
Sales Development3 min read
5 WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR CLOSING SKILLS
By Doug Bolger|
Some people say that great salesmen are born and not made, but everyone is capable of improvement and there are concrete ways for novices to improve on their ability to close with sales training for beginners. Just as the masters of their disciplines must put in the time to become a better artist or musician or hockey player, so too must great salesmen apply some elbow grease to their craft for better results.
SALES TRAINING FOR BEGINNERS
There are so many books written on how to improve sales and salesmanship. You do not need to read every single one of these business books, but even going through a single book per month can help you reach new heights. Try to spend at least fifteen minutes per day reading through the books written by experts and professional trainers. Go through different topics — sales of products, website sales, sales in countries around the world — so you can get a wider breadth of understanding.KEEP A TALLY OF YOUR SALES
By a simple whiteboard and soft marker and keep a tally of your sales metrics — dollars brought in, units moved, new customers, etc. Track each day but also over the span of weeks and months. Numbers don’t lie and they will tell you where you are strong and where you are weak so you can invest more time into becoming better at a part of your craft, like cold calling.TALK WITH OTHERS
Many salesmen are born talkers, and although some may be reluctant to share their secrets you are sure to find others willing to help out a rookie. Ask members of your own team, former employees, or just salesmen and women you find out in the corporate world. There are referral groups you can join to get more advice on how to convince customers of a product’s vale.SET ACHIEVABLE GOALS
Although anyone will tell you that you can have your best day right next to your worst day, the numbers do matter. Set a target for each month and do your best to hit it or surpass it. Set it low at first so it is easily achievable, then increase by a small value.TALK WITH CUSTOMERS
You may be surprised by how customers are willing to give criticism of your sales skills. After all, they may encounter several salespersons each day, so they know who is good and who is not. Ask them what they think of your opening and if it needs changing. If your company is not having the numbers come in that they would like, you can look to help in improving a salesforce’s skills. We can help with sales training for beginners so that your company has the staff on hand needed to get a great product into the hands of your customers.How to Improve Your Closing Skills
The five habits above build a better salesperson. Closing is narrower than that. A close stalls for one of three reasons: the buyer never said what would have to be true for a yes, the reservation stayed unnamed, or nobody agreed on a date. Work those three and the close stops being a moment at the end. Practice them on live deals rather than in rehearsal. Ask what would need to be true for this to be a yes. Say the reservation out loud before the buyer does, so it becomes a shared problem instead of their private one. Trade every concession for decision information. Close with one dated commitment and have the buyer say it back in their own words. A peer listens to one call a week and names what happened, and the rep adjusts the same week. The part most beginners miss is that every buyer decodes the same close differently. One wants the evidence. One wants to know the people were weighed. One wants the long view. One wants the decision now. Reading which one is across the table is the fastest lift available to a new rep. Build it alongside your sales skills development plan, sharpen the discovery half with better sales questions, and rehearse against a live buyer with AI role play.How do you improve your closing skills?
Practice four behaviors on real deals. Name the buyer’s reservation before they raise it. Ask what would need to be true for a yes. Trade every concession for decision information. End with one dated commitment, said back to you in their words. Track the close rate weekly, and the habit compounds because the rep can watch it move.
What are the best closing techniques for beginners?
Start with the summary close and the dated next step, because both are hard to get wrong. Recap what the buyer told you they need, in their words, then ask for one specific commitment with a date attached. Skip the pressure tactics. A beginner who listens closely and confirms the date closes more than one who memorizes ten techniques.
When the numbers stay flat, the gap is usually the conversation rather than the effort. See how you naturally sell, free, in five minutes. Take the Naturally assessment and find out which buyer you already read well, and which one you lose.Get Leadership Insights
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