Item 20 - CLOSING IS WHERE THE MONEY IS: PART II

The cost of doing business is an out-of-pocket expense that involves inventory, advertising, transportation, gratuities, profits, etc. The cost of playing poker is an out-of-pocket expense brought on by lack of experience. Thus, Amarillo Slim will gladly teach you all the straights and flushes so long as your resources last.

But as your experience grows, you make better use of your resources, and your costs of doing business diminish. Increase the effectiveness of your closing techniques, and the costs of shipping to your customers, performing exchanges, keeping incorrectly-shipped product (and selling it), taking instant delivery and not worrying about when you'll be able to unload it, etc., etc., become moot points. A person who develops a successful closing skill will increase her sales linearly, if not exponentially, over the person who simply records what folks think they want.

Note: from this point forward, you are filling out the order form. No more information goes on the tablet or notpad.

The Basic Close

The Basic Close is nothing more than "Do you want it?" There's no persuading left to do. No more intermediate yesses. The basic close seeks answers to questions of availability, delivery, methods of payment, satisfaction, etc. You haven't made the sale until you ask for the order. Ask for the order and only salubrious sayonaras remain.

Next in line is what I will call the Annotated Basic Close.

"Does it come in black?" asks the customer.
You respond: "Do you want it in black?"
C: "Yes, black, with little frumplets attached."
Y: "Let me make a note of that."
C: "Wait! Why are you writing it down? I'm not ready to order."
Y: "I put all the information on the paper so I don't make a mistake, order the wrong thing. I also want not to forget the frumplets. And I think I saw it in the next campaign at half price. I want to remind myself to check on that.

Follow this with a reflexive question:

Y: "Mary, what is your address and phone number?"
When she gives you the information you've closed.
Consider that if you were now writing on your tablet, your customer would not see you as the strong sales-oriented individual you really are. You're a salesperson at this time; not an order taker. If the process is to be arrested, the customer must be the one to do it. Keep filling out that order form as you reach each intermediate close. When you get to the final closing point, it will be completed. You then only have to ask the customer to approve what you've written. If it's an extensive order, you might even consider having the customer sign or at least initial the order blank. This is not a legal signature, of course, but the activity is designed to get the customer to make an overt commitment to the order she has just placed.

The Balance Sheet Approach

Accounting and financial people take the financial pulse of an organization from a balance sheet. Conceptually, the assets of an organization balance the total derived by adding liabilities and ownership (commonly called stock). If the organization has more assets than liabilities, the ownership is positive. If the organization has more liabilities than assets, the ownership is negative and the organization is technically bankrupt.

Reduced to its simplest form, a decision can be made using this balance sheet approach. If your customer is indecisive, take a piece of paper and rule it down the middle. The approach to take is this:

To the left of the vertical line, you will list all the reasons FOR making the decision. Here you will list all the selling points you and the customer have agreed upon. These are all the intermediate yesses you recorded as you went through your presentation. Enlist the aid of your customer to "remember" what the benefits were that you agreed upon. Write lavishly. Pause significantly between each item you write, and reflect upon it in a positive way. Work with your customer to enhance this list.

To the right of the vertical line, you will list all the reasons AGAINST making the decision. BUT, this time, make the customer do all the work. It is not your business to conjure up negative influences on your sale. When you've listed a small number of them, you might express dismay that there aren't more.

Now, with a flourish, count them -- out loud: "On the YES side we have one, two, three, four ... eight. And on the no side we have one, two, three ... four. Well the wise decision is pretty obvious, isn't it Mrs. Lord?

Don't hesitate a second. Go right into the reflexive closing question. What is the address and telephone number here, Mrs. Lord? Write it on the top of the order form. If they give it to you now, they have made the decision and they have owned it.

As you look at this process, and as you develop it with your customer, keep up the patter. Dress it up in language like "if this is the right thing to do, we want to know it before proceeding ... and if it is the wrong thing to do, this can help us to avoid it."

And when you finish, be certain to emphasize the wisdom of the customer's decision.

