Perhaps the most important aspect of being a successful salesperson is to be able to close the sale effectively. You do not have to be a salesperson to run your own Home Business, but you do need to put some of your focus on sales to be successful, whether it is you are someone you hire who does the selling. Selling and marketing, as you may know, are two different things. Closing is not a magical feat, as Zig Ziglar himself might tell you. Yet the majority of people do not realize that closing is actually a process, not a single action at the end of a presentation. And during the sales process, you should steadily move your prospect towards the close. Every time you get a prospect to advance or to agree to take the next step (such as agreeing to a 3-way call, going to your web site, having lunch with you or trying the products), you move your prospect towards the close. It is critical that you understand the overall process, not just a single technical aspect. A lot of people are so frightened by "closing" that they never "ask for the sale" or the "sign up" when it comes down to it and that is quite silly. People want to own things -- be it a product or a service or business. If you are not closing, you're wasting your time and your prospect's time. It is kind of like a story with no ending. Today, many sales people "relationship" their prospects too much. In other words, they are so afraid of being aggressive, they never actually ask for the sale. If you truly believe in the products, the opportunity and/or the company, then helping your prospect through this whole process should feel natural. Selling should not be hard. If it is then you may want change your approach.

Some people get nervous when their prospects ask questions. While this is natural, instead, you should celebrate the fact that your prospect is interested enough to ask questions. Especially if it is a "technical question" such as "How long have you been in business?" Technical questions let you know your prospect is interested in purchasing products or getting into your business, if your business also recruits. Answer the questions in an honest and straightforward way without being defensive. If you don't have the answer to a question, don't be afraid to let your prospect know that you don't have the answer, but you will get the answer and follow up right away. Practice these steps and they will come to you without thinking. Once you have mastered these steps, you will then be ready to go to the "final close". Always remember that you are doing your prospect a favor, that you are essentially educating them. You are really offering them a service, and at some point, now or later, they will be thankful for it. Do not feel that you are being too assertive by simply asking for the sale, you would be doing them a disservice if you did not. Remember, selling should be fun and mutually beneficial. See the article entitled "The Final Close" to conclude this lesson.

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