I told my friend and mentor, Bert, that I was interested in starting a business and asked if he had any advice on where to begin this journey. Among other things, he recommended I learn how to sell, and specifically recommended the book Secrets of Closing the Sale by Zig Ziglar. The following are my takeaways from the book.

Quotes

Principal arguments of the book

Ask compelling questions, address the customer where they are, remove the barriers to closing the sale, add tremendous value, and blow them away with your generosity.

These are the secrets to closing the sale, in abstract terms.

You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want.

As examples: sell somebody something that solves a problem for them and you will receive a commission. Perform excellent service for your customers, they will keep coming back and refer you to other customers.

The customer is the biggest winner in an ethical sales transaction. If you are selling a legitimate product that solves a problem and you sell it at a fair price, the customer makes the best deal.

Zig has the reader consider this idea in the following way: a salesman is likely to spend the salary and commission he earns related to a sale he makes before the year is up. But in many cases the customer can enjoy the product they purchased for years to come.

A successful salesperson’s mentality

Whatever you vividly imagine, ardently desire, sincerely believe, and enthusiastically act upon must inevitably come to pass.

Zig is big on visualizing success in order to achieve it. I think this is his most powerful quote on the subject.

The salesman’s expectancy has a direct bearing on the prospect’s decision in many, many cases. Expect a sale on every interview.

Closers own what they sell.

Selling is a transference of feeling.

If you do not honestly feel the prospect is the loser if they don’t buy, then you’re not going to be nearly as effective in the world of selling.

This is such a powerful description. Selling is transferring to the customer the feeling that you have about your product.

You have to believe in yourself before you can expect others to believe in you.

Zig doesn’t let recession scares slow down his efforts. This is a good quip he wrote:

The media has predicted eighteen of the last two recessions.

He shares a story about a car salesman named Calvin who increased his sales year after year despite recessions. Calvin told him that he knew many car salesmen stopped trying to sell when they believed the market was bad. In response to this, Calvin thought:

Since there was about 90 percent as much business available and only 50 percent as much competition, Calvin figured his business had to increase substantially.

anything worth doing is worth doing poorly—until you learn how to do it well.

Spectacular achievement is always preceded by unspectacular preparation.

I find these two quotes inspiring because they remind me that even the flashiest achievements are accomplished after dilligent, continued effort.

A customer’s mentality

There are five basic reasons people will not buy from you. These are: no need, no money, no hurry, no desire, and no trust.

People buy what they want when they want it more than they want the money it costs.

The fear of loss is greater than the desire for gain.

Most people simply do not like to make decisions.

At the moment of decision, according to author Charles Roth, your prospects are “temporarily insane.”

Zig explains that this temporary insanity is especially powerful for expensive contracts, but he does not dive into this quote as much as I hoped he would. What are we supposed to do about this temporary insanity?

If you wait until you’ve given all the information before you try to close, that would be an even more serious mistake. Some prospects automatically say no on the first attempt to close so that they won’t feel they were “easy”—and that they didn’t carefully investigate before they bought … Many times these prospects who initially say no are actually saying, “Tell me more. Give me more information. Make me feel secure that a yes decision is the right decision.

Most people overstate objections

I am grateful that Zig mentions this. Once I read it, I notice that I do this all the time. The lesson here is that, when faced with fierce objection from a prospect, do not take the objection personally. Stay calm, ask the prospect to elaborate on their objection, and many times they will soften their statement.

“I’m just looking,” you can bet your last nickel they are “just looking”—but it’s desperately looking! For a salesperson! To sell them something—so they don’t have to keep on looking!

I love this idea. I am also guilty of saying I am “just looking” when I walk into a place like a department store. But if a real pro of a salesperson approached me, asked me what I was hoping to find, and then guided me to the right item, I would appreciate that sort of attention.

Many people do not know what they want because they do not know what is available. In short, if you cannot fill the bill exactly, do not assume they are so adamant they would not even consider anything else.

In other words, even if your product does not perfectly address your prospect’s problem, it may still solve enough of their problem that you can make the sale.

Sales methods

Many sales are lost or missed simply because the salesperson doesn’t ask the prospect to buy.

This is something I’m afraid I would suffer from if I were in sales. I imagine myself trying not to be too pushy and therefore never directly asking the prospect to make the purchase order. I’m glad Zig put this in his book. Having this idea in mind has already helped me make the conscious effort to be more direct when I ask somebody for something.

You can sell more by asking than telling. That’s the Socratic (after Socrates) method

By asking leading questions, the prospect convinces themselves to buy. Zig dedicated chapter 30 to this idea.

Bring out all the objections as early as possible so you can deal with them in the body of the presentation or early in the negotiating phase of selling.

