The Lost Art of Asking for the Order

It’s 2013 and the art of selling is facing a new reality. Longer, more-formalized buying processes are impacting how and when salespeople can ask for the order. Buyers simply won’t be rushed into a premature buying decision. Yet the request for an order must be made. The questions remain: how and when?

Understandably, sales pros are reluctant to close until they fully grasp the needs of their buyer, arriving at a solution that best satisfies those needs. This relationship building is an important step that must precede before asking for the order. 

 

John O' Gorman, founder and CEO of The ASG Group notes in his research that crude or premature attempts at closing can damage a sale. He says that buyers can spot a closing technique miles off and can use it to gain leverage over the "always be closing" seller. What’s more, an inappropriate closing can damage a seller’s credibility and trust. An ill-timed or premature order request is often met with a response such as "send me a proposal" or "we'll have to see competitive quotes."

O’Gorman suggests a new approach. One that takes into account a buyer’s requisite internal steps and procedures before a purchase order is issued. A seller needs to be tuned in to what the buyer can and cannot do. He or she must be aware of how urgently the buyer wants to buy, and the barriers to purchase faced by the buyer. In O’Gorman’s view, the optimal order request must include such closing pre-qualifiers as "How do you want to buy?" followed by "How can we help you to buy?"

When asking the "How do you want to buy?" question, one should be ready with pen and paper to take down the prospect’s unique buying processes and procedures. It shows the prospect that the seller is sensitive to his or her internal requirements to move forward with the purchase. Specifically, it can help pinpoint budget parameters, competing priorities and projects, and any potential internal resistance.

The point is, buyers know how to get money for a purchase and what internal approvals they’ll need. This is why it’s so important to ask them what they need to move the purchase forward. If the seller can get the buyer to share these details, the seller will have an inside knowledge of the buyer’s closing process.

 

So keep in mind that asking for the order is just the start of a key process. Sales trainer and conference speaker Ray Patterson reminds salespeople that a good close is far more than just closing the sale, but rather “to initiate the closing process.” Like the groundwork, the needs analysis and the presentation, closing is a process—not a single hit.

 

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