This great book by Grant Cardone shows the importance of learning to close. As he puts it, the only real reason a person fails in life is their inability to close others on providing resources, energy, money, support or whatever it is they need in order to achieve what it is they want. Below I outlined the main points that I took from this book.
“If there is no exchange and no action, then there is no close; then there is no real value exchanged.”
1. Commit until you get the close.
If you stop working out before you get results, was there really any value in the time spent? Likewise, talking to a potential customer does not mean anything until you get to the close. See it through, be consistent in your efforts until you see results.
2. Learning is key.
You must put yourself in a position where you practice both proactive and reactive learning. Dedicate your time to becoming a master at what it is you do. Proactive learning is spending 30 minutes a day going over most common objections, and write and rehearsing potential answers. Reactive learning is putting yourself in uncomfortable situations and learning on the go. Make sure to look at feedback and iterate.
3. Accept full responsibility.
Until you take the responsibility for your life, you will not be successful. Once you accept full responsibility for where you are, you will see that you are able to take control of your life and consciously direct it to where you want to go. This applies to sales as well. It is your responsibility to close, to make a sale. Whether it happens or not, that is because of you and once you accept that, you will start doing whatever it takes.
4. Practice your message and remain seated.
Few people will trust a person that cannot communicate his message clearly and confidently. Record yourself, record your sales calls, listen to them and make adjustments. Try to remain seated during negotiations and presentations, even if the opposing party stood up. Going from a seated position to standing communicates that something has changed and gives room for your prospect to end negotiations.
5. If you sell in person, always have a pen on you.
Whenever you carry an agreement that needs to be signed, double check that you have a pen to sign it. Occasionally, prospects may take the lack of a pen as a sign that they shouldn’t take the deal.
6. Stay with the buyer and ask one more time.
If you’re running back and forth between customers or leave to check on something, this creates doubt and uncertainty in their mind. Direct the sales process from the beginning to the end, and do not leave your prospective customer alone with his thoughts. Even if they said “No”, find another way to circle back and reposition negotiations. It does not make you rude, it just shows that you are confident that this is the right product for your client.
7. Be sold on your product.
Be absolutely sold that your product is the perfect product for your customer. Know its in’s and out’s. If you know that your product solves problems like the ones your customer currently faces, it will give you a lot of confidence for persisting during the sales process. There is always a way to come to an agreement,
sometimes its as easy as asking – how can I make this happen for you?
8. Treat every prospect as a buyer and stay positive.
Every prospect of yours deserves to be treated like a buyer. That will actually raise your chances of making a sale. No matter how they respond, keep a can-do attitude during the sales process and keep it light. Whenever you’re even slightly negative, there is only one outcome and it’s not good.
9. Always smile.
This is an underrated one. It does not only communicate positive emotions and comfort to your prospect, it also changes the state of your own mind. Argue with a smile, negotiate with a smile, disagree, overcome objections, and most of all, close with a smile. Most successful people smile all the time. That’s what made them successful. A million dollar tip – “Smile”.
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