How to Shorten the Sales Cycle with 3 Strategic Marketing Tips

by Charlie Cook
©2006 In Mind Communications, LLC, all rights reserved.

"How do you establish urgency in your presentation and in your close? My question applies to ‘in person’ presentations and to phone presentations where, I’m either trying to set up an appointment or close right on the phone."- Mike from Toledo

Ever had a conversation with a prospect who you know could benefit from your services and, just when you are ready to make an appointment to meet them or when you think you should be able to move to the close, they tell you –

“Let me think about it and get back to you.”

What happens next?

Do they call you the next day or the next week?

Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, if you’ve reached this impasse, your prospect won’t take the next step on their own. You’ve got yet another qualified prospect that isn’t buying.

Drives you crazy, doesn’t it, knowing you’ve got dozens, if not hundreds of prospects who need your products and services but won’t help themselves by taking the next step?

Whose fault is this, anyway?

True, it’s the prospect that can’t seem to make a decision or doesn’t see the purchase as important, but if you want to sell more of your products and services, it’s your responsibility to avoid this situation. Mike identified a key strategic marketing point; your small business marketing materials and presentations have to ‘establish the urgency’ to buy.

Ready to discover all the secrets to creating a sense of urgency so you can shorten the sales cycle? You’ll find all the details in ‘How to Sell: Eliminating Obstacles to Sales'.

It gives you the insider tips that will help you get more prospects to buy. Use this link to find out what works to shorten the sales cycle >>

How to Get Your Prospects to Budge – Gaining leverage

Twenty-six summers ago, my wife and I were backpacking in Glacier National Park with another couple, Nancy and Steve (I’ve changed the names to protect the guilty). Periodically Steve would scamper up the trail well ahead of us and we’d soon see and hear a large boulder 2-4 feet in diameter rumbling down the slope below the hiking trail.

Steve had picked up this love of watching large stones gather speed down the side of the mountain while on a summer Geology course with college classmates. While I don’t condone boulder rolling, and I’m sure the park rangers would have been more than upset, it’s similar to moving prospects to the close.

In the Rockies, large boulders are scattered on the slopes, each appearing to sit solidly in place. But as my friend Steve knew, with the right kind of leverage, you can start these seemingly immovable rocks rolling. And once you start the movement downhill, they keep going.

Moving a prospect towards a close is a bit like boulder rolling. Your strategic marketing has to get your prospect going in the right direction. Then they’ll gather momentum and reach the close by themselves.

So what can you do to get your prospects rolling?

1. Market to the people who are eager to buy. It’s much easier to roll a boulder down a mountain than to push it up a hill (remember Sisyphus?). It’s easier to sell someone who is looking for a solution than someone who doesn’t need or want what you’re selling.

2. Earn your prospects’ trust. If you haven’t worked with a prospect, it’s best to assume they don’t know yet that your products and services are the best. Instead of just telling them that you are “America’s Finest” demonstrate your expertise and the value of your products. Use your marketing strategies to help them experience the quality they’ll be getting when they buy from you.

3. Don’t push prospects to buy; get them to pull themselves to the close. While you may be able to come up with a list of valid reasons a prospect should buy from you today, the reasons that matter aren’t yours, but theirs.

Get prospects to tell you why they want your product or service. These reasons are like the lever that will get them rolling towards a purchase.

It’s easier than most people think to create a sense of urgency and get prospects to buy. Just eliminate the obstacles that get in your prospects’ way and create a clear path to a purchase. With a few simple changes to your business marketing and sales strategy, you could easily double or triple your closing rates this year.

Use this link to discover How to Sell by Eliminating Obstacles to Sales >>