Contractor U – The assumptive sales close

Successful renovation contractors close more sales than unsuccessful ones. While this might sound obvious, unless you are a professional salesperson for a living, you might never have considered the various “sales closing” methods that professionals use.

None of these closing techniques are, or should be, manipulative. They are all designed to help your prospective customers to get their renovations underway.

Last week, we covered The Bracket Close.  This week is another method called The Assumptive Close.

This closing method is just as it sounds.  You assume that the homeowner is going to renovate with you and then you proceed to the next steps.

The assumptive close might sound like this: “We would like to start the demolition next Friday so that we can meet your completion date.  Where should we tell the bin company to place the bin?”

The idea behind the assumptive close is that you are assuming the prospect is moving ahead with you. You are moving them onto other decisions that have to be made.  You get the client making other decisions instead of considering a decision not to proceed with you.  This way, you also get the client past the decision of “who” and onto “what” needs to happen next.

Here is another example: “Before we start your project, we will need to get you into our Decor Studio to select all of your finishes.  Are you available next Thursday?”

Can you see how this prospect is now making a decision on when they can meet to order all of their finishes and not on whether or not to move ahead with this renovator? In fact, they might now be so excited to come to your Decor Studio to pick our their finishes, they didn’t even noticed that they selected you!

Like any closing method, you have to make it sound natural and be in your own style.  It also has to be done at the right time and be the right method for this client.