Online sales close secrets - Closing a sale online

By Doug West
Posted Monday, July 5, 2004

One of the biggest problems in any type of sale is the close. With one-on-one salesmen, getting them to ask for the sale is one of the hardest things to teach. In online selling, where words are the salesman, many times you see the same problem - the writer never asks for the order or business! Do you make that mistake in your marketing?

There are as many ways (perhaps even more) to ask for the sale with the written word as there are in person. But, you Must ask for it! Here are some examples:

The Assumed Close

With direct in-person selling, this is one of the big ones. Forget the old adage about never assuming anything, when it comes to selling; just assume that your prospect is going to buy. For example:

"Well Bob, all we have to do now is process the order and get you started today!"

You can say that in person, and you can also use it in writing. With the personalization feature in your follow-up responder, you should address the person by name, and ask for their business. Tell folks Exactly what you want them to do next:

"Click Here and fill out the order form. Once you have done that, you will be redirected to a page where you can get (download, set up, call, or whatever the case may be) your hands on the product and get started Now!"

The Internet really speeds up the process with Real Time ordering, and instant downloads. Many times a live sales person has to wait for the home office to ship your order, but when dealing with digital products, the transaction can take place instantly! Use that to your advantage in closing the sale.

"Let's get you set up right now Bob!"

The Option Close

Some net marketers will disagree with me on this one. Some studies do seem to indicate that online you need to give them one choice, and one choice only. Any more than one choice will detract from sales, or so the philosophy goes.

I'm not sure that I fully buy that theory. The option close works so Extremely well with mail order and one on one sales, that there has to be a way to use it online successfully.

The simplest option close works like this "Bob, do you want the blue or green today?" Most of the time you will only have one choice (i.e. your ebook or digital product), but there are other choices you can offer. Many of the net Gurus that say to only give your visitors one option really have more than one and don't realize it. For instance, maybe they don't buy your book, but they sign up for your free newsletter - that is an option! Or how about "Will that be VISA or MasterCard?" That is an option! Perhaps you want to give them the option of Pay Pal or some other form of payment. That can be your option. Really the option is a form of the assumed close. When you ask, "will that be Pay Pal or 2checkout" you are assuming they are ready to buy and giving them an option.

Fear Of Loss

Nearly all pro online marketers use this fear of loss close. "If you don't order today the price may go up and the bonuses will be gone." You have seen this everywhere online.

Here is another example of the fear of loss close: "If you are not serious about earning online income, then this product is not for you". What this does is take it away from them. They fear that if they don't act they are not going to be a part of your wonderful team and offer. You can no doubt think of many other Fear of Loss type closes.

It all comes down to asking for the sale, and giving your prospect a reason for dealing with you "Now" and not later! One thing is for sure, if you don't ask for sales, you probably won't get any!

About the Author
Doug West is the editor of Opportunity Investigator. He has been interviewed in many of the top home biz publications like SFI magazine - (see (http://kosoma.com/DougWest.htm) ). His affiliate program provides members all the tools you need to succeed online.==> (http://209.61.158.154/close.htm)