Closing is a make-or-break moment in sales. When you use the right phrases, tips, and techniques, you ensure your efforts in nurturing prospects amount to sealing sales deals. However, many salespeople feel apprehensive about closing deals. Success in closing a sale wouldn't be so thrilling without high emotional stakes, like fear of failure and rejection.
To help you enjoy the thrill of closing deals repeatedly, we鈥檒l cover how to close a sale and 18 sales closing techniques that鈥檒l get you the best win rates as a sales professional.
Let鈥檚 get started.
Table of Contents
When it comes to closing deals, small tips can make a big difference. See the most helpful advice for closing deals below.
First things first, be sure to clearly define the customer needs your product or service is intended to meet. Customers who aren鈥檛 a fit for what you offer don鈥檛 want to hear from you. Pursuing them will be a waste of your time and resources.
Once customer needs or pain points are clearly defined, you can find specific prospects and businesses with those needs. These potential customers will be interested in hearing from you.
Closing a sale starts long before a customer signs a deal. The first order of business is lead qualification.
Qualifying leads ensures you speak with decision-makers who play a key role in buying your product or service. To effectively do this, you need to develop an ideal customer profile (ICP).
When developing your ICP, include information like:
These qualification criteria let you narrow your search for leads. For instance, let鈥檚 say I sell a product that鈥檚 useful for software development companies. If I wanted to sell to , I鈥檇 contact Kris Nicolaou, its founder and CTO. That鈥檚 because Kris may be a power user of my product in his CTO role.
Once you鈥檝e identified your lead, use tools like Hunter and Snov to find and verify their email address. This lets you send emails that won鈥檛 land in your lead鈥檚 spam folder.
After the email address verification, with a call-to-action that doesn鈥檛 sell your product. Your goal should be to get the potential client to schedule a call or respond positively to your email.
Having prospects hop on a call or respond to your email is only half the battle. The second half shows how your product impacts your prospect鈥檚 business operations.
Don鈥檛 make the mistake of selling prospects on features. Show them the benefits of using your product. When you do, they鈥檒l see tangible results of using your product and the issues it fixes.
You need to establish a sense of urgency to prevent your deals from stalling or falling apart. Urgency creates a reason for prospects to move forward with a deal.
You can create urgency by offering a time-limited discount, free onboarding, or anything that makes the prospect get instant value from your product.
When using this sales tip, ensure you鈥檙e offering something prospects truly need. There鈥檚 a thin line between creating a sense of urgency and pressuring prospects. Crossing that line could make you miss a deal altogether.
Objections can be a good thing. When you get an objection, it shows your prospect wants to move forward, but something bothers them. Address these objections, and you will get one step closer to hitting your quota.
Some common objections you鈥檒l get as a salesperson include:
Preparing to respond to these objections is crucial to closing your sales deal. Doing so sets you up for success because you鈥檒l confidently respond to concerns your prospect raises.
Now that you鈥檙e equipped with these sales closing tips, let鈥檚 go over 18 and why they're so effective.
This is where salespeople make an offer that includes a special benefit that prompts immediate purchase. This technique creates a sense of urgency and helps prospects overcome buying inertia. It's also a proven method for closing a sale over the phone because you have the prospect's undivided attention in real time.
Salespeople who use this closing technique reiterate the items the customer is hopefully purchasing. They stress the value and benefits of their product to encourage prospects to sign a deal.
鈥淪o we have the Centrifab washing machine with brushless motor, the 10-year comprehensive guarantee, and our free delivery and installation service. When would be a good time to deliver?鈥
By summarizing previously agreed-upon points into one tight-knit package, you help prospects visualize what they'd get from a deal.
Prospects often request price reductions or add-ons when they have the upper hand in a deal. If you have approval from your sales manager, try the sharp angle close technique to catch these prospects by surprise.
When they ask, "Could you add on a few extra hours of onboarding at a discounted rate?鈥 reply, 鈥Sure. But if I do that for you, will you sign the contract today?"
They won鈥榯 likely expect this response 鈥 first, because you agreed to their request, and second, because you鈥檝e proposed closing today.
To achieve the two goals above, reps must ask prospects probing questions. Effective salespeople focus on as soon as a conversation begins. Through a series of questions, they develop desire in the client and eliminate purchase objections.
One can even close the sale in the form of a question, which allows the rep to address outstanding objections while gaining a commitment at the same time.
