Part 3: Close the Pipe!
Part three of a three-part series on managing the full sales cycle from start to finish. Filling, moving and closing your pipeline.
Part 3 of 3: Close the Pipe!
This is part three in our three-part series with insights and learnings on managing the sales cycle from start to finish. This week we focus on finalizing that deal. Overcoming objections, negotiating and closing the deal.
Part 1, Filling the Pipe (prospecting, opening, creating a deal and filling your pipeline)
Part 2, Moving the Pipe (discovery, demos and keeping momentum)
This week: Part 3, Closing the Pipe (overcoming objections, negotiation and closing)
In this week’s edition of Stretch Weekly - Part 3: “Close the Pipe”, we discuss:
Negotiation tips from the master himself Chris Voss & renowned sales guru John Barrows.
6 Tactics and Techniques to Close from Copper
Top 5 Negotiation Mistakes from Gong.
Plus… valuable snippets from experts on overcoming obstacles in the sales process, key closing techniques, and a new favorite podcast on negotiation from the guys over at 30 Min to Presidents Club.
Give it a read and let me know what you think.
-G
STRETCH SHARES
Negotiation Tips from Chris Voss & John Barrows
Never Split the Difference, best selling book by negotiation guru Chris Voss is a must read in sales. John Barrows talks with Chris on some key points of negotiation and pitfalls to avoid. So many great nuggets of intel in here.
Happy Ears and Selective Listening. It’s very easy to get happy ears in a deal. When we get everything in a deal and everything feels great or we think there is a chance, it can be dangerous. Really listen to provide tactical empathy.
“Win-Win” can take you hostage. If you hear this from prospects - beware. “the person who offers to meet you in the middle is a poor judge of distance”.😂
Law of Negotiation Gravity. “The most dangerous negotiation is the one you don’t know you are in”.
Actual Challenges are the single most driving decision factor and outweighs everything else in sales. “70% of buy decisions is to avoid loss”. However -don’t assume WHAT their “loss” is.
21% of prospects are just checking the box (due diligence) Do you know which deals in your pipeline are these? Find out if there is a real opportunity from the get go.
Read John’s summary and watch HERE.
How to Close: 6 Tactics for Any Scenario
Copper outlines a few techniques that your reps may very well be already using. I’ve seen variations of these but found this as a good resource to share. Do you follow a formal closing technique and process? What’s your vote on the most beneficial?
The assisted close. “What will it take to get this past the finish line this month?”
The assumptive close. “I’m excited to work with you. We’ll schedule your implementation and training for the 29th, in that case. Sound good?”
The natural close (very similar to Assumptive). “Were there any last questions you had? If not, it's about a 5-minute process to get you activated and set you up with our onboarding team.”
The urgent close. “I’ve got a few special incentives if we can tidy this up by end of the month. Is that something we can make happen?”
The high-pressure close. “Can I ask what’s holding you back from buying today? We identified how we are able to solve the critical issues your business is facing. Let’s get you in a good spot”
The custom close. “It sounds like this would be a great fit for your new business, especially with those new hires you’re planning to bring in next year. Anything else we need to address before moving forward with a signature?”
Top 5 Negotiation Mistakes
Gong has a well done “Negotiation Masterclass template you can download and share with your team. Quick, simple nuggets that may resonate with your reps to help them with things that ALWAYS come up in the final stages of closing a deal. Highly encourage downloading and going over this in a training, but I’ll summarize below:
Top 5 Negotiation Mistakes.
Unprepared for negotiations. Are you negotiating with the right person? Confirm pricing floor - stick to it.
You don't have enough information (MORE DISCOVERY. See previous article on Discovery HERE)
Using "List Price" instead of "Approved Price". We’ve started using this as a team and seems to be a great anecdote.
Rushing the process
Being too nice (Challenger Sale).
*Bonus - Give without Discounting.
View the full PDF HERE
STRETCH VP POST 👇
Top Closers in Sports and Selling
When we talk of what it takes to be a top closer in sales – my mind reverts to examples of top closers in sports (past and present) and what we can learn from them to help us perfect our craft here in sales. There is something amazing and inspiring about witnessing the best in the world compete AND WIN against their counterparts.
My GOAT list of closers in the sporting world?
Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan, Tom Brady and Michael Phelps.
Why? What can their stories teach us about closing deals?
Now - I’m trying something new. I’m hoping to leverage feedback, stories and anecdotal evidence to paint a picture of top closers you’ve worked with. What they say and how they think. What separates the clutch from the regulars.
With YOUR help - I’m hoping to compile a part two that specifically outlines what traits we can steer towards to become better closers. So - give the first edition a read and chime in with your feedback, insights and stories you’re willing to share.
STRETCH SNIPPETS
⚠️Copper gives us the 11 Top Sales Objections & How to Respond to Each
👂Jeb Blount says effective listening is where negotiators earn their stripes in this 8 min Podcast.
🗒Check out this Objection Handling Cheat Sheet from Chorus.
🚶♂️Richard Harris talks about “being willing to walk away from a deal” and “discount hangover” as two crucial things we can train our team on.
🚨Scott Barker & Alyssa Merwin say “Until the deal is done - its falling apart”
▶️A NEW podcast I stumbled on called 30 min to Presidents Club had a dynamite episode on Negotiating. I loved this episode and have added the Pod to my listening queue.
❌Sometimes you need to move on from a prospect. Pipedrive talks about best ways to move on.
🎓Gong’s Closing Kit Master Class - is a great video to share with your team and level up everyone’s closing skills.
⏳Close gives us 7 ways we can create urgency in deals now.
💸 Almost half of deals are lost because of budget. 25% are marked closed-lost because of timing. Lack of authority, time to review, and urgency are the third, fourth, and fifth most common reasons, respectively.
🧠 Mindset Matters
Thanks for reading!
My hope is if you find this valuable, consider sharing it with friends (or signing up if you haven’t already).
— Grant 👋
About stretch vp: confessions, learnings and insights from sales leaders in SaaS
Compiled and aggregated from a network of sales leaders in SaaS, Stretch VP showcases learnings, insights and experiences as well as best practices to overcome common hurdles, obstacles and setbacks in your quest for excellence as a sales leader in SaaS.
Are you a VP, Director, thought leader or content producer in the SaaS space? We’d love to have you contribute. Contact Me HERE.
Also… check out the blog or follow on twitter