As time goes by, you will find other kinds of closing that you'll feel comfortable with. You can close by emphasizing delivery options. You can close by emphasizing guarantees. As you build your arsenal of closes, you'll find that you will develop more ways to get the customer to say yes than there will be ways for her to say no.

The important thing to remember is that successful closing is the selection of a strategy, committing the strategy to memory, delivering it in a comfortable and nonchalant manner. You know that closing is terribly important to you, but you must never convey any impression of desperation.

If you can find the single closing that works every time (other than giving your product away free, thank you), then I'd appreciate it if you would communicate it to me. A good salesperson carries a quivver of closes, and must select the arrow which will come closest to hitting the mark.

Waffle Without Syrup, Please

Despite your best efforts, the intermediate affirmations, the selection of a wise decision by the customer, the product within her need and her budget, now and again the customer will draw back from the process. This does not mean the sale is dead -- only delayed a bit. It's time for a little self-deprecation:

Y: "I'm sorry, Mrs. Lord. I got carried away. I didn't mean to move so quickly."

Yes, you apologize. But interestingly, while the words become audible to the customer, you are really apologizing to yourself for having selected an inadequate close. Aren't you lucky? You get to select another.

Next, you summarize the benefits she's already agreed to and tie them down with affirmations. Look for minor agreements here.

You're not selling the product the second time:

Y: "I know you have reservations, but this is the product you wanted, isn't it?"
Y: "You indicated you had a need and together we selected a product that will satisfy that need, didn't we?"
Y: "We wouldn't be having this conversation if you had no interest, isn't that right?"
Y: "So what we're saying is that the Retroactive seems to be what you've been looking for, right?"

Lead into the next step with "I know that was a quick overview of what we've talked about so far, and we've really have seen the benefit of them, wouldn't you agree?"

And you're ready for the next closing step. Note that I provided five consecutive tie-down questions as a means to move from the close that didn't work to the next one. And if the next one doesn't work, repeat the process with yet another.

The Referential Close

Once you have been at it awhile, the product you wish to sell to any customer you will have used yourself or will have sold it to other customers who will be able to provide a testimonial. If you have a testimonial from someone whom your customer knows and/or respects, it can often carry a great deal of weight with the customer you have with you today.

Getting customer references isn't difficult -- but you should ensure that the customers whom you contact for reference will endorse the product enthusiastically. And of course, it should be obtained or arranged in advance. These testimonials can take the form of paper statements which you will prepare, based upon what they have told you (and get them signed) or a telephone call that they may be willing to accept at the time you are working with a reluctant customer.

How well the referential close works for you will depend heavily on your current customer's perspective about your referring customer. One source of data for referential closes may be obtained in Avon's advertising literature, in the tips and tools sections of your What's New, and in flyers that may be sent out by the company. Your customer may not be terribly impressed by a skin care endorsement from Venus Williams, but find a dermatologist's recommendation in the literature, particularly one that can be verified, and the customer may well respect the reference. The kids may dress the way they do because of the clothing worn by Britany Spears, but it is doubtful that your customer will take the teen singer's endorsement. Dr. XYZ, on the other hand, may carry more weight.

You know, I can remember when...

Suppose your customer is concerned about the product's effectiveness for a problem you know another customer has addressed. The reference here can work -- and anything that you can get on paper will be beneficial.

I'll Think It Over

The minute you hear this, know right off the bat that IT'S THE MONEY. Ninety nine times out of a hundred, this comes about because the customer didn't want to make a commitment of resources to the process. The need is still there. No other solution is available at a more reasonable price. The money issue becomes predominant.

So agree with them. "That's fine, Mrs. Lord. You wouldn't take time to think it over if you weren't seriously interested, would you?" Is she going to say no? Hardly. She may reaffirm that she will think about it. Act defeated, smile, and continue.

Confirm the fact that she will consider it. "Will you give it ... very... careful... consideration?" Stretch it out a bit for dramatic effect. Is she going to say no?

