Combat the Closing Techniques – Fulfill Your Dreams Close

The Pug FatherAre you or have you ever been a salesperson? In some cases, I imagine selling is a high speed, high pressure job. I have wondered how difficult it is to spend the entire day working a crowd to sell the latest “As Seen on TV” product.

My more common perception is that most sales jobs consist of hours of boring administrative activities, working the phones with only the occasional spurt of activity. Real Estate for example involves hours spent canvassing neighborhoods alone, keeping track of what is for sale, what is not and trying to find new listings. Have you ever wondered about car salesman? They say most cars sell on the weekends. If so, what do those people do the rest of the week? Insurance, furniture, and wholesale sales; why would we think these are any different?

In those precious moments when a customer is available there must be a rush of adrenaline with each chance to generate income. The  salesman’s challenge is changing a customer that is looking into a customer that is buying.

The Road to the Sale – revised

Many companies have developed unique sales processes to achieve their goal. “The Road to the Sale” as it is known, begins with the “meet and greet.” Sandwiched in between are the steps to identify the customer’s needs and present the features and benefits of your product. Ultimately, if all goes well, the salesperson gets to “close” (sell the product) the customer.

For a few salespeople, they will turn this traditional approach on its head. With the “Fulfill Your Dreams” technique, the salesperson bypasses product presentations or a needs analysis. After a brief meet and greet the salesman tries to “close” the sale quickly.

“If I could sell you the car you want, for a price you are willing to pay, would you buy it today?”

How could you not say “yes?” Customers are not likely to take these questions too seriously. After-all, if you could have a Veyron for less than six figures you would jump at the chance, right?

By answering in the affirmative, you would be telling the salesperson you are psychologically ready and willing to buy. Only after confirming a customer is willing to buy do they proceed with the other steps in the road to the sale.

The sales person’s responsibility is now to build the perception of value in their products before talking price. The sales person will want to begin with the highest number possible, providing the greatest room to maneuver.

Fighting Back

If you don’t want to give the salesperson the advantage, you have two choices:

1) Break the close – If you think quickly and don’t mind being direct you can stop a salesperson in their tracks with a firm and direct “no thank you.” Professional sales people will revert to a more traditional approach of building rapport and then attempting a different closing process if you allow them.

2) Lead the sale – After identifying this closing technique has been used on you, take control by confirming your intent to buy. With the first mention of price laugh it off as if the price is way too high. Counter with a price that is slightly less than half of the retail price.

During a normal economy a 50% discount on anything is not likely. But for each round of negotiation move your price up in 5 – 10% increments. Challenge the salesperson to drop the price further with each effort. If you make it past the third round without getting thrown out, explain politely that you have raised your prices (3 increments of 5-10%) 15% to 30% over your opening bid. Compare verbally your increases to their decreases illustrating how you have given more in this negotiation.

Personally the second option sounds much more fun!

Readers: Have you ever dragged a salesperson through their whole pitch knowing full well you would never buy? Did you ever sit through a sales demonstration so you could earn a free gift? Leave a comment below and tell us what it was.

If you like to be challenged to see things with a fresh perspective, if you like to learn new ideas and different concepts, sign up for my RSS feed or enter your email address here to receive updates directly to your in-box.

photo by The Pug Father


Daily Yakezie Short Carnival

Shopping for Mattresses: How Much Would You Spend? By The Well Heeled Blog

Frugal Getaways: 5 Ways To Treat Yourself With A Frugal Vacation by Canadian Finance

How I Knocked 5 ½ Years off my Loan and Saved $12,000 by Cool to be Frugal

These posts have been chosen as the best post of the month by the bloggers who submitted them, so check them out if you are looking to add more blogs to your reading list.

What’s your magic number? The (literally) million-dollar question

Today I present a Guest Post by @FinEngr, fellow Yaekzie member and author of Engineer Your Finances. He applies a background in engineering to personal finance. Under the belief that everyone has the ability to reach their financial goals through education and continual refinement, FinEngr tries to give readers a different perspective on money.

