12 Tips to Close End of Year Sales Fast
Posted on Fri, Nov 25, 2011
Guest Blog By Kendra Lee, President, KLA Group
It’s November and the fourth quarter of business for many companies, bringing with it crunch time for achieving your sales goals. You may find yourself pushing to attain your revenue goal but uncertain what you can do to speed customer decision making.
Whether self-imposed or a number the company is counting on you to bring home, the pressure feels the same. The days are counting down too quickly and the gap in your sales goal feels too big.
With just weeks left in the year, you need to close sales fast, but don't want to appear desperate. Here are 12 strategies you can use to close sales without proposing discounts and special offers:
1. Review all the proposals you closed this year and make a list of things customers decided to “wait to do.” Close them now.
2. Spend two days closing lingering proposals, even the ones from last January.
3. Up-sell add-ons you thought would inflate the original solution you sold this year.
4. Sell one more. Look for opportunities to sell one more of something small or simple: one more PC, one small project, one more staff administrative position. Sell a bunch.
5. Conduct a 2011 review meeting with your top eight customers. Look back on the year’s successes and forward to what still needs to be accomplished before year end.
6. Look for clients with remaining 2011 budgets that they’d like to spend on 2012 priorities.
7. Call every client you haven’t talked to in 90 days to see how they’re positioned to start 2012. Do they need your services in December to get off to a fast start?
8. Call all prospects who have been pushing you off. Check in to see how they’re positioned to achieve their first quarter initiatives.
9. Review your forecast and identify the steps required to close everything – then execute.
10. Enlist your manager’s and / or team’s support in overcoming roadblocks holding any of your customers or prospects back from buying.
11. Remind customers you welcome referrals. Who do they know that needs help to get through year end?
12. Set appointments for January to give yourself a fast start to next year. You may find last minute opportunities while you’re at it!
Kendra Lee is a top IT Seller, Prospect Attraction Expert and author of the award winning book “Selling Against the Goal” and president of KLA Group. Specializing in the IT industry, KLA Group works with companies to break in and exceed revenue objectives in the Small and Midmarket Business (SMB) segment. Ms. Lee is a frequent speaker at national sales meetings and association events. To find out more about the author, read her latest articles, or to subscribe to her newsletter visit www.klagroup.com or call +1 303.741.6636.