My Favourite Phrase
🏋🏻 You’ve done the hard work..
Picture this: you've been in a sales conversation with a potential client, and it's been quite the journey. You two have shared jokes, you’ve nailed that discovery call and you’ve managed to send a proposal (for proposal you can insert ‘quote’ or ‘offer’ as you wish). You've put in the effort to build this connection, nurturing it like a plant, and now you find yourself at a crucial point - closing that deal..
Ultimately, building a strong rapport from the start is like laying the foundation for any long lasting relationship. It takes time, effort, and a dash of charm. But even after all of this, after all the effort you’ve put in - you’ll have that dreaded moment where you don’t get a reply.
⏰ Let’s take it back a bit.
From the start of every sales ‘deal’ you need to be aware of some of the fundamental ground rules which exist, these will make your life a whole lot easier and should allow you to ‘avoid’ the phrase I’ll use later but every now and again, we don’t follow the ideal process do we.
You need to be providing micro commitments all the way through the sales deal - building congruence from the very start.
Congruence is a term used by Carl Rogers (a humanistic psychologist) to describe a state in which a person's ideal self and actual experience are consistent or very similar but in this case, we’re building an image of ourselves in the clients mind which aligns with the image that we want them to see - in other words, we’re doing everything we say we’re going to do when we say we’re going to do it.
This starts from the very beginning -
Prospecting from the start, if you’re sending cold emails and you say that you’re going to follow up - follow up.
If you send a cold email and you say when you’re going to follow up - follow up at the time and on the day you said you will.
If you say you’re going to call a client at a particular time, make sure it’s at that time.
If you say you’re going to send further information - do it when you say you were going to do it.
These micro commitments serve as a way to build an image and an expectation in the prospects mind that you’re going to do something when you say you will - it’s about setting an expectation early on that you do something for them and the power of reciprocity means that you’re more likely to get a response or something back.
I’m clearly skipping over the qualification of a sale and making sure that the prospect is one that you/they want to do business with - maybe I can touch on that in a later blog.
These micro commitments are the initial and most important parts of the sales process, you should focus on this part of the process as it will pay serious dividends later on.
👋🏻 The middle bit.
This is where we’re doing the work which most people recognise as ‘sales’ - it’s the relaying of features/benefits, tailoring your service to meet with the exact needs of the client and then making sure you send the proposal in good time.
This is my favourite part - it’s where I think I excel as I’m able to ask the right questions to get to the right problem and offer the right solution.
I don’t really have a set process for this part of the sales cycle - I have an intuitive feel for asking questions and I use a natural inquisitiveness to drive a conversation around the sale.
If I was to try and boil it down - I’d offer up the following stages -
Firstly, I try to understand who I’m talking to - there are a few distinct types of personalities in a buyer, whether they are a talker, a straight shooter or someone who is just like me. Once I understand who I’m talking to, I know how to then focus and deliver my offer.
Second, I dig deep. I want to know what the client has tried before and why it didn’t work, I want to know what their problem is and what they want to solve. I need to find out if they’ve tried anything to solve the problem before and whether they’ve worked with anyone to try and overcome what they want to resolve.
Thirdly, it’s about ascertaining the financial situation - can they afford it? Do they have a particular buying process or can they buy something direct? If I know how they’re set up financially then it makes it easier to understand how to structure any deal.
Finally, I want to know if there are any other interested parties in the deal, this could consist of;
A senior buyer?
A technical influence - someone who may veto or support the offer
A user - is there a key user or party in the business who isn’t in the meeting.
So, you’ve got your proposal ready to go - you’ve sent it off and using the micro commitments that we spoke about at the start, you’re going to say when you’ll follow up and then you start that process..
👻 The Ghost
Then it happens, you’ve had the perfect sales process up until this point - you’re super diligent and you’ve done all the stages perfectly but then it happens, you get ghosted.
This is what I find so frustrating about buyers/prospects - sometimes it’s not even their fault.
If you look at it from their perspective, they feel that pressure to reciprocate the good work, the diligence and the communication but if something isn’t right or they’ve had a cheaper offer - how do they do that?