What’s your magic number? The (literally) million-dollar question.
People like whole numbers. They’re simpler to calculate and easier to track. This is why tips are rounded up to 20% (or down to 10% depending on the service) or why investors are worried if the Dow is below 10,000 or gold is above $1,000/oz.

Simon DavisonTalk to anyone about their personal finances, and the magic number is $1,000,000. The holy grail which defines success for the average person. While personally I don’t think this is enough anymore (remember Austin Powers?), this remains the standard benchmark.

Of course, it’s good to have goals. But simply setting broad ones isn’t enough. If you’ve read through this site, you’ll know of Lean Life Coach’s Principles of Financial Management.

If you haven’t, check out each article. For now, I’ll summarize “Goal Setting”, which falls under #7 on the list. When you truly want to achieve your goals, you must create SMART goals. This acronym refers to goals which are: Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time Based.

So let’s start over. What’s your goal? To become a millionaire. Okay, specific enough. You go through each step until you arrive at Time Based.

Geez, I have no idea how long it will take. Thankfully, there are numerous calculators out there to help you answer just this question. Problem solved right? Not really.

Deciding to test the value of each, I ran a sample on 10 different online calculators. Assuming the same variables for each (salary, savings, age, tax bracket,etc), the outputs returned interesting numbers. The results varied by 16 years!

That’s a really big range for determining such an important goal! Why does it vary so much?

Assumptions.

Some of the calculators asked what percentage of my investments would be in taxable vs. non-taxable accounts or what I anticipated my annual raise to be, some did not.

For any model, your calculations are only as good as your initial assumptions. Much like the idea that housing would always appreciate or the use of mathematical models to design mortgage-backed securities, the underlying assumptions play a very important role.

Imagine if I told you I could guess your weight with three simple questions: your age, height, and if you liked McDonald’s. Doesn’t seem like enough information, does it? What about how much you eat there, how often you eat there, how often you exercise, or what your general metabolism is like.

Point being, the more detailed your initial assumptions are, the stronger the results. This is why creating SMART goals will give you a clearer picture. And the more clear the end result is to you, the easier it will be to reach that goal – kind of like driving in the rain versus a sunny day.

And of course, the world is significantly more dynamic than any of these calculators would have you believe. No matter how sophisticated the algorithm, there’s always the human element.

If you like to be challenged to see things with a fresh perspective, if you like to learn new ideas and different concepts, sign up for my RSS feed or enter your email address here to receive updates directly to your in-box.

photo by Simon Davison’s

Earning A Living or Living An Earning?

Plutus Award

So which is it? Are you earning a living or living and earning?3)Earning

What is the difference?

Living an Earning

Most people are living an earning. They get up everyday to head off to a job they don’t care about or even hate. They work hard and get nothing accomplished. There is no sense of satisfaction in their jobs and their careers are going nowhere. They are however, making some money, maybe even enough to survive.

Unfortunately everything they have earned has been spent. They bought the nice car three years ago and traded it in, upside down on another car this year. Their mortgage is greater than their house is worth thanks to the recession. Although it probably would have only been a break even proposition without the recession.

What they do earn, for the foreseeable future, is also spent not just on the mortgage and their new upside down car but also on the credit cards, revolving accounts and student loans. They are in debt up to their eyeballs and they know it, but they have no idea how long it will take to climb out.

They are working for a wage that will only sustain a long, slow decline deeper into the abyss of debt.

Earning a Living

There are also people that are earning a living. They make enough to at least survive while some even thrive. These are the people that take a few minutes with each purchase decision to consider the impact it will have not just on their checking balance today but also on their financial future.

These are the people that realize there is always room for improvement, opportunities to reduce their expenses and the possibility to increase their income. When you are earning a living you recognize that the dollars earned today are not just to cover today’s expense but the costs you will incur in the future.

People that are earning a living recognize that they must spend less than the earn so there is always some earning left that goes towards a future free of financial worries, a future more likely to involved retirement and relaxation.

Which are You Doing?

If you are among the former it is time to switch sides. Come over to the side of fiscal responsibility, debt elimination and wealth creation. There is not magic pill or get rich quick scheme to take or buy there is only a change of lifestyle. You must be willing to sacrifice a little each day so that you will have the opportunity to enjoy tomorrow.

