a genuine passion for the product or service that you are attempting to sell to them. If you are too cold and calculated it can scare them away, as can being cocky and overbearing. One thing to say is that it really pays to be thoroughly prepared, so understand your product inside out to answer any questions quickly and effectively.
Create Urgency
Set a deadline for an answer without being too pushy. That way the client has the incentive to commit, whether that is through a deadline to receive a discount or something for free as part of the deal. Don’t rush the customer but allow them to think they may be in control of the situation.
Understand Your Competitors
If you understand your competitors, their strengths and weaknesses and can quickly compare that to your own company, product and service, it can help you close a sale. If you are fully prepared you’ll know what you can offer that the competition can’t and make that a selling point to your customers.
Finally, stick to the key points, remain calm and collected and be prepared for anything. Closing sales is difficult but can be improved upon with careful training and thought.
Content Written By Yvette Newnham