The Perfect Close (Book Summary)

The Perfect Close: The Secret To Closing Sales – The Best Selling Practices & Techniques For Closing The Deal by James Muir

Summary of 9 Top Takeaways

• Though the book provides many actionable best-practices, the following diagram summarized the “perfect close” concept:
  

• Intent matters more than technique. Warmth is judged before competence. Adopt the mindset of genuinely wanting to help the other person in a friendly and ethical way.
• Advance – a significant action that requires energy by the client — either in the call or right after it — that moves the sale toward a decision.
• Understand and embrace the fact that evaluating alternatives is a key part of our prospect’s buying process. Rather than fight this — help them with it.
• It is critical that we add value on every single sales encounter. The key to value creation is providing insight rather than information.
• Not having an agenda sends the message that you are a time-waster not a value creator.
• Telegraphing a concession means giving that concession.
• You and your prospect will get a lot of value from mapping all the steps [of their buying process] at once.
• If necessary, instead of offering an end-of-quarter discount, say: “Does it make sense for me to see if we can do something special for you if we can get everything wrapped up by the end of the quarter?”

CHAPTER 1 Why Should I Bother to Learn The Perfect Close?

• Closing Secret # 1-Closing is more effective when it isn’t high-pressure or manipulative.
• Closing Secret # 2-The best closing approach must be easy enough to follow so that when it comes time to actually use the approach, it is second nature.
  

CHAPTER 2 What Is Closing Anyway?

• “A close is anything that puts the customer in a position involving some kind of commitment.”

CHAPTER 3 Adopting the Right Mindset

• Warmth is judged before competence. The key is to adopt a mindset that will have us transmitting the right intentions — one where we genuinely want to help the other person in a friendly and ethical way.
• Closing Secret # 5 – Intent matters more than technique
  

CHAPTER 4 Planning = Success

• Sales Objective – The revenue (or outcome) you anticipate generating by closing this opportunity with this particular client.
• Call Objective – an advance or commitment that is the desired outcome of this sales encounter with this particular person or group.
  

CHAPTER 5 The Critical Advance

• Close – a firm commitment to buy. It is the consummation of the sale and the final order that marks the transition from evaluating to actual ownership and use of the product or solution.
• Advance – a significant action that requires energy by the client — either in the call or right after it — that moves the sale toward a decision.
• Continuation-a situation where the sale will continue yet no specific action has been agreed upon by the customer to move forward.
• Efficiency is reducing the time it takes to do something. Effectiveness is doing the right things.
• Examples of advances might include:
  • Arrange for you to meet with a higher-level decision maker
  • Agree to meet with your technical team and invest time to discuss requirements and options
  • Share sensitive information needed for an assessment
  • Arrange a group meeting with executives for you to review the details of your proposed solution face-to-face
  • Have a meeting or conversation with a reference you provide
• “Sharing information,” “strengthening the relationship,” and “gathering information” are all continuations. None of these require much action or energy on behalf of the client.
• Set up true advances as primary and secondary objectives on each call.
  

CHAPTER 6 How to Set Call Objectives

• Each call objective should be specific enough that it is a simple matter to know at the end of the call whether or not it was accomplished.
• Your call objective should be realistic from the client’s perspective.
• Three Magic Pre-call Questions
  1. Why should this client see me?
  2. What do I want the client to do?
  3. How can I provide value on this encounter?
     

CHAPTER 7 Why Should this Client See Me?

• The measurable value you bring to your clients is the reason they should meet with you. That is your Value Proposition.
• Your value proposition communicates (among other things) both the measurable value you deliver, as well as how you differ from competitors or alternatives in your same space.
• Formula: [ Direction ] + [ Metric ] + [ Magnitude ]
  • Example: We increase lead conversion by an average of 47%.
    

CHAPTER 8 What Do I Want My Prospective Client to Do?

