You freeze up because you have no idea how to do it.  The next thing you know, you’re going on an on about how you like to hang out with your cats on Friday night!

Okay, so maybe it’s not that disastrous (I hope) but there are many business owners that struggle closing the sale on their products or services.  Don’t worry.  I have some experience with closing sales and have some great tips to help.

Here are some sales tips solutions to cure your sales closing blues.

Today, we’re going to cover:

• The problem with your sales selection
• The problem with yourself
• The problem with your thinking

Okay so the best way tackle this subject is by using an example:

Here’s our scenario: You sell high end, custom-made shoes that cost a little more than average, but are well worth it, but you are having trouble selling your product.

Here are a few problems that I’ve come across and how to fix them.

Problem #1 – You’re selling to the wrong customer

Does everyone need shoes?  Absolutely!  So, does that make everyone a potential customer for you?  Not really.

Just because we all wear shoes, doesn’t mean we all wear high-end custom shoes.  As a matter of fact, there are many people in this world that feel like an expensive shoe is a waste of money.  That person isn’t your customer.  There are people that love expensive shoes, but aren’t able to afford them.  Again, this person isn’t your customer

Along this thought, let tackle a similar topic.  How many times have you stressed or felt hurt over friends and family that didn’t purchase your product or service?

Did you ever stop to ask yourself if they would be a potential client if you didn’t know them?  Likely the answer is no.

You can’t expect someone that isn’t your ideal customer to purchase from you just because they know you.  A customer is a customer whether they know you or not, and they have to want and feel like they need what you have before they buy.  If not, you’ll spend all of your time trying to convince them and read my virtual lips: “Convincing someone to buy is a NO-NO!” (I’ll tell you why in a few minutes)

Unfortunately, we often get caught up spending most of our time and energy trying to sell customers without even knowing if they are a likely candidate.  Then that makes us feel like we are bugging them and chasing after them.  If you feel that way, you probably are making them feel uncomfortable because they don’t want what you have.

You have to consider who you are selling to and really make sure he/she is a good fit for what you have to offer.  When you do, you’ll find QUALITY customers that will purchase from you multiple times and tell others to do the same.

Problem #2: You are on your own agenda

My younger brother who is a pharmaceutical sales rep tells me nuggets of advice all the time.  He often says, “If someone is feeling like they are selling, I can guarantee they are on their own agenda.”

I know that your heart is right.  I know that you really feel like he/she will love what you are selling, but trust me, if you’re doing most of the talking, then you are convincing and remember convincing is a “no-no”.

“So Kim, what should I do?  How can I sell to someone without selling?”  I’m glad you asked that question because that’s exactly what you need to do.  Ask them more questions.

Find out about them and their needs, wants, and desires and later use it to link to your offering.  

How do you know they only like to wear the finest of shoes?  Well, you talk to them in a very nonthreatening way about their shoes.  My mom always tells me that you can learn a lot by just letting someone else talk, and that’s my secret weapon.

I often ask 1 question, then I listen and let people talk.  It often leads to something about my product that I can help with.

So back to our scenario, let’s say you tell a potential quality client that her shoes are so cute and ask where she got them.  She might start talking about how she only buys a certain type of shoe from a more high end shoe store because they keep her foot from hurting. (At this point, your feelers of a QUALITY lead should be blaring!)

Next you ask why her foot is hurting, and she replies that she has no arch so she needs shoes that supply some sort of arch support.  Well… you just happen to know that you create custom arch support in shoes that would probably help her foot feel better, so you lead by asking if she’s ever tried a custom shoe.  No she replies.  Then you can start telling her about how a foot like hers will benefit from a custom shoe because if will help support her in all the right places.

You might as well slide in there that you have all kinds of custom shoes that women with feet just like hers swear by.  Next, ask her, “Would she like to try one on for herself?”  Then, hook, line and sinker… you’ve just created a quality sale from a potentially repeat customer.

Didn’t feel slimy, sleezy or forced.  As a matter of fact, you really just did her a favor… which brings me to problem #3.

Problem #3: You’re looking at it as a sale instead of a solution

As many people know, I have a gluten intolerance that keeps me from eating most foods.  It came on me all of the sudden one day and there was nothing I could do about it.

Just because I have a gluten allergy, doesn’t mean I don’t like foods with gluten.  As a matter of fact, my favorite food used to literally be bread (a HUGE gluten no-no)

One day, my husband was ordering pizza and I REALLY wanted some.  He found a business that made gluten-free pizza and I was excited until I saw that price.  $22 for a SMALL personal pizza!!!  I flipped out that was WAY too much to spend on just myself.

My husband stopped me and said, “Isn’t pizza what you wanted?” “Yeah but…” I interrupted. “Then get what you want.  It will be worth it.”  I thought about it for a moment, and I realized he was right.

For me, pizza that I can eat is a luxury.  Not everyone has it, so when we saw that they offered gluten-free, they instantly fulfilled a craving that I’d been having for months.  At that point, the cost was irrelevant.  I just wanted the pizza and didn’t care about the cost.

You have to look at what you offer in the same way.  You are offering a fix for someone and that’s not to be underestimated.  Don’t waste your time trying to convince.

You should never convince someone to like what you offer, instead you should offer them a solution to something they are struggling with.  When you do this, they convince themselves that they need it and you create a future advocate for your brand.

When you offer a solution, it should give you confidence in your pitch. Look at it like this, If you get too scared to pitch, you’re actually doing them an injustice.  What if no one offered gluten-free food because it cost more money?  I’d be up a creek!

Don’t underestimate that your product or service is something that someone NEEDS.

Plus, if you don’t ask, it’s not like they won’t get it.  Instead, they will get what they need from someone else that was willing to ask, so why not let it come from you?