Sales is a vital role in any business. In both B2B and B2C, customers are becoming more cautious with their decision making, and many businesses are vying for their attention to get those browsers to become buyers. A tougher market also means it can become more tricky to getting deals closed. According to Business to Community, “B2B buyers journeys are becoming longer and more complex”. It’s becoming more and more apparent that buyers (both B2B and B2C) are taking there time when it comes to making purchasing decisions, and it is important that as a sales professional you have the essential tools not to only provide an excellent pitch, but to be able to convert a customers reaction to a positive action when closing those sales.

Throughout this article we are going to take a look at the importance of excellent sales techniques and how having a developed closing strategy will ultimately give you the ability to have better conversion rates for your business.

From selling to closing a sale – it’s all about the right mindset and structure

According to The Marketing Blender, 82% of decision makers feel that sales representatives are under prepared. Working within a sales environment, the right attitude and preparation for going in to each conversation is essential.  If a strong rapport is built at the beginning it will enable you create a solid pitch that should eventually lead to an excellent close. Building these basic foundations is critical in ensuring you can close a sale and ensure your customer has a good sales experience. Not all selling and closing tactics will work on every customer, however there are numerous techniques that can be applied to each and every client whether they are long standing buyers or new leads.

How can I utilise my knowledge and skills and turn it in to a positive sales conversation?

As anyone in sales will know product knowledge is a given during any conversation with a customer. Bombarding them with everything you know however will not encourage them to buy and if anything can lead to a negative impact on the sales opportunity. In both B2B and B2C the ability to lead a conversation and analyse the needs of your customer are just as valuable as your product knowledge. It allows you to maintain and create a structured conversation but also allows you to take the lead and know exactly when to implement certain strategies for closing the sale.

This is where an important understanding of the key points in buyer psychology comes in to effect, as well as an understanding of the principles of decision making.  If you can understand the basic foundation of the buying process of your customers, you can then develop strategic closing tools that can be used to get them from understanding or recognising the need for your product to purchasing your product through the most effective method possible.

When does it turn from selling to closing a sale?

Any exceptional selling technique needs to be followed up by an exceptional closing strategy. Within any sales environment, timing is key. The ability to read the situation on when to start implementing a closing strategy is a skillset anyone in sales must master. However it is important to bear in mind that during your customers decision making process there is always time for them to reject your sale at any given point. Whether it be through the use of language or expression to their tone of voice, it is down to you to assess the situation appropriately and respond accordingly. Identifying customers buying signals is essential and knowing what closing strategy to implement can ensure you have a smooth sale.

Closing a sale – isn’t it all just about persuasion?

A misconception is that closing a sale is just all about persuasion. As a professional you need to be able to use a mix of techniques to ensure your customer is still enthused about your product and once they do purchase, that they don’t show signs of buyers dissonance. This is where having an invaluable closing strategy is vital.  It is essential to be up to date with the modern customer-focused closing strategies and trends when it comes to both selling and closing sales. You need to be able to draw on various persuasion and negation tactics when needed, but also have the ability to alleviate any worries and fears that the customer may have that could pose a threat to you closing the sale with them. If these techniques can be used effectively, then your sales conversion rates will rise.

Sales closing and price negotiation skills – an overview

Our intensive and highly interactive one day training programme can give the essential tools to close those all important deals on both small and large sales value orders.  Whether you work in B2B or B2C , this expertly guided programme is taught using a mix of carefully curated practical exercises, skills practice and case studies.

This course will help participants:

• Learn a structured and proven approach to the negotiation of contract terms
• Apply the key principles of negotiation, playing the person and the problem
• Create a contract negotiation strategy – from opening to close
• Recognise and put to use proven negotiation tactics and techniques
• Learn how to embrace conflict positively – to ‘say no, then negotiate’
• Plan and prepare for any commercial negotiation conversations
• Understand the stages of negotiation and how to move through them

Our programme can be tailored to your specific needs and can included specialist topics such as advanced telephone skills, dealing with complaints, and so on. We also have a comprehensive range of sales related courses.

 

To discuss this or any of our courses in more detail, you can contact us on 01582 4632463 – we’re always happy to help.