Sales

Three Words to Close More Sales

March 26, 2013

Inside sales expert Mike Brooks explains why one short, simple question is the key you need to close more sales by opening the door to your buyer’s thinking and process.

 
Any top closer will tell you that the secret to closing sales is in getting your prospect to disclose to you whether or not they are going to be a sale and getting them to tell you what you must do or say to close the deal.
The reason this is key is because only your prospect knows what it will take for them to buy your product or solution (or whether they have the authority, the budget, if they are in the mood, whether they like you, if they need the product enough, etc.). Again, only they know what it will take for you to get their business. This is the great secret all top closers know.
Unfortunately, 80 to 90 percent of sales reps don’t understand this. They continue to pitch at prospects, push their material onto them, and then hound and beg them to do business with them. This is why most sales reps hate sales and why most prospects hate sales reps. If you find yourself (or the majority of your sales team) in this position, then I’m going to share three words with you that will get your prospect to reveal their true buying motives (and why they might not be buying from you as well.)
Because the key to closing sales is to get your prospect to disclose what it is actually going to take to close the deal, you’ve obviously got to find ways to get them to open up and start talking. I’ve written many scripts and techniques to show you how to do this, but today I’m going to share with you three simple words you can use to get and keep your prospects talking.

One Question to Ask to Close More Sales

Here it is — whenever your prospect begins stalling or providing any other excuse for not acting today, you simply reply with three words:

“What happens next?”

Now, before 80 percent of you dismiss this — while the other 20 percent nod your head with wisdom — just try it out and hit your mute button. I guarantee that you will learn more by listening to what they say next than you ever will if you just keep talking and pitching.

Are you sure you’re prioritizing the right prospects?

Five Ball The 5 Elements of a Qualified Lead


Here are some other questions to follow up with depending on what they might disclose to you:

  • “How does that process work?”
  • “How involved in that are you?”
  • “What would you like to see happen here?”
  • “When does a decision on this need to be made?”
  • “If you had to move on something today, what would you do?”
  • “Out of everything you’ve seen from other companies, what do you think?”
  • “What’s the biggest thing you can see that is standing in the way?”

I guarantee that if you ask all of the above questions to a prospect — and truly listen to what they tell you — you will know whether or not they are going to be a deal.
There are plenty of other techniques you can use, and I encourage you to use any technique that will help you to get your prospect talking (and get you to shut up and listen). If you and/or your reps get good at this you will be amazed by how much more successful you will be.
Having trouble overcoming “the sales stall,” aka common objects like “Could you email me something?” or “I’ll show this to my manager”?
Register and listen in to Mike’s free webinar “How to Overcome the Stall in Sales” this Thursday, March 28th at 1pm EST / 10am PST.
 
 

Founder

Mike Brooks “Mr. Inside Sales”<a href="http://www.mrinsidesales.com/">Mr. Inside Sales</a> is the recognized authority on inside sales. Voted one of the most Influential Inside Sales Professionals by The American Association of Inside Sales Professionals for the past five years in a row, Mike is the go-to inside sales trainer and phone script writer in the industry. Mike is the best-selling author of “The Ultimate Book of Phone Scripts” which Brian Tracy calls “One of the best books on inside sales phone scripts I’ve seen.” Mike is hired by business owners to implement proven sales processes that help them immediately scale and grow Multi-Million Dollar Inside Sales Teams. For more information, you can visit his website <a href="http://www.mrinsidesales.com/"> www.MrInsideSales.com</a>.