I receive many emails from sales people who are having basically the same problem. Repeatedly I hear the same story. It goes something like this: "I get the appointment with the prospect, the meeting seems to go well, however, I can't close the sale".

When I answer the email or speak with them on the phone, I find they are all making the same mistakes. They are common mistakes with the majority of sales people, so if you are one of them, you are not alone.

So, what mistakes are they making? I can sum all these mistakes up by saying, they are skipping steps in the sales process. They have not prepared themselves to have the best opportunity to make the sale and then they blame the prospect for not buying

How can you overcome these mistakes?

First, accept responsibility for not closing the sale. If you walk out without the sale, you did something wrong. I know it's easier to blame the prospect, however, the prospect is not at fault, you are.

At some point during the process, you didn't do your job!

Don't close the sale, assume the sale. By assuming the sale you are putting your self in the strongest possible selling position. When you assume the sale, you believe you will make every sale you attempt.

It's simple, however, it's not easy. It takes a lot of work both before and during the sale.

It begins by having a positive attitude, enthusiasm, and complete self confidence in your self and your abilities. You need to have a thorough knowledge of the product or service you are selling and the belief it will benefit your prospects.

You need to have a heart felt desire to help your prospect that exceeds your desire to earn money for making the sale.

Furthermore, you need to master all the steps in the sales process and complete each step during every meeting with a prospect, before moving to the next step.

If you have...

Built rapport and the prospect likes you and trusts you.

Asked the right questions to determine the needs of the prospect.

Concluded your product or service will satisfy their needs.

Presented the benefits of your product or service as the solution to their problem.

Then assume the sale and it should belong to you. You see, closing the sale is only one step in the sales process. You don't close the sale, you follow the steps of the sales process and guide your prospect to making a wise decision, the decision to purchase your product or service.

Many sales people are searching for some magic technique to use on the prospect to close the sale, when learning and applying the steps of the sales process is all they really need.

I understand the magic technique would be easier, because then they could take the easy route, skip all the steps and go right to the close.

I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this...

There is no magic technique, so stop searching the internet looking for one. Instead, spend your time in a much more effective way, mastering the sales process. Then watch your sales soar.

Another big mistake these sales people are making is not getting the proper sales training. Again, they are looking to cut corners and find that magic technique. They don't want to put in the effort to become the best.

The U.S. Open Golf Championship was this past weekend and whether you are a fan of golf or not, I'm sure you've heard who was right there again, as he usually is, in a position to win.

Tiger Woods.

If you know any thing about Tiger, you know how he got to be one of the greatest golfers to ever play the game. He made a commitment to "master" the game of golf.

In sales it's the same. Ask any of the top 10% sales professionals how they got to the top, and they'll tell you they did so by mastering the sales process.

About the Author

Jim Klein helps salespeople fine tune the sales process so they can confidently close more sales and create long term relationships. Get free sales training by subscribing to our free newsletter "The Sales Advisor".