Have you ever caught your reps doing this? They deliver a great presentation, think that your prospect is with them, but then they just keep on pitching.
Or, they get an objection, answer it, but then again, they just keep pitching — or worse — they go to the next rebuttal and start reading that pitch.
Talking past the close is much more common than repeatedly asking for the sale (which is what they should be doing). And why is that? It’s because it’s scary to ask for the deal and be told no. It’s much easier to keep pitching, ‘Maybe they’ll just cave and finally hear something they want and buy.’
Sound familiar? It should. That’s how 80% of your sales reps are pitching. They are ad-libbing, talking past the close, and even introducing new objections. What a mess.
Ways to get to the close
Here are five ways to stop talking past the close, so your reps can spend more time closing, and earning the income the Top 20% do:
1. Record yourself
Before you can stop talking past the close, you first must begin hearing and catching yourself doing it. One day of recording your reps and you’ll become immediately aware of when and how they do it.
2. Use a script
One of the best parts of a well-crafted script is that it ends with your reps asking for the deal. Listen to their recordings and then craft a good response to the common objections they are getting. Then, make sure they adhere to the script.
3. Ask for the deal five times
If you give your reps a close quota of asking for the deal at least five times, then they are going to be much quicker in asking for it. Have them keep track of this
on a piece of paper using stick figures. If 20 minutes has gone by and they don’t have any marks on the paper, then you know your team is in trouble.
4. Welcome getting a no
So many sales reps are afraid of no’s, but you don’t have to be. With most sales you’ve made, you’ve probably heard some no’s along the way, so reframe the way your team thinks about them and realise the truth — each no gets you closer to a yes. So welcome getting a no. It usually means you’re that much closer to getting the sale.
5. Shut up and listen
Teach your team to be quiet after they ask for the sale. Use your mute button or cover the mouthpiece and count to five – 1/1000, 2/2000, etc. By forcing your reps to remain silent for five seconds after asking for the sale, they’ll actually have something to concentrate on rather than fear.
Conclusion
If your sales team is in the 50% of teams that aren’t making their monthly sales quotas regularly, then daily, specific sales training is your fastest way of changing that. There are other factors as well, including having a Defined Sales Process, and an organised sales training programme that reinforces your best practices. But using and reinforcing the three techniques above will bring you and your team immediate results.
