There you are, standing there at the end of the hallway with your customer. At the other end is the sale. It’s a straight shot from one end of the hallway to the other. But, like a hotel, there are many doors between where you stand and the other end of the hallway (your sale), and those doors are all wide open. Those doors are the all the ways your customer can exit the hallway and you losing the sale.
So often I speak with folks in sales they talk of tales of the “one that got away” - their customer turning into one of the open doors and walking away from your goal, your sale. And there’s always an excuse or an intangible that they hadn’t seen coming or weren’t expecting.
Look, we all know there are times where there is nothing that can be done to stop the loss of a sale. But all too often, it’s really about preparation and planning. I can't emphasize this enough - great salesmanship requires more than just natural talent, it requires the discipline of planning and preparation.
Close the doors in that hallway as you walk your customer to the sale by planning out your sales strategy. Plan through what objections might pull your customer in through one of the doorways. Assume there are others wanting their business that might be lurking back there, as well. Game plan the process that gets you to your sale. Be smart and recognize that the closer you get to the sale, the further on down the hall, the greater the chance of a surprise turn into an unexpected doorway and the loss of the sale.
I’m a big believer that the closer you get to the end, the more important it is to close those doors. I’ve seen too many sales folks get cocky and believe their customer is locked up, and yet when the sale goes sideways (yes, into a doorway), they seem shocked and blame the customer. Ego often helps to make that ridiculous argument.
But the prepared salesperson, the one who has done their homework and doesn’t just create a desire for the customer, but has designed a complete course to escort their customer to the sale – one that is designed to close all the doors along the way and keeps your customer on track. Walking that hallway and closing the doors along the way, sprinting to the finish with a succession of “yes’s” and assuming the sale with confidence that you know you are offering the best service or product for your customers needs will get you your sale.
So often I speak with folks in sales they talk of tales of the “one that got away” - their customer turning into one of the open doors and walking away from your goal, your sale. And there’s always an excuse or an intangible that they hadn’t seen coming or weren’t expecting.
Look, we all know there are times where there is nothing that can be done to stop the loss of a sale. But all too often, it’s really about preparation and planning. I can't emphasize this enough - great salesmanship requires more than just natural talent, it requires the discipline of planning and preparation.
Close the doors in that hallway as you walk your customer to the sale by planning out your sales strategy. Plan through what objections might pull your customer in through one of the doorways. Assume there are others wanting their business that might be lurking back there, as well. Game plan the process that gets you to your sale. Be smart and recognize that the closer you get to the sale, the further on down the hall, the greater the chance of a surprise turn into an unexpected doorway and the loss of the sale.
I’m a big believer that the closer you get to the end, the more important it is to close those doors. I’ve seen too many sales folks get cocky and believe their customer is locked up, and yet when the sale goes sideways (yes, into a doorway), they seem shocked and blame the customer. Ego often helps to make that ridiculous argument.
But the prepared salesperson, the one who has done their homework and doesn’t just create a desire for the customer, but has designed a complete course to escort their customer to the sale – one that is designed to close all the doors along the way and keeps your customer on track. Walking that hallway and closing the doors along the way, sprinting to the finish with a succession of “yes’s” and assuming the sale with confidence that you know you are offering the best service or product for your customers needs will get you your sale.
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