Question
The last part of the presentation is closing the sale. Many salespeople ponder the
question, ‘When must I close the sale?’ The answer to this is very simple: ‘Once the
prospect is ready to buy during any step in the selling process.’ It all depends on the
Salesperson’s ability to read the buying signals.
The reasons why salespeople fail to close the sale are lack of skills, feelings of guilt
and fear of closing:
■ Lack of skills – Examples are the salesperson continuing with the presentation when
the respondent is ready to buy; the salesperson not understanding the needs of the
prospect; the salesperson failing to ask the prospect to buy; a poor presentation;
not handling objections; and the salesperson not being properly prepared.
Sales Management
18
■ Feeling guilty – Salespeople sometimes feel guilty about possibly selling an inferior
product or service compared to competitive products and services. To overcome
this, salespeople must believe in themselves as well as the product or service they
sell.
■ Fear of closing the sale – This is mostly a personal psychological issue that looms in
the salesperson’s mind because people fear rejection. Salespeople must accept that
closing is part of the selling process and by believing in themselves, their company,
their products and services, they will overcome this fear.
The salesperson must know when to execute the two core actions in selling: when
and how to close the sale. The salesperson can close the sale at any stage of the selling
process whenever it seems that the prospect is ready to buy. The number of times that
the salesperson tries to close the sale is determined by the presentation and differs
from the one prospect to the next. The close can take place as follows:
■ An early close – as soon as the opportunity is there in the early stages of the
presentation and the salesperson considers it unnecessary to go through the total
presentation.
■ Midway close – after part of the presentation has been completed and the prospect
indicates that they are interested in the product.
■ Close at the end – when the presentation is made to someone who is not acquainted
with the product. To close at the end, the salesperson must complete the full
presentation before they can try to close the sale.
It is not easy to establish when to close the sale. The salesperson should take care not
to be too aggressive before the client is convinced, nor to postpone the close if the
client is ready to buy. It is important for the salesperson to keep a balance between
aggressive convincing and submissive failure. The salesperson should rather follow
a confirming approach, which is a direct and positive way to keep a balance that
focuses on the client’s needs and allows the prospect to participate in the decision-
making process. The salesperson must learn to guide the prospect to the next stage
of the decision-making process. The salesperson should interpret the buying signals
correctly. Prospects generally provide verbal and non-verbal buying signals by posing
questions to determine commercial terms and/or minor benefits, and requesting
information on financing and warranties; or they agree on the benefits of the product
and ask another person’s opinion. Non-verbal clues to look out for as a signal to close
the sale are a change in the prospect’s facial expression from a frown to a smile (starts
to become friendly and relaxed) and the prospect leaning over to the salesperson and
talking in a lower voice, pulling out a purchase order form, or starting to examine
merchandise. When these signals appear, the salesperson can use different techniques
to close the sale:
■ Asking for the order is the best method of closing a sale. The salesperson asks the
prospect to make the buying decision. It is non-aggressive and will lead to an
Chapter 1 – Sales careers and the selling process
19
affirmative or negative answer; it is mostly used when the salesperson does not
have much time to spend with the customer.
■ The alternatives close gives the prospect alternatives, which do not include a choice
of buying or not buying. The salesperson narrows the choice by asking: ‘Which
one and how many do you want?’, implying, ‘You are going to buy – so let’s settle
the details.’ When faced with such a choice, the prospect is forced to react by either
placing the order or raising objections.
■ The assumptive close is based on the assumption that the prospect will buy and
that only the details need to be worked out. It is effectively applied to customers
with whom there is a long-standing relationship.
■ The T-account close involves the recapping of the advantages of the merchandise
and persuading the buyer to agree. In simple T-account format, the salesperson
writes down all the reasons for buying the product (to act) on the left-hand side
and all the reasons to postpone the purchase (not to act) on the right-hand side.
The aim is to prove that the product’s benefits outweigh its drawbacks.
■ With a minor point close, the salesperson gets the prospect to make decisions on
minor points, which makes it easier to lead the prospect into the decision to buy.
■ The standing-room-only close involves the salesperson pointing out to the prospect
that the product may not be available later if they delay the decision to purchase.
This method works very well when the salesperson faces an indecisive prospect or
when trying to get the prospect to purchase a large quantity.
■ The technological close is the latest method for closing a sale by using high-tech
devices and software. The type of product being sold determines the exact use of
technology in closing the sale. A salesperson who closes a sale with a clarification of
the product benefits is likely to be a successful salesperson, so after the presentation
and the proposition, they give a brief summary of the advantages. By using
graphics, the salesperson shows the client previous purchase and sales trends of
the product, discounts and payment schedules, if necessary, and any other relevant
information. The technological close method makes a good impression on clients.
When the salesperson has completed the transaction, the relationship with the client
(once the prospect has signed the transaction they become a client) does not end
there, because the client has certain expectations that must be met. Therefore the
salesperson must follow up after the sale transaction.
paraphrase into one sentence and simplest english and make it short
question, ‘When must I close the sale?’ The answer to this is very simple: ‘Once the
prospect is ready to buy during any step in the selling process.’ It all depends on the
Salesperson’s ability to read the buying signals.
