“Call me after the holidays”, “We won’t look at this until after the beginning of the year”, “we don’t know if we’ll have a budget for that next year”, etc.
Chances are, these are some of the phrases your salespeople may be getting around this time of year.
So what should they do around this time of year since most companies are either busy with holiday parties, looking over last year’s numbers, or strategizing for the New Year? The first step is to recognize that as legitimate as they may sound, these are put-offs.
Here are three things to will help your sales team understand where they stand:
1. Get a clear commitment to the next step - You'll want to be very clear about the next date and time your salesperson and the prospect will get together, as well as any agenda items that should be discussed. A prospect who is serious about meeting will have no problem setting up a date on the calendar to meet. Think about sales as dating – someone who really wants to be together (in this case, meet) will make time, no matter the circumstance.
2. Beware of wishy-washy words - Salespeople tend to overlook these words, because in their mind, they automatically think “maybe” is a good thing since the prospect did not say “no”. Understand what “probably” and “maybe” really mean. Once they know what these mean, they’ll know where they really stand.
3. Be ready to close the file – If your salespeople can’t get a clear timeline as to when the next meeting will take place or there are many wishy-washy words still floating around, then chances are, the prospect is not willing to invest the time, money, and resources to make a change. In this case, it’s time to close the file.
And most importantly – never underestimate the power of intuition. Your gut will always know first. We all come up with put-offs sometimes, especially around this busy time of year. For that reason, it can be helpful to get some help in planning for the New Year. CLICK HERE to request one of our speakers to help out at your next meeting.