I like to deal with the client that’s ghosted in three stages -
1️⃣ STAGE ONE
This is following the same path as you’ve been doing - for two to three iterations. Whether that’s an email or a call (I would personally alternate these options) but state what you’re going to do in an email and say that you’re going to call on a certain day, at a certain time and then do it. This is where I find that around 30-40% of clients will give you some kind of feedback - this is why the early stages are so important. You need to set those expectations early and show your professionalism and it will pay dividends.
2️⃣ STAGE TWO
This is where my favourite phrase comes in - and it for the 60-70% of clients who didn’t respond in Stage One, its where I get a response in around 80% of cases (don’t ask me to work out 80% of the remaining 60-70% - I hate doing numbers) - this is about being direct.
Most clients should feel a sense of responsibility at this stage - they have been on this journey with you and given you time, energy and trust. They should know that you’re working for them as you’ve been through the ‘middle bit’ and you’ve listened to them, understood them and delivered on your promises.
So I send a one line email. (Yep, one line).
Hi {insert client name},
Is this {insert ‘project’, quote or job as you see fit} still live?
Regards
That’s it. Nothing else.
I’ve used this one line for years and it delivers - I recently had this exact situation from one of my team (they were struggling to get a response from a client) and I told them to stop being fluffy, stop focusing on pleasing the client and be direct - send a one line email and ask if it’s still live.
They got a response which is what we all want.
(I think they went on to close the deal too 📈)
Trust me (which again is something that someone once told me that you should never say in sales) - it works. I think it’s the direct and assertive tone but I also think its a little bit of pattern interrupt, you’ve changed the tone and you’ve given them a way to answer in the simplest of terms - they have a 50-50 option if they want it. Either a yes or a no.
3️⃣ STAGE THREE
Ok, there will be some that don’t take the bait and that’s where Stage Three comes in - the power is still with you.
I’m not going to do the math and work out what percentage get to this stage, I kind of confused myself with the % of a % in Stage Two but lets say it’s 10-20% for arguments sake.
I think this is a pretty good average in a sales process.
If you get ghosted by 15-20% of your prospects, you’re getting feedback and you’re talking to 80-85% of those still in the process.
Remember, this isn’t about CLOSING, it’s about continuing the conversation. That still gives you the opportunity to close and that’s what we all want as salespeople.
Sales is about relationships - it’s not about money, commission or pursuing a sale at all costs. That damages your future sales, it’s short sighted.
So the final 15-20% continue to ghost you. You have two options.
Option 1 - Continue in the process - go back to the beginning and use the ‘follow up when you say you will’ method until you reach the need to be direct. I think it’s down to personal intuition as to whether you continue on but don’t become a slave to the big deal. Sales is a game played with facts, not hope.
Option 2 - Drop it like a hot stone and move onto the next deal in the pipeline. This is where having a strong and healthy pipeline comes in - you need to not be that slave to a deal, having plenty of options allows you to be strong.
🎁 Lets package it up.
There are five key features to help you close more deals -
👉🏻 Embrace Micro Commitments: From the start of every sales deal, focus on providing micro commitments to build congruence and trust. Do what you say you will do, whether it's following up on cold emails, calls, or sending information promptly.
🧠 Understand Your Prospects: Learn to identify different buyer personalities early on. Tailor your approach based on their communication style and preferences to deliver your offer effectively.
💬 Dig Deep into Client Needs: During the middle stages of the sales process, ask the right questions to understand the client's past attempts, problems, and desired solutions thoroughly. This in-depth knowledge will help you tailor your proposal to meet their exact needs.
🗺️ Direct and Assertive Tone: If you get ghosted by a potential client, don't be afraid to send a simple one-liner email asking if the project is still live. This assertive approach often prompts a response and keeps the conversation going.
⛑️ Maintain a Healthy Sales Pipeline: Don't be overly reliant on a single deal. Keep a strong and diverse sales pipeline to avoid becoming a slave to any one opportunity. Having multiple prospects ensures you stay proactive and increases your chances of closing successful deals.