5-Step Plan on Asking for the Sale

I was doing a seminar for salespeople, and asked them how many of their customers are not coming back after being in the store the first time.

That means: How are they doing with “I’ll be-back” customers? The numbers were: 60% of customers were not answering calls or emails, 30% of salespeople were still working on the customer and 10% of shoppers were returning to the dealership.

From these calculations it seems not much has changed in the last 20 years, except Internet pricing and social media.

Everything still sounds like my rookie year of selling cars. Find a potential customer, land them on a vehicle they seem to want and then discuss the price. Nothing has changed, especially when the customer says, “OK, great, I’ll be back later” or “I’ll give you a call tonight to let you know what we’ll do.”

Then they leave and go into the far-off land of “I’ll Be Back.”

As a novice, I wished all of the people who said that to me would really do what they said, but of course I was mostly wrong. I started to think almost every customer I spoke to was a liar. Was it them or was it me not doing my job right? Customers aren’t liars, they are just being car buyers.  

I worked for a sales manager who said not to give him any excuses for why my customer would leave. Man, could I come up with great BS stories for him. He said the only excuse was me. This sounds harsh, but he was right. He told me the reason people will buy from me was me. The opposite was true. I quickly became an effective salesperson.  

It didn't take me five years or five months to figure out this business. It’s all rapport, process and no BS.

When it comes to asking for the sale, you need to learn two things fast.

First, too much pressure will blow the sale. Second, not enough pressure will blow the sale.

If this is true, the big question is: when do you push? The answer is: Every time you are sitting in front of a customer. But do it like a professional, not like a nervous teenager trying to get to second base.

You don’t want to be that high-pressured salesperson people hate. But you definitely don’t want to be the salesperson everyone likes and never buys from. It’s a balancing act. Do your best to know when to push and when to back off. Never forget why the customers are in your dealership. They want a new car.

What I call professional high pressure wins the sale. It’s what you need to do with every customer.

Why are some salespeople not sure when to ask the customer for the sale, and why do most salespeople not know how to ask for the sale? Are you afraid to be that disdained aggressive salesperson? Or have you forgotten why people come to our dealerships. People come to us because they want what we have.

You have to earn the right to ask for the sale. Here is a quick check list.

If your check list is OK, put the customer in a comfortable controlled environment (i.e. your personal work areas). Most customers are scared and uneasy at this stage of the selling process. Their emotional intensity level is at its highest. How we proceed from here will determine if we sell our product.  

The following is a non-pressured, yet effective way to ask for the sale. But if there are any customer questions you have not answered, answer them before you proceed.

Step One   

Tell the customer: “Now before we go any further, I want to make sure that we have selected the correct vehicle?” Look for a verbal or a physical gesture, such as nodding of the head. This is done for clarification. If everything is OK,

say: “I have a few questions to ask you, and if you could answer them as straightforward as possible.”

Step Two   

Ask the customer, “So you enjoyed the ride and features of the vehicle?” If yes, proceed. If no, backtrack to the vehicle selection process again.

Step Three          

Ask: “Do you have any other questions about the dealership? About the vehicle?” If they do have concerns or questions, resolve them.

Step Four  

Ask: “OK then, if there’s anything preventing you from getting the vehicle today, what would it be?

The customer probably will give several conditions, such as the price, trade-in difference, monthly payments, interest rate and terms. If you are selling a used vehicle the conditions could be additional repairs they want done before agreeing on numbers. Whatever their response is, handle it with the next step.

Step Five   

Say: “So what you are suggesting to me is that if the (price, payments, trade value, terms, repairs etc…) were agreeable with you and our dealership, you would like to get the new vehicle as soon as possible, is that correct?”

If everything is confirmed and clarified, pull out your worksheet and fill in the details on the vehicle the customer is interested in.

You have now asked for the sale professionally. This is not yet a negotiation despite what many salespeople mistakenly think. Your next step in the sales process is the worksheet, then negotiations.

Now that you have a script on how to ask for the sale professionally, role-play other salespeople at the dealership or with someone at home. Have fun with it. Make it easy at first and as you get better, increase the difficulty level.

Darin George is a sales trainer and recruiter for ASC, www.visitasc.com. He is the Author of Sales Training – Automotive Edition and Sales Process - Can You Sell Me a Pen? available at www.barnsandnoble.com He is at [email protected]