7.10 Exercises
Exercises (7.1)
- Assume you are selling coffee to a chain of restaurants. The buyer is very concerned about changing the brand of coffee that the restaurant uses because coffee is the last experience that the customer has with the restaurant and she doesn’t want to change anything about the current experience. You have sampled your coffee in a blind taste test with her and in several of her restaurants, and all who have tasted it have chosen it as the better-tasting coffee. Now that she is convinced that this change would be a good one, which type of close would you use and why?
- Assume you are selling paper to a major high-volume printer. Your firm has just introduced a new type of recycled paper that is less expensive than previous options. The buyer is someone whom you know and respect. You have learned a lot of what you know about the industry from him. You feel like you are bringing him a new product that can bring benefit to his company. You are preparing a compliment close. What would you include in the close?
- Think about a high-ticket product or service that you recently purchased from a salesperson. How did the salesperson approach the close? Which approach to closing did she use? Was it effective? Why or why not?
- Name the type of close that is used in each of the following examples:
- “Would you like the pay-as-you-go or the family plan?”
- “Shall we formalize the deal with your signature?”
- “I really enjoy working with you and your team, and the way you are growing the company so fast. That’s why I’d like to suggest this service plan.”
- “With the extra capacity, you’ll be able to expand your service as you need it, yet it won’t cost you any additional monthly fees. You can sign right here, and we can start your service on Monday.”
- Create a closing for each of the following situations and identify the type of close you are using:
- You are a real estate agent, and you just finished showing a house to a newly married couple.
- You are a fine jewellery salesperson, and you are showing a diamond engagement ring to a young man.
- You are selling high-end electronics, and you are demonstrating a home theatre system to a couple who just bought a new house (and it’s the week before the Super Bowl). You are able to have it delivered and installed before Super Bowl Sunday.
- You are selling memberships to a health club, and you just took a couple on a tour. They recently moved to the area and are not familiar with all the competitors.
- You are selling accounting software, and you just finished a demonstration of the product for a group of lawyers in a firm.
Exercises (7.2)
- Assume you are buying a used car from someone. If your prenegotiation goal is $10,000 and he is holding firm at $12,000, how would you find common ground for a successful negotiation?
- Assume you are buying a house from someone. She has indicated that the chandelier in the dining room has sentimental value. You think that the chandelier makes the dining room, and you want it included in the sale of the house. You are willing to increase your offer to reflect the inclusion of the chandelier. How would you approach this negotiation?
- Assume you are selling medical supplies to a doctor’s office and the doctor says, “I won’t pay anything over $3,000 for the machine, take it or leave it.” How would you respond?
- Imagine that you are a sales rep for a paint manufacturer and you are selling to Home Depot. The buyer provided positive responses in all your previous meetings and is ready to narrow down his choices for paint suppliers.
- Identify three ways you could prepare for your negotiation to make it as productive as possible.
- How would you go about identifying your prenegotiation goals?
- You are trying to sell accounting software to a regional grocery store chain, but negotiations have stalled. How can you get back on track?
- Think about a negotiation in which you have been involved that yielded a win-win-win resolution. How did you get to the win-win-win solution? Think about a negotiation in which you have been involved that didn’t result in an agreement. Why do you think the negotiation wasn’t successful? What would have made it more successful?
- How would you handle a situation in which a prospect wanted a guarantee that your company will not raise the price of the product he was buying for the next five years? Would you agree to hold the price to get the sale?
- Contact a local law firm or company that specializes in negotiating. Invite a person from the firm to come to class and share tips and techniques that she uses in successful negotiations.
Exercises (7.4)
- Visit Salary.com, or one of the other web sites mentioned in this section, and determine the total compensation for at least three different positions in which you are interested in pursuing. Is the compensation higher or lower than you expected for each position?
- Identify three ways that you can establish your value in the eyes of your prospective employer during the interview process.
- Assume you received a job offer with a base salary of $35,000 and commission of 10 percent. How would you plan to approach your prospective employer to increase your overall compensation?
- Have you ever received an offer letter? If so, what position was it for? What information did it include?
- When you are negotiating your job offer, is it ever appropriate to exaggerate your accomplishments a little bit to get an offer that you think you deserve? Why or why not?
Exercises (7.5)
- Identify a company with whom you have a relationship (you purchase its products or services on an ongoing basis). What makes the relationship work? What role does follow-up play in the relationship?
- Identify a company from which you have purchased products or services that doesn’t follow up with you. Why do you continue to purchase the products or services? If another alternative comes along, will you be open to trying the new alternative? Why or why not?
- Assume you work for a video game manufacturer and you sell video games to bricks-and-mortar and online retailers. Identify three things you would do as part of your follow-up plan after you close the sale to Best Buy.
- Assume you are selling security systems to businesses, how would you use a news article about recent security issues as part of your follow-up with your customers?
- Assume you sell landscaping to businesses. Once you have arranged for the landscaping to be installed, are there any other opportunities for follow-up?
- If so, what would you do to follow up during the spring and summer?
- What would you do to follow up during the fall and winter?
- Imagine that you are a sales rep for a major insurance company. How can you gather customer feedback to improve your service? How can you use customer feedback that you receive about products and services for which you are not responsible?
Exercises (7.6)
- Describe why Net Promoter Score is a closed customer feedback loop.
- Assume you worked as a financial planner. How would you use Net Promoter Score with your customers? How would you respond to promoters? How would you respond to passives? How would you respond to detractors?
- Imagine that you are a sales rep for a medical supply company and you have just received your Net Promoter Score for the past month, which is as follows: Promoters: 63 percent; Passives: 28 percent; Detractors: 9 percent
Calculate your overall Net Promoter Score. What steps would you take to communicate with the customers in each of the categories? - Research one of the companies that use Net Promoter Score and identify at least one way it impacts how the company does business.
- Research Net Promoter Score online and find some articles that discuss the drawbacks of using it as the customer feedback loop. What do you think? Is Net Promoter Score something you think you might find helpful in sales?
- Imagine that you are a salesperson for a software company and a portion of your compensation is based on your Net Promoter Score. Is it ethical for you to tell your customers that you need their positive comments to earn your salary? Why or why not?
Exercises (7.7)
- Assume you just accepted a job offer to become a sales rep at a national food manufacturer. Write a personal note to your new boss to tell him how you are looking forward to starting your new job. Who are some other people in the company to whom you might also write a note?
- What is a mentor? Identify someone who is currently a mentor to you. What makes him a good mentor? How might you be able to find additional mentors when you begin working?
- Identify two resources that would be helpful to fine-tune your writing and speaking skills. How can you use these resources to help prepare you for your career?
“11.1 Closing Starts at the Beginning”, “11.2 Collaborate to Negotiate“, “11.3 Selling U: Negotiating to Win for Your Job Offer“, “12.1 Follow-Up: The Lasting Impression“, “12.2 Customer Satisfaction Isn’t Enough“, and “12.3 Selling U: What Happens after You Accept the Offer?” from Selling For Success 2e by NSCC and Saylor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.