鈥淚n your opinion, does what I am offering solve your problem?鈥
This question lets you know if the prospect is sold on your product while keeping the door open for further selling. If the answer is 鈥渘o,鈥 it remains their opinion (not yet the truth), allowing you to continue selling. If the answer is 鈥測es,鈥 then signing on the dotted line is the next step.
Here's another question close: 鈥淚s there any reason why we can't proceed with the shipment?"
This question asks either for closure or more information about why the customer isn鈥檛 quite convinced. It鈥檚 a win-win.
This closing technique draws on the power of positive thinking. If you believe you will close this deal from the first piece of email outreach, it can have an incredible effect on the rest of the sales process.
What鈥榮 important here is to closely monitor your prospect鈥檚 interest, engagement, and objections throughout.
After a call or meeting, ask, "Did this presentation align with your expectations?鈥 If you've just provided them with new information about your product or service, ask, 鈥Does this sound like something that would be valuable to you? Does this meet a specific need or pain point?"
By keeping your ear to the ground 鈥 and assuming good intent from the start 鈥 you鈥榣l bring authority and direction to your sales process that wouldn鈥檛 be there otherwise.
Picture a kid.
If you give this kid a toy and you take it away, what would the kid do? They鈥檒l cry in protest to get the toy back. You can use this psychological approach on your prospects.
If they're balking on price, remove a feature or service and present the discounted offer to them. You can say, 鈥淥ur product will perfectly fit your budget. However, we can only provide Feature 1 or Service 1 at the initial price. Does this work for you?鈥
Often, you鈥檒l find that the prospect will think more about what you removed rather than the discounted price or their proposed price.
The soft close lets you show the benefit of your product to prospects, followed by a low-impact question that ascertains their openness to learning more.
"If I could reduce widget maintenance by 25% and increase widget productivity by 15%, would you be interested in learning more?"
You've clearly stated the benefits without making any demands or sudden requests.
If the example above still seems too direct, you could ask, "If I told you I could reduce widget maintenance by 25% and increase widget productivity by 15%, would that align with your company goals?"
This removes their need to commit to you and gives you more time to learn about their business needs.
Salespeople use this technique to present prospects with two or more buying options that can lead to a sale. Prospects may believe this puts them in the driver's seat and gives them the feeling of control over the deal.
In truth, it doesn鈥檛. That鈥檚 because salespeople can suggest options but subtly direct prospects to the more expensive package they want prospects to choose.
If your prospect is pushing back on price and wants certain features, you can say, 鈥淲ould you get our Pro plan, which includes free onboarding and six months of free support, or our Basic plan, which starts at $30 per month but has fewer features and no free support?鈥
The something for nothing close involves offering a gesture of goodwill. Salespeople hope prospects repay this gesture by signing a deal. This closing technique is great for companies that lack social proof and want to get customers fast.
It鈥檚 also excellent for companies who are trying to get prospects to switch from a competitor's product.
Salespeople can say, 鈥淎lright. We know you have lots of data in your [software name], and migrating to ours will cost upwards of $1,500. If you sign today, we would migrate your data for free. Would you like that?鈥
This closing technique is great for prospects with large deal sizes. When you have such prospects, and they develop cold feet, incentivize them by creating a special offer exclusive to them. It鈥檚 a win-win. The prospect gets a unique offer. You seal the deal.
鈥淚f I ask my manager to offer you a discount, free trial, or free migration, would you be willing to sign a contract?鈥
Use this closing technique when you know your prospect could lose something substantial without your solution. By highlighting their potential loss, you make the prospect rethink their decision about stalling a deal.
鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 like you to deal with [negative outcome 1] and [negative outcome 2] because you lacked the right [category of your product]. Would you like to forestall such outcomes by taking the next step?鈥
The Puppy Dog Close is a more immersive approach to closing. It foregoes explanation in favor of experience 鈥 meaning it revolves around prospects testing a product or service firsthand as opposed to hearing about it from a sales professional.
Delivering on the method rests on some key factors and activities. For starters, you need to have a solid picture of how your prospect will demo your offering. Will you offer free samples? A dedicated free trial? A more involved but carefully observed test?
You鈥榣l also need to establish a firm, constructive timeframe that allows a prospect to get a meaningful perspective on your product or service without being too costly from your end. Finally, you need to underscore all of this with transparency. Don鈥檛 offer a free trial only to yank it out from under your prospect and hit them with hidden or surprise fees on a dime.
