In class today, we went over Sandler Rule #31, which states “Close the Sale or Close the File”. The rule follows the idea that a proper close could be going for a “no” by asking them if you should just close the file if they aren’t interested. The close could come after they said “no” to not closing their file and that they have interest in buying, which means you can close to them and get a sale.
From my experience as a door-to-door pest control salesman, you get a lot of “no”. A lot of people want to end the conversation quickly and slam the door in your face to get along with their time in their own home. You have to come up with any way to involve them in a conversation, and I used the “close the sale or close the file” many times on the doors to great effectiveness.
With door-to-door sales, a lot of the traditional sales tactics can’t be easily applied as you have limited time to explain what you’re doing at the persons house and who you are. My version of close the file would be saying, “I’ll be in the neighborhood with our trucks for the next week, but if you aren’t interested, we’ll be around the area anyway.”. This shows them at least to hear me out because at least it will be quick and convenient for them if they agree. This would result in them asking a buying question and my sales cycle of answering their question and including a question of my own to learn what exactly they need, then closing with a price.
At the end of the day, the customer making the choice to buy the pest control to solve their problems in a convenient way leads to much bigger sales and a better sales atmosphere. It is much better to be the solver of a pest problem than mass-knocking 100 doors and reading the facts of the sales script until they buy something. Closing the sale or closing the file is a way to find they have the interest to have their problem solved.
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BlankAD21
Hi Ben, this was very interesting. I like what you said from the pest control guy. your approach to sales is very interesting to me especially when you talk about it in class I think it’s interesting to hear from you because you have experience. Door-to-door sales to me seem scary, but you make it sound none intimidating and if you don’t get that sale you don’t sweat it. Which is a good approach letting it roll off your back
Great post! I like how you connected Sandler Rule #31 to your door-to-door experience. Your version of “close the file” is a smart way to keep the conversation low-pressure while still moving toward a potential sale. It’s clear you’ve learned how to adapt traditional sales strategies to fit real-life situations.
Great Post Ben! I like a lot about what you talk about with the “close the file” and how you connected the door-to-door experience with the Sandler Rule 31. Also, you mentioned how a lot of door-to-door sales are receiving “no’s.” Being able to improve on what you did in those no situations and get a yes is crucial rather than just dwelling on the “no’s.”