"You're not just trying to get rid of me, are you?" Act a little dejected here. You'll be amazed that she will come to your aid. I've said before that you can enlist the assistance of your customer in the sale, and this is one of those times. What's she going to say? Will she make such an admission?

"When you think it over, are you concerned about my company? Are you concerned about the capabilities of the product? Are you concerned that I won't be here to serve you?" You can pretty much guess the kinds of responses you'll get. As you ask these questions, develop ancillary questions to get the customer to speak positively about each answer. Soon, the customer will catch on -- and finally it will out: the money. Do not, under any circumstances, short-cut this process. It will only embarass your customer.

Now what we did here was to take a great big objection: I'LL THINK IT OVER, composed of the possibility of many and diverse parts, and boil it down simply to "it's the money." Confirm that it is, indeed, the money. When that happens, you have something to work with. Now it's time to reduce the problem to its smallest terms.

The issue then becomes not the fact that $24 is too much for a jar of Retroactive, but it instead becomes an exploration of the fact that the cost of younger-looking skin is only about 80 cents a day. "Isn't it worth that, Mrs. Lord, to cause you to look (exaggerate a little here, if you wish) years younger? That's less than a cup of coffee or a soft drink will cost you every day, don't you think?"

Faced with such impeccable logic, what customer could refuse? But consider that what you have done is not twisted her arm for the sale, but instead you have merely assisted her in making up her mind. If it works for you, so much the better. If it does not, there is yet one approach you can use.

How Much Is That Doggie In The Window?

Let her use it for a few days to observe the benefits you know will occur. Avon does this often -- free trial periods. Keep a little stock and let Mrs. Lord use that jar of Retroactive for a few days. Extract a promise that if she is happy with the results, she will complete the purchase. And if she were not happy with the product, you'd be giving her a refund and seeking credit from Avon anyway. All this does is turn the horse and cart around. I'd personally recommend that you know this customer before making such an offer. This offer should not be made to strangers or first-time buyers, in my opinion.

The approach is called the puppydog close. You see a pooch in the pound and its eyes cry out in sad expression. You fall in love with the pooch, even though your father said you couldn't have it. But the pound owner is smart. He agrees to let you take the dog for a few days to see if you are "compatible." Do you think that dog will ever go back to the pound?

And When The Customer Simply Says NO

All customers feel the urge to say no. Without any facts, they will say no, simply to avoid the discomfort that they think somebody like you can bring upon them. Often, the customer will come into the transaction personally self-committed to reject what you have to offer. It's in the genes, and unfortunately based up on prejudices caused by other, pushy, salespeople. You can't change that history.

But if the customer always said yes, you have no function to perform as a salesperson. You can take the order, certainly. We've learned throughout this entire effort that the process of getting from NO to YES involves work to convert the predictable negatives into positives.

I like what Roberta Dunaway posted on the net some time ago. Write down 100 NOs on a tablet, and everytime you hear one, cross it off. Sooner or later you will hear a YES, and when you do, count the NOs that you had to go through to get there. As the number of NOs between YESes diminish, you'll have a good idea of how you are improving. Don't be afraid to issue an apology and follow it up with a different approach. Few customers will get angry about it. Success is there -- you merely have to ask enough people enough questions.

And my close...

There are as many closing sequences as there are sales people. Many of what have been presented here I have adapted from the literature I own. I've read them, structured them for my use, practiced them, and have become adept at using them.

But if I had to select a single, most effective closing strategy, it would have to be the multiple purchase strategy I've previously detailed. I offer them something extra for something less. I increase my cash flow, I increase my sales, and though I narrow my per-unit profits, I increase my overall profits. And they keep coming back for more.

What's next?

One might consider that this would be the logical end to this effort, and certainly it could be -- if I wanted it to. I've also some thoughts about expanding this effort into other parts of this Avon business.

But there is yet another aspect of the sales cycle to be addressed -- follow-up. And there's where we'll go next, with a twist, however. For the next few sessions, I should like to address the sales activity from the customer's perspective. Consider me to be Mrs. McGillicuddy and I AM THE CUSTOMER.

Goodnight.

Ken the Man

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