Freelancers, Win More By Talking Less
Here’s a free sales tip for anyone who wants to close more deals…
This is probably the easiest, but also one of the most unnatural sales tips any of us will work on adopting in our careers.
EVERY TIME you’re at the point in the sales cycle where you’re making your proposal, or the client asks something like, “so what is this going to cost me?”. Tell them your price, then just stop talking.
Seriously. Just STOP talking!
Once you tell the prospect your price, or the estimated cost of a project, just stop talking and wait for them to say something.
What I find a lot of newer sales people do (I’ve been guilty of this in the past as well), is oversell after they reveal their price. They say the price, and then since they feel uncomfortable sitting in silence they start blabbing on and on about the product, why it’s great, why the cost is the cost, and the ABSOLUTE WORST thing people do is start talking about discounts they can offer before the prospect even responds in the first place! DO NOT DO THIS!
So here’s the tip — after you reveal the price, just stop talking. It’s going to be uncomfortable to just sit there waiting for them to say something (people hate awkward silences), but trust me it will pay dividends.
If you stop talking you:
-Put the ball in the clients court, forcing them to reveal information on how they feel about the price. (This will give you key information if this goes down the path of needing to negotiate to close the deal)
-Could potentially win the deal right then and there if the client thinks the price is fair.
-Retain control of the sales cycle.
If you keep talking you:
-Weaken your position and potentially give your client ammunition to ask for discounts, or more stuff to be included in the deal.
-Might turn off the buyer altogether, if you seem too desperate after revealing your price they might consider taking a second look at the competition.
-Might unnecessarily prolong the sales cycle by raising additional questions or doubts inadvertently.
Trust me, it feels very unnatural, but it’s something important to remember when you get to the point where you are going to reveal the price of your product or service.
Try it out, let me know how it goes!
