How can you tell if it's time to close a business deal?

1 Identify the buying signals

When attempting to close a business deal, it's important to look for the buying signals that indicate your prospect's interest, urgency, and readiness to commit. These signals can be verbal or non-verbal, explicit or implicit, and vary depending on the type and stage of the deal. Examples of buying signals include asking about the price, terms, or delivery; requesting a proposal, a contract, or a demo; comparing your offer with other options or competitors; showing enthusiasm, excitement, or curiosity; seeking approval or feedback from other decision-makers or influencers; giving positive feedback or compliments; agreeing with your value proposition or benefits; and asking about the next steps or timeline. When you notice these buying signals, you should respond by confirming their interest, addressing any objections or concerns, and moving them closer to the decision.

2 Use trial closes

Trial closes are a technique that helps you test the waters and gauge your prospect's willingness to buy. This involves asking a question or making a statement that implies or suggests a close, without directly asking for the sale. Examples of trial closes include questions such as: 'How do you feel about our offer so far?'; 'If we can meet your budget, would you be ready to sign today?'; and 'What are the main criteria that will influence your decision?'. Additionally, trial closes can help you uncover any hidden objections, clarify any misunderstandings, and build rapport and trust. They can also help you prepare your prospect for the final close and make it easier and more natural.

3 Choose the right closing technique

When persuading a prospect to buy, you may need to use different closing techniques depending on the situation and the personality of your prospect. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, but some of the most common and effective closing techniques include the assumptive close, alternative close, summary close, and question close. For example, with the assumptive close, you act as if the deal is already done and proceed with the next steps. With the alternative close, you give your prospect two or more options to choose from. The summary close involves recapping the main benefits and value of your offer. Lastly, with the question close, you ask your prospect a question that leads them to say yes or agree with you. Each technique can help you overcome different objections or doubts and can be used in various scenarios.

4 Handle the objections

Even though you may have followed every step correctly, you may still encounter some objections or resistance from your prospect before closing the deal. Objections are not necessarily a bad thing, as it could mean that your prospect is engaged and interested. To handle objections effectively, you should listen actively and empathize with your prospect, acknowledge and validate their concerns, ask probing questions to understand the root cause and impact of the objection, provide evidence, testimonials, or case studies to back up your claims, reframe the objection as an opportunity or benefit, isolate the objection and confirm that it is the only barrier to the sale, ask for their opinion or feedback on how to resolve the issue, and finally confirm their agreement and move on to the close.

5 Follow up and confirm

The last step to close a business deal is to follow up and confirm the details and expectations of both parties, to avoid any potential misunderstandings or delays. It's important to send a thank you note expressing your appreciation and excitement, review the contract and terms, provide an invoice and receipt, deliver the product or service, and offer training, support, or guidance if needed. Additionally, ask for referrals, testimonials, or reviews if appropriate, and maintain regular communication and feedback until the deal is fully executed. Closing a business deal is a skill that requires patience, persistence, and practice. By following these tips you can increase your chances of closing more deals and growing your business.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?