Are you among the latter? If you are already among those that are earning a living then you are among those that know there is still room for improvement. Are you already doing enough to ensure your future and financial well-being? It may be time to step it up another notch, reduce some unnecessary expenses or increase your income.

So what is it, are you living an earning or earning a living?

More importantly, now that you know, what are you going to do next?

If you like to be challenged to see things with a fresh perspective, if you like to learn new ideas and different concepts, sign up for my RSS feed or enter your email address here to receive updates directly to your in-box.

photo by The Consumerist
photo by Donald Macleod


Daily Yakezie Short Carnival

The Curse Of Making Too Much And Not Pursuing Your Dreams By The Financial Samurai

You and the clutter continuum by Simple Life in France

These posts have been chosen as the best post of the month by the bloggers who submitted them, so check them out if you are looking to add more blogs to your reading list.

Lean - Life - Learn

Money, personal finance, savings, debt reductionWant to talk about waste, sit down at a computer and start surfing the web. You may find a few minutes of laughter, pick up a nugget or two, but the vast majority of your time will likely be spent looking at information you already know or waiting for sites to load.

I’m no different than any other surfer. Instead of hours of waste for a few nuggets, how about just seeing the nuggets? I learned from each post listed below and thought you might find them worthwhile as well. Each listing has enough detail so you will know if it is value added to you or not:

Ever find yourself on a mainstream site such as New York Times with interest in an article, only to find out that you must register to read it? What a pain in the arse this is! First you fill out the forms, then you have to open your email to confirm the registration blah blah blah… Jim Wang @ Bargaineering turned me on to BugMeNot. A site that you can find and share generic user and passwords for common sites.

Yakezie SMTaxes are on everyone’s mind. If you owed, I’m sorry. If you had a refund, I’m sorry. What, how can I be sorry for both? The owing part is obvious, the refund however… If Uncle Sam owed you that means you provided a interest free loan to the government. If  you want to make sure you get your witholdings on your W4 correct, check out How to Adjust Tax Withholdings by Deliver Away Debt. com

Yakezie SMIn February some new laws were implemented with the intent on improved regulation of the credit card companies in order to protect you and I. Credit Card Chaser.com has insight that helps us see the result may be very different. Take a look at Will the Card Act Turn Credit Card Users Into Payday Loan Users?

How about some sound investing advice coupled with a chance to learn a little about the psychology of investing? Steadfast Finances.com shares some interesting information about how people tend to follow the herd with Missing Out On Profits Is More Frightening Than Losing Money.

Yakezie SMAnd what about your investments. Are you sure you are not simply losing your nest egg to outrageous fees? Have you ever really investigated how much your 401K program is keeping from your investments? You must take a look at PT Money.com and his article 401K Fees Expenses Brightscope Review.

Yakezie SMWhere are the best investments for the long-term? In the depths of the current market it is hard to keep a good perspective. But the Investor @ Monevator.com helps to bring it all down to earth with Volatility Inflation and Asset Class Returns.

Lastly, I picked up this nugget while floating around the web. Unfortunately I forgot where it came from. If you featured this link in the past two weeks, leave a comment below so that I can recognize the source. It is both eye opening and gut wrenching at the same time. When you look at it you will understand why so many believe that severe tax increases are inevitable and why we must keep voting our leaders out of congress until we get a group that is willing to make the tough choices. Best of all this comes straight from non other than the CIA.

If you like to be challenged to see things with a fresh perspective, if you like to learn new ideas and different concepts, sign up for my RSS feed or enter your email address here to receive updates directly to your in-box.

photo by dierk schaefer

Combating the Closing Techniques - The Assumptive Close

Combating the Closing Techniques is a new series at Eliminate the Muda! This series explores the tactics companies and salespeople use to separate us from our cash. For background, you may want to read the post that originated this concept, Marketing or Manipulation, featured on Financial Samurai.

money, sales, saving, closing techniques, assumptive closeThe title of this closing technique is extremely descriptive of the approach. A salesperson assumes that you are going to buy. The success of this technique however is dependent on the quality of its execution.

