Most salespeople have a deal stall out in their pipeline at one point or another. In Sandler, we have a technique we like to use when that happens. It's Sandler Rule #31: Close the Sale or Close the File.
So what does that mean?
A couple years back, a client of mine had a large potential deal that had been clogging up his pipeline for a while. He was getting frustrated and had decided the deal probably wouldn't go through.
To give a little background, this client is a commercial real estate broker. He shared with me once that in every commercial transaction, the buyer and seller basically hate each other right up until the end. They each believe the other is trying to take advantage of them.
In my client's mind, that's why commercial real estate brokers have a job!
So this deal had been dragging on for quite a while. The buyer and seller were exhibiting the typical "he's out to get me" behavior.
Finally, one afternoon, my client decided he was going to lock himself in a conference room, make some calls, and see if he could get the deal done.
He honestly didn't think it was doable. But since it was a $3 million deal, he decided it was worth spending one last afternoon on it.
For hours, he made phone calls to all the parties involved. First he called the buyer, then the seller. Then he called the lender, then the broker. He went around and around on the phone to see if they could get the deal done.
Again, keep in mind that he thought there was no way the deal was going to happen. But at the same time, it was clogging up his pipeline, so he decided he had nothing to lose.
After about three hours of back and forth on the phone, it all came together. The deal ended up closing, and it was my client's biggest deal ever at the time.
Take a look at your pipeline. Anything been in there too long? Is it time for you to close the sale or close the file?