Radio Sales Café

Doc Holliday has been a sage leader in our industry for over 30 years. He has trained scores of Radio Sales professionals through the RAB and now his own company. Because of Doc’s training and their own pluck, droves of radio sales people have pushed untold millions into radio and ultimately helped connect innumerable listeners to cash registers.

In recent years Doc has truly refined some of his philosophies and I have had the pleasure to watch him in action over this past year.

If you’ve ever been through one of Doc’s training sessions over the years you’ll agree Doc has a unique method of asking questions that often result in very telling and introspective answers.

Time and again, I have seen Doc ask a very simple but powerful question that left some of the most venerated sales pros chagrined and speechless. This same question rattled around in my ribcage for along time, because it was something that staggered me when I really asked myself for the answer.

The question was.....”What is your closing statement?” Or what is the precise verbiage that you say when you are asking for the order?

Most of the people he posed this question to (me included) said, “I just wing it”.
Think about that for a second. We, Radio Gods and Goddesses…the same folks that primp and pour over every word of every sentence of commercial copy, the same people that spend hours preparing the perfect proposal or promotion, IMPROVISE the most important aspect of our job…asking for the money!!

Part of Doc’s Doctrine(forgive the pun) is that we as sellers need to formulate, prepare, rehearse and employ a perfectly sculpted closing question. Something that resides in our hip pocket that we pull out whenever it’s time to ask for the business.
I think Radio Sales Café is the perfect place to compare notes on the Million Dollar Question, “Will you trust me with your business for the next 52 weeks?”

Do you have a clever phrase that has made you some money?

What is your closing question? Please share.

Interesting post, Blake. Though we've never met face-to-face, what I've read and heard about Doc suggests that he's a real asset to our industry. He certainly knows his business. My initial reaction: I think if we're in the habit of listening carefully, doing our homework, and making well-reasoned recommendations, it's unnecessary to have a pat closing question, simply because each prospect/client/relationship/situation is unique. And I try to avoid anything that smacks of slickness, but that's just me. That said, I suppose that we all gravitate toward using certain phrases, especially if they've proven effective in similar situations, simply because we're creatures of habit. (I've asked more than one client at renewal time: "Think you can stand working with me for another year?" or variations on the same theme.) I do like your question: “Will you trust me with your business for the next 52 weeks?” It's precise, honest, and straightforward.

That's funny Rod because I've used the same type of question for several of my clients: "Can you stand me for another year?"

I agree on not having a prepared statement to use on every client. I go into each meeting prepared with exactly what I'm going to say; how I'm going to present, etc. I don't want them to feel that their close has been rehearsed and used on every other John Q Business Owner.

I've found different types of clients require different phrases and tones when I ask them for that year contract. I've got a few that I would never ask: "Will you put up with me for another year?" Others would be thrown off if I didn't ask them that question..

Blake,
I can appreciate the question as it's really the "payoff" for all the hard work and without the close, all the work goes to waste for you and your client. However, I have found that it's much more effective and reliable to be closing on minor points throughout the presentation rather than having one big decision question. Afterall, I have found that clients have made their decision before we get to the closing question and it really doesn't matter how magical the question, they already know their answer. If the presentation is client focused and offers solutions to their problems, get agreement as each point is presented (something as simple as "does that make sense?") and you will have a series of agreements making the final close a natural part of the process. Once again, in this case a final close could be "Did I miss anything or can I put this plan in action for you".
I would recommend Neil Rackam's book called "Spin Selling". In general, he supports the thought that highly successful sellers separate themselves from other sellers by doing things correctly before the close. This takes the pressure off the grand finale.
Rick

Rick,

Since we've never met, you have no way of knowing the exact nature of my training philosophies. I use a quote from Stephen Covey as one of the foundational building blocks of my training. Covey said, "You cannot talk your way out of something you behaved yourself into." If you have not properly conducted yourself through each step in the selling cycle, there is no (to use your phrase) magical question that will overcome your mistakes. I absolutely do not believe in magical closing questions and I don't teach that concept.

Having said that, after all the work it takes to get a prospect to the moment of closing, it is shocking how often sales people just simply fail to ask for the order. Even when they do, they are so nervous or anxious about the outcome that they start to stumble and ramble. The client's subconscious mind immediately picks up on this discomfort. The result is the feeling that if the sales person is this nervous about this deal, maybe I should be, as well.

When it's time to close, you've already made your case. Knowing exactly what you are going to say helps you look the client in the eye and confidently ask for the order. No magic words or phrasing. Just ask for the order and wait for the response. That is why Blake and I are certain that composing and rehearsing a concise closing question will increase your closing ratio. We don't tell sales people what to say. It should be in words that are natural to you. But not having the question, or as Blake said just winging it, will impede your closing ratio.

We're not talking about a concept that requires a brilliant mind or hours of work. Just know how you are going to ask for the order, practice it until you can confidently look the client in the eye and say it, then wait for their response before you say anything else.

By the way, I too have read Spin Selling and nothing Blake or I are suggesting conflicts with anything in that excellent book.

I hope this clarifies this issue a little more.

Doc

I agree that Spin Selling is a great book, and the skills Rackam teaches are critical in selling anything. I first studied them under a mentor with the Sandler Sales System 30 years ago. David Sandler taught how to use questions to take prospects through a series of "gates." Pain, Money, Contract, Presentation, Close. I won't try to summarize them here, but the Close that Sandler taught is responsive to the question at hand: what is the million dollar [closing] question?

Here is the Sandler closing question. Looking the prospect in the eye, you simply ask, "George, what would you like me to do now?"

I've closed a great many sales with that question. It puts all of the pressure where it needs to be, without seeming like pressure at all. It allows the customer to close the sale, naturally.

Try it. If you've done the previous steps properly, you'll hear prospects saying things like, "How soon can we start?"

For more on Sandler's system, read "You can't teach a kid to ride a bicycle at a seminar" by David H. Sandler. Still available at Amazon.

Have a great year in Radio!

Bryant,

I appreciated your reply for several reasons. First, I have attended the Sandler Selling System course here in St. Louis and I gained a great deal from the experience. Second, I own and have read the book by Sandler. It is very good. Lastly, I liked your example of a closing question. Short, easy to memorize, to the point, non-threatening, and it puts the ball squarely in the prospect's court. It is everything a closing statement should be.

Thanks for your contribution to this discussion.
Doc