Securing next commitments in each sales meeting is your #1 driver of deal velocity.

That is why skill #3 in our Sales 3.0 Series is building your skills to use the last 10 minutes of each sales conversation to agree on the next committed actions from both buyer and seller.

The sales profession is still recovering from the disaster of the Sales 2.0 period (2011 to 2019).  

Sellers were taught en masse to control and micromanage the buyer journey.  

The sales 2.0 decade saw an explosion of sales methodologies. 

Most methodologies seriously failed for a simple reason. They focused on the seller, not the buyer.   

And, if there is any truism in selling, it’s that actions your buyers take matter a whole lot more than the actions you take.

To close more deals faster, your sales methodology matters a lot less than this simple practice:

–> Use “the last 10 minutes” of every call to ask your buyers to take actions that move you both closer to a partnership…and a close!

The best sales process is gated by buyer actions at each sales stage. Identification of buyer actions helps a seller focus each call:

–>  What are the one or two actions you need from the buyer at the end of this call to show they are building readiness to partner with you?

Here are some questions you might ask your buyer to secure “next commitments”:

• Can they confirm the key areas of fit or value they see in a potential partnership?
• Can they identify who on their side should join your next call? And why?
• Can they confirm the timeline being considered to start a partnership?
• Can they share how a product or service like yours is typically funded?
• Will they share what other vendors are being considered? And, what will get them to select you relative to other options or relative to staying with the status quo and doing nothing?
• Will they pull up their calendar and agree on a placeholder for a next call?  

Teams who use the last 10 minutes to secure next commitments, close deals at a much higher rate.

Why?

• They more quickly separate the “tire kickers” from legitimate buyers.
• They give their buyer a roadmap to manage their own internal buying process.
• They spend time and focus on the deals with the highest likelihood to close.

The sales process is often complex, but it doesn’t have to be. By focusing on the appropriate next steps and buyer commitments for each stage, you can effectively develop and advance your deals.