When to Close the Sale

I talked to a many agents today about their pitch.  Now I want to post a short blog article about how to know when you should close the sale.

1.  Close the sale when the merchant has time.  You have invested time and energy to get the statement and do the analysis; don’t waste all that by giving the merchant a thirty second presentation. When you walk in to do the presentation ask, “Hey Bob, I know you are probably swamped today.  Do you have ten minutes to go over this or should I come back another day?”  Don’t leave the analysis for the merchant; let him know you do need to explain a couple things to him that will take ten minutes.

2.  Close after you get a positive response to ownership questions.  I could tell you easily if a client is ready to buy from you just by the amount of words he or she says during the presentation.  Is the client listening to you present or engaged in the conversation?  There is a big difference!!!  Ask about the client’s equipment; ask whether to plug the terminal into the internet or a phone line; ask what could be improved over their current processor.  Then listen to the response and watch the client’s body language. You should close the deal today if responses come easily and freely like, “We would like to have our terminal reprogrammed.”  If the response is guarded like, “Well…If we decide to go with you,” the client is not ready to go with your service.  You need to find out why before you close.

3.  Close some other time if you know the answer today will be “no.”  At the end of your presentation if you haven’t seen signs the merchant wants to go with you, stop and ask, “Bob, it seems like you still have some unanswered questions about my company or my prices.  May I ask the biggest question in your mind right now about using my service?”  This is a great question which usually gets an honest response.  To the response, “I just don’t want to make a quick decision,” don’t try to push forward and confirm the fear that you are a pushy sales person.  Say rather, “I completely understand.  How about I leave this information for you to think over?  Then I will swing back by later in the week.” Don’t push for a solid appointment time here or you may get shut down.  Just come back later in the week.

Use these tips in the field.  Then post a comment about the results.  I would love to open up a conversation about these techniques!

James Shepherd
james@ccsalespro.com

See the previous post:  Introduction to Merchant Services

Intro to Merchant Services

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How to Switch Gift Card Programs