5 Steps to Communicating Persuasively: Close/Reaffirm

Do you ever get the to the end of your pitch only to bomb when it comes to closing the deal? I'm going to address how you can professionally and politely close and leave the prospect/person feeling good about the decision they made. You want to create a win-win situation for the both of you.

If you're anything like me, you've probably gotten to the end of your pitch and now you're nervous about whether you will close the deal. My mind races through all of the steps and everything I've said. I over-analyze what I did and hope that I didn't screw it all up.
I remember when I was selling Reliant Energy door-to-door and began pitching to a car dealership that oversaw 4 locations. This would meet my production goals for the next 4 months! I'm sure that my nervousness showed, but I pushed through and did my best to show value and savings to the dealership.

After 2 hours of talking and having my contact discuss this with another officer in the company, they decided to buy from me. That sale allowed me to break the record for the largest commission in the program's history up to that point. I had done a good job of the other 4 steps up to this point, but I had to finish strong.

Don't count your eggs until they're hatched.
In other words, don't count the sale until the check clears!

Here are 3 steps that will close the deal and create a positive experience with the prospect that will yield benefits now and in the future:

1. Ask

Ask for the stinkin' sale! So many people fail to do this. It's almost as if they assume that if they educate the prospect enough that they will come crawling; begging to buy from them. If you figure out how to do that, please, let me know.

The last thing you want is confusion for the prospect or yourself. So, directly asking for a decision is the best way to figure out if you need to backtrack and educate some more or put pen to paper and close. For example, with the car dealership, when I was done, I probably said something like, "so, would you like to move forward with the 1 year or the 2 year rate?"

There are many types of closes; including "assuming the sale" that I used above. However, I don't have the time to go into now. That will be on another post.

2. Explain

Explain what happens next. The prospect, now customer, should know exactly what you (or your company) will do next and what they (or their company) needs to do next. Clarity is a chief component to a memorable and enjoyable experience.

Remember, whomever you're talking to will likely talk about their experience with you; good or bad!

3. Reaffirm

Reaffirm that they made the right choice. Ever heard of buyer's remorse?! While you can never completely control if this happens, you can decrease the likelihood that it does.

First, thank them for their business/decision and faith in you. Second, remind them of the biggest 1 or 2 benefits that will result from their decision. Third, set a follow-up date and time to call or meet to see how things are going.

This completes our series on speaking more persuasively. If you missed any of the previous 4 parts and would like to catch up, you can find the links in the resources section below.

Final Question...

Think of a time when you were pitching a product/idea and it seemed to go south at the very end. Why did it turn bad at the end? What did you learn about closing the deal? Please share your experience in the comments section below.

Lead your home! Lead your work! Lead your life!

Resources:

Previous posts in Closing the Deal series:

1. Introduction/First Impression
2. Qualifying
3. Building Rapport
4. Education/Information

Book: EntreLeadership: 20 Years of Practical Business Wisdom from the Trenches by Dave Ramsey