Recap often. It is that simple. If you recap often in your buyer and customer calls, you will close more deals faster.
I have been asked a lot lately on podcasts: “What’s the easiest way my listeners can start having the authentic conversations you recommend? What one thing can they do tomorrow?”
My response: Learn to recap often in your calls.
Why?
👉 It builds buyer trust. They know you are listening to them personally.
👉 It leads to buyer engagement. When they hear you playback their words, they lean forward and listen. It’s human nature – we all respond quickly to active listening.
👉 It helps you qualify deals. If you cannot recap the buyer’s success statement as well as their next committed actions, the deal is probably not that strong.
👉 It draws in your buying group. There is nothing more compelling than your champion’s own words to draw others buyers who are not on the call into a buying conversation.
Good discovery questions on buyer’s goals, reactions to our product, as well as their buying process is really important in drawing out our buyers or customers.
It is in the recap of their response to each, however, when deal velocity begins to emerge.
Recapping trains us to be active listeners. If we are intentional about recapping often, it forces us to focus on what the buyer(s) is sharing with us. You cannot recap if you are focused more on what you are going to say next, instead of on the other person.
By recapping, we have an opportunity to move from being “sales guy” or “sales gal” just trying to sell something to a trusted partner focused on solving a buyer’s problem.
I always recommend recapping at three important points during any sales call.
👉 Goal recap. After your discovery questions and before you share your product, confirm your buyer’s why: “I heard you say you are working on X” or “I understand your top goal for our call today is learn more about Y.”
👉 Fit recap. During and after your product discussion or demo, confirm where your buyer sees the most fit between your product and their goals: “It sounds like the first place you would use our product is X and Y. Did I understand that correctly?”
👉 Next actions recap. In the last 10 minutes of a sales call, we should confirm the buyer’s next committed actions: “After our call, I plan to do A and B, and I understand you plan to do C and D. Did I hear that right?”
The beauty of recapping is that it’s a skill you can practice anywhere.
Try it with your significant other, your work colleagues, your family.
Responding quickly and positively to active listening skills is a very basic human response. Use it to sell in a more human way and you will sell more.