A good salesperson can read a customer and identify those that are comfortable in the environment and those that are in a defensive state. This close only works well when we are relaxed. If rapport has been established this close is approached nonchalantly and works very well if set up correctly.

The Set-Up

The “set up” is straightforward, in involves a salesperson providing all the information about the product or service up front. They try their best to provide answers to any questions before the questions are asked.

Yakezie SMThis post was featured in the Yakezie Challenge Carnival at The Life of an Insurance Salesman. Please check it out for many other great articles on personal finance.

Through the process a salesperson may take advantage of unintentional clues that you provide. If you smile when they talk about how environmentally friendly the product is, they ask “do you feel good buying products that are eco-friendly?” When you nod your head at their descriptions of their products ability to make your life easier, they may inquire “Does having more free time sound good to you?” Maybe you lean slightly forward to look at a brochure as the salesperson describes the timeless styling. She may then question if you could see yourself using the product.

Each time a salesperson strategically elicits a confirmation out of you, each time you say yes, they look upon this event as a “trial close.” The more you say yes to the smaller questions the closer they believe they are to moving you toward a commitment to purchase.

The Assumption

Once a salesperson has confirmed several positive trial closes and presented the features and benefits the assumptive close begins. It is really quite simple.

The salesperson will pull out the buyers order or sales forms and begin filling them out. Even if they already know how to spell your name they may confirm the spelling again. If you don’t stop them, another trial close is confirmed. They will continue filling out all the necessary information to complete the sale.

At the end of the form, when all data is entered, a good salesperson will simply turn the documents to you, put a big X next to the signature line and hold the pen out for you to take it. A significant portion of relaxed buyers will follow this lead, take the pen and sign the form.

Fighting Back

In any sales process there are fundamentally only two types of consumers; those that had no intention to buy and those that do.

If you had no intention to buy why are giving the salesperson the time of day? Walk away.

If you do want to buy, you also want to get the most for your money. Make the salesperson understand from the beginning that they will need to earn your business by giving them as little information as possible. A salesperson is not and never will be your friend first, be polite, be respectful but there is no need to build a relationship, this is business.

Don’t be antagonistic; a good salesperson will use defensiveness against you. Think of buying like playing a game of poker; do not give away your hand. Leave them in the dark and make let them throw all their cards on the table leaving you with the advantage. If  you don’t nod or agree to impertinent comments they have no reason to think you are ready to buy. This will cause them to keep working harder to earn your business.

Use the Assumptive Close to Your Benefit

Especially when it comes to big purchases and commonly negotiated products or services such as real estate and cars the facts and figures that go on the contract are not rigid.

You could use this close to your advantage. Give the salesman his trial closes, not and say yes and let him believe you will buy. At the end when the real close comes, pick up the form, use a clipboard or book as a writing surface and hold the document up so the salesperson cannot see it. Engage them in some idle conversation about how their company will support you after the sale or some other topic. During this idle time change the terms documented. Cross out the selling price and enter your own. Eliminate the list of fees and charges of miscellaneous processes, but don’t sign.

Express how as you look at this quote it seems a little steep, ask if there is room to drop the price a little. Your definition of little and hers may be different but that is OK, the salesperson will believe so much that you are ready to sign they will probably agree thinking they will not a few dollars off.

Then take a minute to tell the salesperson a story about how angry you get at being nickeled and dimed with extra fees. Ask them if they can understand why and if it might be possible, “in the interest of making an easy sale” to eliminate these fees. Likely their response will include a promise to talk to their manager.

At this point you turn the documents back and say. Here is my final offer, take it or leave it. The key to your success is doing your research up front. You must have knowledge of pricing and margins for the product before you walk in. If your price is unreasonable they cannot sell the product. If it is reasonable you must be prepared to walk if they won’t play.

For more, read: Combat the Closing Technique – The Puppy Dog Close
Combat the Closing Technique – The Power of Suggestion

If you like to be challenged to see things with a fresh perspective, if you like to learn new ideas and different concepts, sign up for my RSS feed or enter your email address here to receive updates directly to your in-box.

photo by chrismear

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