Trial Closes – A Step By Step Guide
Trial closes are a popular topic in sales training meetings and circles.
However; what exactly are they, and do they still work in today’s day and age?
In this article, we’ll explore what trial closes are, the importance of using trial closes during your sales process, and some great examples you can use when speaking with your potential clients.
Trial Closes – A Step By Step Guide
What Are Trial Closes?
Trial closes are not an ‘asking for the sale’ type of close.
Instead, trial closes are small closes you use during the conversation and dialogue you have with your potential client, whilst you’re going through the face to face or on the phone sales process.
Also known as tie down sales techniques, trial closes definitely do work, and are an excellent tool when used correctly.
Related article: Tie Down Sales Techniques – The Ultimate Guide
The Importance Of Trial Closes
As per the name suggests, trial closes are small questions you can asking during your sales process to gauge the temperature of how you’re doing during your sales conversation.
People buy with emotion; we make decisions based on emotion and then justify it with logic.
As per this article in Inc, a Harvard Professor states that up to 95% of all purchasing decisions are made with our subconscious mind!
This is why when we’re speaking with our potential clients, asking them questions and giving them solutions to their problems and pain points, we want to gauge how they’re feeling during the conversation.
Trial closes give us an opportunity to check in with how they’re feeling long before we ask for the sale; which then allows us to change our line of questioning, build more rapport or empathy, and of course learn about the challenges they may be feeling.
This way, we can change course if things are not going the way we planned it to go.
A sales process is a crucial part of your toolkit if you want to be successful when selling. Prior to assuming we’re going through the sales process with no issue, it’s important to check in with our potential client to ensure they’re comfortable with each step.
At The 5% Institute, we teach a sales methodology called The 5% Sales Blueprint.
Related article: The Sales Process – A Step By Step Guide
The Stages Of The Sales Process
The stages of the sales process are:
- Rapport
- Setting pre-frames
- Sales questions
- Pain & Future Pacing
- Talking about money
- Presenting
- Handling objections
- Asking for the sale
As we go through each of these steps during our sales process, Sales Professionals use trial closes before, during and after each step to gauge whether they’re ready to proceed to the next step or not.
By using trial closes, the Sales Professional knows whether to move forward, get more clarity by asking questions, or perhaps diving a bit deeper on a specific topic that’s important to the potential client.
Secondly – the aim of your trial closes is to get agreement from your potential client. If a prospect isn’t agreeing with your current system or doesn’t feel right about it, you’ll be in no stage ready to present your product or service.
It’s imperative to get agreement before you proceed to the next step of your sales process.
Related article: How To Close More Sales – A Step By Step Guide
Examples Of Trial Closes
Now that we’ve established what trial closes are and why you should be using them in your sales process, let’s now look at some trial close examples you can use with your potential clients.
- Does that make sense so far?
- How do you feel about what we’ve discussed today so far?
- Can you see how that would help you with your insert problem/ issue?
- What do you think should be the next step?
- What do you think we should do from here?
- Would you like me to help you with this?
- How do you feel about some of the solutions we’ve spoken about today so far?
- What should I ask that I haven’t already asked?
- If we were to start in a month – would that work for you?
- Is there a date you’d like us to get started?
- What do you think we may have missed speaking about in today’s meeting?
- How do you feel about insert benefit/ meaning of owning product?
- Based on what we’ve spoken about today so far – what questions do you have for me?
- If you had your way – what should we change about what we’ve spoken about so far?
Final Thoughts
Trial closes are an excellent and important part of your sales process when used correctly. They help your potential client align with your product and service, as well as get agreement from them in regard to your solution.
The best way to sell a potential client and asking for the sale; is by asking them great questions that help them sell themselves.
Trial closes help towards this, as do tie down sales techniques.
If you’d like to learn more about the sales process and how it can help you win more sales, register for our 7 day sales challenge here.
Want To Close Sales Easier?
Are you committed to closing sales a lot easier, and consistently?
If so, you should check out our self-paced and affordable online sales training program; The 5% Sales Blueprint.
It’ll give you everything you need to close sales consistently.
To learn more, simply click on the link below for more information.
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