Very Little but Very Powerful Book on Closing

Sales Questions

Many salespeople make excuses when they fail to complete a sale. But the ultimate sales reality, according to prolific author and sales expert Jeffrey Gitomer, is that you are responsible for whether you earn sales – and no one else. If you don’t make a sale, Gitomer says, acknowledge the reasons you fell short: Perhaps you didn’t establish sufficient need or create sufficient urgency. You didn’t properly explain the benefits of your offering. You didn’t get the prospect to trust you. You didn’t project confidence in yourself and your product. Perhaps you also didn’t discover the prospect’s most basic objection or determine a solution to overcome it.

Gitomer cites other essential considerations, including the need to know how to deal with prospects who constantly put you off. What should you do if your prospect tells you to call back in a few days, a few weeks or a few months? What should you do if your prospect can’t or won’t make a decision? Ask prospects who are sitting “on the fence” a series of questions to determine the root of their hesitancy. Gitomer says your questions should uncover the prospect’s objections and concerns. As you investigate the objections, understand that they’re likely not objections at all. Often, they are stalling tactics, blockages or risk-aversion. Some of these problems actually exist, but with some others, Gitomer asserts, your prospect only thinks they exist.