• We will be aiming for the highest level of incremental commitment we can realistically achieve.
• Your call objectives should meet four criteria: 1. They should be specific and measurable. 2. They should center on the action the prospect will take. 3. They should move the sale forward. 4. They should be reasonable from the prospect’s perspective.
  
• Understand and embrace the fact that evaluating alternatives is a key part of our prospect’s buying process. Rather than fight this — help them with it.
• Common indicators of engagement that are often confused for advances:
  • Prospect asks you for a proposal. This is probably the engagement most commonly mistaken as an advance.
  • I strongly recommend that you wait for the prospect to request the proposal rather than you suggesting delivering one
• Upgrade the prospect’s request [for a proposal] to an advance by requiring something logical of them that represents a commitment or an expenditure of energy such as an assessment or detailed discovery before you produce the proposal.
• Probably the biggest crime in selling is to just email a proposal to a prospective client.
• Your contact is not likely to articulate the value of your solution better than you, so unless their internal politics dictate otherwise, you are far better served to deliver the explanation yourself rather than having your contact or someone else inside their company be an agent for you.
• The best salespeople are able to get prospects to agree to a continuous stream of small actions.
  

CHAPTER 9 How Can I Provide Value on This Encounter?

• It is critical that we add value on every single sales encounter. The key to value creation is providing insight rather than information.
• How you sell matters more than anything else. “How you sell is a sample of how you solve.”
• The more complex a solution is, the more buyers rely on trust and outside validation.
• Types of value:
  • Category 1: Ability to fulfill an order or request; Ability to provide the best offering or price; Ability to respond and listen when approached
  • Category 2: Ability to challenge current thinking; Ability to proactively bring innovative ideas; Ability to provide thought leadership
  • Three criteria make insight valuable: 1. It must be relevant. 2. It must be novel. 3. It must be actionable.
• Research done by Huthwaite uncovered that buyers are willing to pay a premium under the following circumstances: ▪ The seller identified an Unanticipated Solution for the buyer’s problems. ▪ The seller identified an Unrecognized Problem the buyer was experiencing. ▪ The seller identified an Unseen Opportunity. ▪ The seller acted as more than just a vendor of products and services but instead served as a Broker of Strengths (their term).
• Know What Stage of the Buying Process Your Prospect is In Buyers go through eight distinctive stages whenever making a purchase. 1. Unaware 2. Awareness 3. Define Problem 4. Consider Options 5. Evaluate Solutions 6. Justify Decision 7. Final Selection 8. Implementation
• Offer insight as to the gap between where they are and where they could be or should be.
• Help them quantify the potential impact of their current problems or the upside with an opportunity.
• If they are considering a few specific solutions, you might help them understand which to deliver to their desired results.
• Help them outline the plan or steps they need to take to reach their goal.
• Alert them to pitfalls to avoid and suggest ways to reduce risks associated with moving forward.
• To guide your thinking as you plan each encounter, ask yourself, “What stage of the buying cycle is my prospect/client in? “Then ask, “What would they consider most valuable at this stage?”
• Confirm your agenda with the client. Make sure your agenda satisfies their expectation of what they want to be covered.
• Not having an agenda sends the message that you are a time-waster not a value creator.
• True value-adding questions are those to which the client does not already know the answer. They require thought, encourage reflection, advance the conversation into new territory, and the answers add value to the individuals involved.
• When we prompt higher-level thinking, we add value.
• Take notes.
• Share New Ideas New ideas represent a limitless area of value.
• Consider developing educational sessions either occasionally or on a regular basis.
  

(No key highlights from Chapter 10)

CHAPTER 11 Creating a Collaborative Meeting Agenda

• To sum up, your stated meeting objective should be stated from the prospect’s perspective.

