July. 2006 The Sales Closing Myth Exploding the myth that it is not necessary to close

It has become fashionable recently to assert that good selling is nothing to do with closing. In fact there is a growing clamour amongst so-called sales gurus, that sales professionals should avoid "closing" because it is out dated technology which runs the risk of insulting the customer and jeopardising the sale.

The argument goes like this. Good salespeople build rapport with their customers; they fully understand their needs and present solutions which are so precisely aligned with the needs that have been expressed that they no longer have the need to sell. The customer simply buys the product or service because he is so delighted with its relevance to his exact needs.

This utopian environment is known in the commercial environment as "retail". In this world, the customer has a pressing need for some product, say soap powder or a particular type of food or even an article of clothing. The customer approaches the outlet, indicates his choice to the assistant who then concludes the transaction by taking care of the necessary administration. The shop has aligned its needs to those of its customer by having a complete range of well presented merchandise from which the customer simply has to choose the most appropriate item. Curiously though, the higher the value of the merchandise in the shop, the more likely it is that the assistant will need to help the customer to make a choice. This might be because of inertia on the part of the client or, more likely, it might be because the product offering is not exactly what the buyer had in mind when they first entered the premises.

And therein lies the rub. Because even in the retail environment, the goods on offer may not be exactly aligned with what the customer had in mind. This might be simply a consideration of practicality. Not every shop can stock every item. It might be that the customer was not aware that say, fashions have changed. Or she may not be aware that innovations have obsoleted her original choice and that there are now better, more efficient products available that can do a similar job more efficiently and possibly even at better value. The role of the shop salesman therefore (as opposed to the shop assistant) is to work with the customer to help them to make the best choice from what the shop has available to sell. The alternative is that the customer walks out of the shop and places their business elsewhere. In all likelihood and particularly with higher value goods, that customer will then create a relationship with another outlet, place future business with them and disappear forever as the door closes behind them.

Those who would argue that the role of salespeople is to help customers to "buy"; place their customers firmly in control of the transaction. The salesman is relegated to the function of a shop assistant.

In the commercial world, particularly where solution selling is the order of the day, it is rare that there is a precise alignment between the offering of the seller and the needs of the buyer. And if it were true that the buyer was in complete control of the transaction and that his choice would be based only on a logical and dispassionate assessment of the relative merits of the different offerings available; then suppliers would no longer need to employ salespeople. By simply placing advertisements in the trade press, customers would form orderly queues to place their orders based on their objective assessment of their own needs and without the need for input from the seller.

No. In reality decisions are not clear-cut. The features and benefits from any one seller are not precisely aligned with the needs and wants of the customer. The role of the salesman therefore, is to optimise the chances of the buyer choosing his company rather than that of the competition. To do this he has to use his sales skills to maximise the chances of winning the business.

This means that he must follow a business development cycle by targeting effectively, understanding the issues, presenting relevant solutions and ASKING FOR THE ORDER.

To argue that there is no need to ‘close’ is to demonstrate a lack of understanding of how buying decisions are made. The larger the value, the less willing the customer is to make the final decision. Whilst this author agrees that crude closing is offensive and unprofessional, nonetheless a salesman who has done his job properly still needs to gain commitment from the customer. He still needs to ask for the business and ensure that a commitment has been obtained. It has been argued that the customer has read all the sales books and is aware when a "closing technique" is being used. By the same token, customers also want salespeople to do their jobs and ask for the business. They will severely punish any salesperson who does not take the initiative and bring the negotiation to its logical and successful conclusion.

Salespeople throughout the ages have known that, for example, keeping silent after asking for a commitment is much more likely to lead to a signature on the order form. Similarly offering a choice between two positive alternative aspects of the decision is likely to help the customer to make up their mind then and there. Vacillation is the enemy of salesmanship. Those who would argue that salespeople should not close, invite the customer to "think about it”. This means that they can extend the sales cycle unnecessarily and then spend time investigating competitive offers. So unless you believe that you have a truly unique offer or consider that you have monopoly control of your market and the customer simply has no choice; learn to close! Don't be seduced by a politically correct, but commercially flawed argument which is nothing more than a sop to those that don't have the courage or conviction to sell effectively.