The reasons why salespeople fail to close the sale are lack of skills, feelings of guilt
and fear of closing:
■ Lack of skills – Examples are the salesperson continuing with the presentation when
the respondent is ready to buy; the salesperson not understanding the needs of the
prospect; the salesperson failing to ask the prospect to buy; a poor presentation;
not handling objections; and the salesperson not being properly prepared.
Sales Management
18
■ Feeling guilty – Salespeople sometimes feel guilty about possibly selling an inferior
product or service compared to competitive products and services. To overcome
this, salespeople must believe in themselves as well as the product or service they
sell.
■ Fear of closing the sale – This is mostly a personal psychological issue that looms in
the salesperson’s mind because people fear rejection. Salespeople must accept that
closing is part of the selling process and by believing in themselves, their company,
their products and services, they will overcome this fear.
The salesperson must know when to execute the two core actions in selling: when
and how to close the sale. The salesperson can close the sale at any stage of the selling
process whenever it seems that the prospect is ready to buy. The number of times that
the salesperson tries to close the sale is determined by the presentation and differs
from the one prospect to the next. The close can take place as follows:
■ An early close – as soon as the opportunity is there in the early stages of the
presentation and the salesperson considers it unnecessary to go through the total
presentation.
■ Midway close – after part of the presentation has been completed and the prospect
indicates that they are interested in the product.
■ Close at the end – when the presentation is made to someone who is not acquainted
with the product. To close at the end, the salesperson must complete the full
presentation before they can try to close the sale.
It is not easy to establish when to close the sale. The salesperson should take care not
to be too aggressive before the client is convinced, nor to postpone the close if the
client is ready to buy. It is important for the salesperson to keep a balance between
aggressive convincing and submissive failure. The salesperson should rather follow
a confirming approach, which is a direct and positive way to keep a balance that
focuses on the client’s needs and allows the prospect to participate in the decision-
making process. The salesperson must learn to guide the prospect to the next stage
of the decision-making process. The salesperson should interpret the buying signals
correctly. Prospects generally provide verbal and non-verbal buying signals by posing
questions to determine commercial terms and/or minor benefits, and requesting
information on financing and warranties; or they agree on the benefits of the product
and ask another person’s opinion. Non-verbal clues to look out for as a signal to close
the sale are a change in the prospect’s facial expression from a frown to a smile (starts
to become friendly and relaxed) and the prospect leaning over to the salesperson and
talking in a lower voice, pulling out a purchase order form, or starting to examine
merchandise. When these signals appear, the salesperson can use different techniques
to close the sale:
■ Asking for the order is the best method of closing a sale. The salesperson asks the
prospect to make the buying decision. It is non-aggressive and will lead to an
Chapter 1 – Sales careers and the selling process
19
affirmative or negative answer; it is mostly used when the salesperson does not
have much time to spend with the customer.
■ The alternatives close gives the prospect alternatives, which do not include a choice
of buying or not buying. The salesperson narrows the choice by asking: ‘Which
one and how many do you want?’, implying, ‘You are going to buy – so let’s settle
the details.’ When faced with such a choice, the prospect is forced to react by either
placing the order or raising objections.
■ The assumptive close is based on the assumption that the prospect will buy and
that only the details need to be worked out. It is effectively applied to customers
with whom there is a long-standing relationship.
■ The T-account close involves the recapping of the advantages of the merchandise
and persuading the buyer to agree. In simple T-account format, the salesperson
writes down all the reasons for buying the product (to act) on the left-hand side
and all the reasons to postpone the purchase (not to act) on the right-hand side.
The aim is to prove that the product’s benefits outweigh its drawbacks.
■ With a minor point close, the salesperson gets the prospect to make decisions on
minor points, which makes it easier to lead the prospect into the decision to buy.
■ The standing-room-only close involves the salesperson pointing out to the prospect
that the product may not be available later if they delay the decision to purchase.
This method works very well when the salesperson faces an indecisive prospect or
when trying to get the prospect to purchase a large quantity.
■ The technological close is the latest method for closing a sale by using high-tech
devices and software. The type of product being sold determines the exact use of
technology in closing the sale. A salesperson who closes a sale with a clarification of
the product benefits is likely to be a successful salesperson, so after the presentation
and the proposition, they give a brief summary of the advantages. By using
graphics, the salesperson shows the client previous purchase and sales trends of
the product, discounts and payment schedules, if necessary, and any other relevant
information. The technological close method makes a good impression on clients.
When the salesperson has completed the transaction, the relationship with the client
(once the prospect has signed the transaction they become a client) does not end
there, because the client has certain expectations that must be met. Therefore the
salesperson must follow up after the sale transaction.
paraphrase into one sentence and simplest english and make it short
Answers
GPT-4o mini
Salespeople should close a sale whenever the prospect shows readiness to buy, using various techniques while balancing assertiveness and support, and must follow up afterward to meet client expectations.