鈥淲ould you like to try our product for 30 days free? If you like it after the trial, you can purchase any of our plans. If otherwise, you aren鈥檛 obligated to buy. What do you think?鈥
The objection closing technique works when you don鈥檛 know why a prospect is stalling. Often, the prospect still has a few objections. After you鈥檙e certain that your prospect knows what your product offers, ask if they have more objections.
鈥淪am, is there any reason that鈥檚 holding you back from signing this deal today?鈥
By asking this question, you can address their objection instantly and get them to sign a deal quickly.
Nothing builds trust better than videos. When you use videos to address objections, explain pricing, or talk about a feature, prospects see your face and the effort you put in to close them.
When you use the video close technique, keep tabs on your email to know when your prospect views the video. Once they do, chat with them and address other objections in real-time.
鈥淗i [first name]. I hope the video answered your question about [issue]. I鈥檇 love to answer any other questions immediately.鈥
Dubbed from , the Columbo Close is based on a famous one-liner 鈥 鈥淛ust one more thing...鈥
This technique works best when prospects show they aren鈥檛 interested in your product. By stopping prospects in their tracks, you gain their attention with the one-liner and have another chance to re-pitch your product better (without mentioning what your prospect already knows).
In this closing technique, the salesperson speaks like the prospect has bought the product. This is a classic example of 鈥渇uture pacing,鈥 where you make the prospect imagine how their future looks because they bought your product.
This technique works better when the salesperson has results or to back their points.
鈥淲hen you start using your [product, for example, 探花精选 CRM], you鈥檒l save time by not juggling multiple software as you鈥檒l have your all-in-one CRM. How would you spend the hours you save using [product] every month?鈥
In a last-ditch attempt to close a prospect, you can tell prospects the competitors they can try. Though unconventional, says this closing technique works. 鈥淲hen a pricing objection comes up, I love to talk openly about my prospects' alternative options,鈥 says Lindy.
鈥淢ost reps fear bringing up other players in their field, especially when their product is the most expensive,鈥 Lindy adds.
鈥淗ey, it sounds like this type of product/service may be out of your range right now. That said, there are some options our current users checked out prior to signing up with us. Below are the cost savings associated with going with these alternatives.鈥
The prospect will appreciate your honesty and spend less time shopping elsewhere. Plus, they now know you鈥檙e confident about the value of your product and that you care about them. If they hit a roadblock with any product you suggested, they鈥檇 likely come running to you.
When using this closing technique, Lindy recommends you know your prospect's pain points and avoid this technique early on in the sales cycle so you don鈥檛 come off as demeaning or 鈥渢oo good鈥 for the prospect.
The Ben Franklin Close is one of the more involved, consultative closing techniques sales professionals can leverage. The strategy involves working with a prospect to create a pros-and-cons list about a given offering.
Its value is multifaceted. For one, it gives you a sense of where a prospect's values and priorities lie. Secondly, it gives you a forum to more clearly articulate your value proposition, specifically in the context of the values and priorities you unearth. It also offers you an opportunity to raise benefits that your prospect might not have considered.
You also run some risks with this method. There's a chance you might accidentally shine a light on some particularly 鈥渃on-y鈥 cons that a prospect might have otherwise ignored. You also might push a little too hard on certain pros, only to have your prospect see them as more detrimental than compelling.
Once you鈥榲e closed the sale, it鈥檚 time to celebrate! But don't forget to tie up any loose ends before you high-five your team. Here are a few pro tips for what to do after closing the deal.
Trust us, your sales leaders will thank you for this. Logging your deal in your will help keep your team on target for forecasting and help keep your pipeline up-to-date with all the information needed for your team and customer to proceed to the next step.
Closing the deal is likely step one of the customer's journey with your business. From here, they may need to speak with customer success or support to get onboarded.
Set up an e-introduction to the next person taking over so that the customer has a smooth transition into the next step of the process.
Checking up on your new customer and asking how they feel about their purchase will go a long way when building trust and customer loyalty. If issues arise, you can quickly step in and help or find someone on your team who can.
Being skilled at closing is arguably one of the most important techniques a salesperson can master.
While your goal is to sell and hit your quota, it鈥檚 important to remember we鈥檙e all humans. Humans react based on how they are treated.
So remain friendly when using these sales closing techniques. Be empathetic. You can also find a mentor or fellow salesperson who excels at any of these techniques so they can help you implement these best practices.
Editor's note: This post was originally published in October 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.