Need help "closing deals"

[ABC]

Interesting topic.

I live by the code
Always
Be
Closing

I have never thought how I close.

I just do.

Rember you are selling an intangible good. You can't see it or touch it. So I sell my abilities to represent the client.
I work for them not the insurance company.

If your starting out and you don't know how to close my real advice to you is to sell price. Don't sell a policy that is not right for the client but find the best deal for them.

"I will find you the best deal on the market & here it is ready to sign up? "

I realize this is a brokers approach.

 

[Delta76]

"Closing" is the least important part of the sales process. Of the five:

1. Prospecting / Marketing
2. Need/Want Finding
3. Qualifying
4. Presenting
5. Closing

#4 and #5 are by far the least important. If you do a good job on the first three, the last two basically take care of themselves. In fact, if you can take care of #1, you can be successful by doing joint work with an experienced mentor until you learn the rest. It doesn't matter how good you are at the rest of the process unless you can adequately build a pipeline.

The only way to "always be closing" as the previous poster pointed out is to be a strong prospector/marketer.

 

[CHUMPS FROM OXFORD]

An oddity...those that sell the most...ask their clients "to buy" the least.

 

[somarco]

"Closing" is the least important part of the sales process. Of the five:

1. Prospecting / Marketing
2. Need/Want Finding
3. Qualifying
4. Presenting
5. Closing

#4 and #5 are by far the least important. If you do a good job on the first three, the last two basically take care of themselves.

and

those that sell the most...ask their clients "to buy" the least

are both truism's.

 

[Guest]

So those of you above that don't close are so magnificent that the clients roll right over and hand you the lube right?

Give me a break, over 60% of salespeople don't close the sale.
And they don't get the sale either.

You're closing, whether you'd like to admit it or not, you are closing.

You can't tell me that after presenting the solution (which is number 4) you just wait for your client to make the move.

Agent: (dead space goes here)

Client: Wonderful do you take food stamps?

Totally BS!!!

Take pride in the fact that you're a sles professional and don't insult those of us that know how to sell, have been mentored to sell and train others to sell.

Don't imply that it's so easy, that's part of the problem,and agent gets licensed, thinks they can buy leads and sell.

Well they can't! They go from one agency to the next, or even one sales job to the next and fail because they don't know how to sell, the don't know how to ask for the sale (if necessary) and they don't know how to respond to an objection.

 

[Guest]

If any of you guys interviewed for a job and boasted that you don't close when you sell, and you don't need training and all of the crap you throw around here, you would not get hired!!!

 

[Delta76]

robliano,

I'll break down where I'm coming from and I don't claim to have all the answers, in fact, I'm still a relative newbie in the business.

You're closing, whether you'd like to admit it or not, you are closing.

You can't tell me that after presenting the solution (which is number 4) you just wait for your client to make the move.

Totally BS!!!

I didn't say I wasn't closing, I just said it's the least important part of the process. My closing line if I have to pick one is, "what do you think?"

Take pride in the fact that you're a sles professional and don't insult those of us that know how to sell, have been mentored to sell and train others to sell.

I take tremendous pride in what I do. I believe selling is an honorable profession when practiced by a professional. There are a lot of amatuers out there that just got done reading a Tom Hopkins book and jumped into selling. In my opinion, that doesn't include worn out Ben Franklin and Zig Ziglar closes. In fact, I absolutely believe in sales training! I enrolled in the Sandler Sales Institute last year and believe it has been a critical component of my growth this past year.

Don't imply that it's so easy, that's part of the problem,and agent gets licensed, thinks they can buy leads and sell.

Well they can't! They go from one agency to the next, or even one sales job to the next and fail because they don't know how to sell, the don't know how to ask for the sale (if necessary) and they don't know how to respond to an objection.

Not trying to imply sales is easy. The over 90% failure rate illustrates differently. We just differ in our opinion on the reason new sales people fail, I don't believe it's because they don't know how to present and close. I believe the main cause of failure is they don't know how to or chose not to prospect/market consistently. Let's face it, it can be hard work when starting out! Most people are lazy.

The other main problem is not knowing how to listen to a prospect and uncover their pain and what they want to accomplish. Most newbies, including myself in the early stages, concentrate on talking product and that will only get you so far.

My two cents!

 

[Guest]

I'll see your two cents and raise you two.

I wasn't trying to be taken as aggressively as it may have come off. And I apologize if it seems that way, but that 90% failure rate can be avoided and it sucks because this is a great business to be and there's money to go around for everyone.

If you have a proper sales presentation, you would cover all of what you just mentioned. The intro, rapport, needs analysis, solution, value, closing, etc. etc. etc.

But you must apply it.

I totally agree, some are lazy. The people who fail after my training are the ones that don't apply what they learned.

When I ask them "what are you doing?"
They get like a kid with their hand in the cookie jar. Guilty and trying to make excuses.

well excuses don't work when you're broke do they?

 

[Guest]

Also, great point!

diligence/work ethic is a must. My dad left for work at 7AM 6 days a week, that's what I witnessed, rarely missed a day, he led by example and sold consistently.

 

[wrkin4christ]

Great Thread I learned alot even thru all the back and forth.

Thanks