CHAPTER 12 The Perfect Close

• The Perfect Close Questions
  • Initial Question: “Does it make sense for us to X so that Y?“
    • Does it make sense for us to schedule a meeting with your team so we can get their input on what would be most beneficial for them?”
  • Follow-Up Question: “[OK,] What is a good next step [then]?”
• We are asking if the timing is right to do something. In fact, asking with those terms is a perfectly acceptable variation of the technique. ”You know Bob, is the timing right for us to talk about scheduling a site visit for you and your team? “
• They will expect these concessions regardless of when they close, whether it is in your desired time frame or not Said another way, once you offer a concession, your client is expecting that concession regardless of all other factors.
• Telegraphing a concession means giving that concession.
• When a client answers “no “to question one, they are simply saying that the timing is not yet right for that step.
• Example:
  • PROFESSIONAL: “Well Jeff, now that you’ve seen a full demonstration it’s pretty common to want to see it humming in a live environment at a client site. Does it make sense for us to talk about scheduling a site visit for you?
  • POTENTIAL CLIENT: “No, I don’t think we need that yet.”
  • PROFESSIONAL: “Gotcha. Well, what do you think would make a good next step then?”
• Softening statements like “gotcha” acknowledge that you heard them, that you understand them, and it sets up question two, “What is a good next step then?”
• Variations of The Perfect Close
  • The Suggestion:
    • “Other clients at this stage typically take X as the next step in their evaluation.”
    • “At this stage others typically do X. Does it make sense to X? ”
  • The Fall Back:
    • Question One: “Does it makes sense to do X?“
    • Question Two (if question one fails): “Clients at this stage typically do X. Does it make sense to do X?“
    • Question Three (if question two fails): “What’s a good next step then?”
  • The Add-On: once you achieve success with your ideal advance you continue on to suggest one of the additional alternate advances you have prepared.
    • Question One: “Does it makes sense to do X? “Question Two (after question one succeeds): “Clients at this stage very often also do X. Does it make sense to do X?”
    • “Are there any other logical steps we should be taking right now?”
  • The Reverse Order
    • Question One: “What would you say is a good next step? “Question Two (if the client is stumped): “Does it make sense for us to X?”
    • A client-suggested advance does not necessarily mean it will be the best advance for them or for you. On the flip side, because the suggestion is theirs, the client will feel like they are more in control with this variation than any of the other variations
• You and your prospect will get a lot of value from mapping all of the common steps at once.
  
• End-of-quarter discounts are essentially trading margin for timing. Instead, offer the more abstract ‘Something Special.’
  • “Does it make sense for me to see if we can do something special for you if we can get everything wrapped up by the end of the quarter?”
  • Something Special is really just a standard Perfect Close question that reveals the client’s timing without telegraphing a concession.
  • Naturally, you adapt the time frame to suit your situation. Otherwise, I recommend you use it verbatim.
  • If the buyer says that it “IS possible to wrap things up “within your timeframe, then you have a couple of options: 1. Ask what they would find most valuable. Not guaranteeing anything until you first talk with others inside your organization. 2. Tell them you will go see what you can do and that you will report back. Then go discuss your options with your organization or supervisor.
  • Something Special accomplishes three important things: 1. It doesn’t telegraph any kind of concession or the size of that concession. 2. It reveals if the client is able to do something within your suggested time frame. 3. It positions you as an advocate for the client. You are doing all this on their behalf.
• Best Practice Principles for Using The Perfect Close
  • Initially, use the suggested phraseology.
  • Know your prospective clients’ typical buying process.
  • Prepare advances before every sales encounter
  • Use The Perfect Close in every sales encounter
  • Use the Fall-Back variation every time your ideal advance falls short.
  • Use the Add-On variation every time your ideal advance succeeds.
    

CHAPTER 13 Putting It All Together-The Perfect Close for Your Next Meeting in 7 Easy Steps

1. Research Your Client
2. Determine Your Value Proposition
3. Define Your Questions
4. Determine Your Advances
5. Define Your Unexpected Value
6. Create Your Agenda
7. Prepare Your Mindset
   

A Final Word

• “People can tell when you don’t care.