a. Salespeople must have a goal-orientated mindset rather than a task-orientated mindset. A goal-oriented mindset means that a salesperson thinks that what they need to do to be successful at their job is to achieve their sales goal.

i. Example: Close $50,000 in new business each month

b. A salesperson with a task-oriented mindset thinks that what they should do to be successful at their job is to complete tasks (calling prospects, setting-up and conducting presentations, sending out information packets, etc..). This type of mindset will hinder their success because they will be focused on the wrong overall objective.

2. Redefine Call Purpose – Once a salesperson has a goal-oriented mindset, they should then redefine the purpose of their calls. A well-defined call purpose provides structure, direction, and a goal for the audience. That is why it is important to state the purpose of the call at the beginning of any conversation. For instance:

a. Task-Oriented Call Purpose = To present our products/services in detail and answer any questions a prospect may have.

b. Goal-Oriented Call Purpose = To present our products/services to a prospective customer and determine if their business would be better off utilizing them (assess fit).

3. Focus on Advancing the Sale – Most salespeople have heard of the A-B-C’s of closing (Always Be Closing). While many dismiss this as a hard-closing relic of the past, the principle of the technique should not be dismissed. In order for a purchase to occur, salespeople must be focused on advancing the sale at all times. Failure to do this will most likely result in stalling the opportunity and eventually losing the sale.

Everything a salesperson does (starting with the initial contact) should help move the sale forward. Activities such as; giving a presentation to a prospect, are just one tool to help advance a sale. They are not the goal in and of themselves.

4. Utilize the Trial Closing Technique  – Trial closing is defined as: the technique by which a salesperson tests the prospect's readiness to buy (it is not trying to close the sale or ask for the order).

a. Why should you trial close?

i. To determine if you are advancing the sale and achieving your call purpose.

1. If prospect responses are not advancing the sale, go back and adjust. If prospect responses are advancing the sale, continue moving forward.

b. When should you trial close?

i. At every point in the sales cycle. From initial contact until you are ready to ask for the order.

c. How do you trial close?

i. The easiest technique to utilize in trial closing is the 1.0 Inverted Pyramid below. With this technique you begin by asking broad trial closing questions that are primarily geared toward soliciting a prospect’s opinion. You then progress to more narrow questions that seek to gain agreement from the prospect.

5. Obtain Verbal Commitment  – To achieve the recommended call purpose, a salesperson should try to obtain a verbal commitment from the prospect before a proposal is sent out. While the salesperson may not be able to gain a verbal commitment each time, the effort to do so will generate more sales in a shorter amount of time. Verbal commitments should:

a. Only be asked of prospective customers who show interest in your products/services and advance through the sale cycle using the trial closing techniques recommended above.

b. Identify the exact product/service the prospective customer is interested in, the anticipated purchasing time frame, and the steps that will be taken by both parties to move forward with a sale.

c. Only be an “agreement in principle” and not prevent the prospect from the right to back out of the sale if they change their mind for any reason.

d. Be obtained before a proposal is sent out. There is no reason that a prospect needs to receive a proposal before agreeing in principle to what you are offering. If they won’t agree in principle, why would they want/need to receive a proposal?

i. Additionally, sending out a proposal before gaining a verbal commitment does not force a salesperson to try to close. A salesperson then chases the prospect hoping that a deal will close in the future.