NFIB

The Psychology Behind Assuming the Sale
03/ 22/ 2002

Sales experts agree that "assuming the sale" is a powerful tool for increasing sales performance. When a salesperson thinks positively throughout a sales presentation, continually envisioning that the sale will be made, this positive feeling projects to the customer and helps facilitate the purchase. But there is a practical underlying sales technique at work when making such an assumption. In today's Workshop, Jeffrey Moses describes what this is.

The best thing a salesperson can do when starting a sales presentation is to take on the role of "consultant" rather than salesperson. In other words, a salesperson shouldn't maintain the attitude that the customer needs to be "persuaded" to buy. Rather, the salesperson should assume that the customer already needs the products and should begin working with the customer to determine how the products will solve the customer's needs. This "working with the customer" is the practical aspect of "assuming the sale."

Consultants don't "sell," they advise, strategize and help a customer economize. When a salesperson assists with each of these activities, the sales function is raised to a higher plane. Rather than merely trying to "push" a product on a customer, a consulting salesperson becomes an integral part of a customer's operation, helping to guide the purchase of products or services vital to a customer's business.

Throughout a sales presentation, a salesperson who acts as a consultant "assumes" that a sale will be made. The presentation then becomes a selection of what will best serve the customer. Rather than argue or persuade, the salesperson aligns himself with the customer, almost as if becoming part of the customer's staff. In fact, a good salesperson IS part of the customer's staff -- helping the customer solve problems. The sale and any resulting commissions are merely by-products of this "consulting" sales method.

This assumption of the sale throughout a presentation reduces the importance of final "closing" techniques, because in effect the entire presentation becomes a "close." However, some final closing to the sale usually needs to be made. When it comes time for the close, the salesperson will already have determined exactly what the customer needs and wants, the models, quantities, prices, etc. The final close can be much more subtle, involving asking such questions as "What timelines do you need to meet for delivery and installation of this equipment?"

The assumption of a sale, through the "consulting" method of selling, almost always allows a salesperson to achieve a long-lasting relationship with the customer. Clearly, this is an ideal situation and can result in ongoing repeat sales.

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