Another reason to ask lots of questions is to draw out concerns that the prospect has about your product so that you can address them.

Break the price down into small amounts so your prospects can afford it. Make it easy for them to buy.

For example, if Zig were selling you a set of cookware for $700, he’d tell you that you were spending less than 40c per day to own the cookware for a modest lifetime of 5 years. He recommends writing the numbers out on a talking pad when using this approach: $700, 5 years, < 40c/day, etc.

There is a great example of this strategy on p. 209 in which Zig leads a man to understand that if he doesn’t buy a set of nice cookware, he’s treating the waittresses he tips far better than he treats his own wife.

The best way to get a prospect to make a favorable new decision is to make them happy with an old decision.

This means that you should never make a prospect feel bad about a previous purchase they’ve made. Even if they express that they think they made a poor decision. It’s important to make them feel that they are good decision makers if you want them to decide to buy your product. If their prior decision was objectively bad, tell them that you are confident that they made the best decision there was given the information that they had at the time.

Sales skills

Closing is a learned skill and not a natural one.

This surprised me, I’m glad Zig said it or I would have gone on believing that some people are born closers and others are not.

Voice inflection is the most important single undeveloped skill you need to concentrate on in your pursuit of professional sales excellence.

This quote also surprised me. I used to think that, as an adult that has been speaking for decades, that voice inflection would be a skill that was already well-honed. Later on, Zig adds to the importance of voice inflection with the following quote:

According to some authorities, what we say contains only 7 percent of the persuasive impact of the message. The way we say it contains 38 percent and our body language the remaining 55 percent.

The mind thinks in pictures.

Zig mentions that it’s best to use words like “home” instead of “house” or “invest” instead of “buy” because they create more favorable images in the prospect’s mind. He lists out a table of words that sell on p. 242, though I think the idea of using words associated with positive images is more powerful than reading the table.

Specific phrases to help you close

How to address price:

“Would you agree that, as a practical matter, a product is worth what it can do for you and not what you have to pay for it?” (Wait for answer.) “Starting with that premise, let’s take a look at what our product will do for you.”

Price is a one-time thing; cost is something you are going to be concerned about for as long as you’ve got the product.

People forget price but they’ll never forget poor quality or a poor choice.

Zig has a clever close in which he is confident that the prospect intends to buy, but the prospect is stalling. More or less, Zig asks “are you waiting until you get around to it to close this deal?” When the prospect answers in the affirmative, Zig hands them a circular token with the word “tuit” written on it.

It is round and it’s a ‘tuit,’ so it is a ‘round tuit.’

The customer has just gotten a round tuit! XD

Under no circumstances should you offer discounts for your goods or services. Instead, Zig has a great method for satisfying prospects that are waiting for a special deal from you before they buy:

She got the best offer because she got you. It can be a personal service: “One thing I will do for you that I normally do not do is I will personally take your order to shipping and see that it is handled—at no extra cost to you—for immediate shipment today.” Or “I will personally walk your credit through and save at least twenty-four hours for delivery.”

Business ideas

Selling is the only thing that contributes to profit.

I had never thought of this before. Mind blowing.

You don’t build a business—you build people—and then people build the business.

I hope this is true.

One of the car dealerships discussed in the book has an awesome practice in which:

Periodically the service manager and the sales manager (who incidentally enjoy the same income) swap hats, departments, and responsibilities for a few days.

This develops an empathy and understanding between the service and the sales teams, which enables them to work together more efficiently and ultimately to serve the customer better.

Their career will depend on what they do with what they know, not just on what they know.

This quote reminds me that I am a person who errs on the side of learning and analyzing a thing too much before I go out and start doing it!

When a company or an individual compromises one time, whether it’s on price or principle, the next compromise is right around the corner.

A common mistake budding salespeople-turned-entrepreneurs make is to think that they must hire full-time employees in order to grow. But that’s never been the case.

When you are just starting a company, it makes more sense to hire part-time contractors than it does to bring on full-time employees.

Bonus quote

He told him how the cow ate the cabbage in no uncertain terms

Zig uses this hilarious phrase to mean that somebody cussed somebody else out.

Step-by-step plans

Selling yourself as an underqualified candidate for a job opening

on p. 293. The main points are

Being dependable
Being truthful
Getting along with others
Positive attitude
Responsible
Willing to work hard
Tell the hiring agent that they will never regret hiring you, in fact they will be proud to be the ones who gave you the job.

The “eleven keys in selling”

from p. 328

Positive projection - You have to visualize making the sale before you attempt to do it.
The assumptive attitude - Assume the prospect will be receptive, assume you will make a stellar pitch, assume your prospect has the money to buy, etc. This is a repeat of the first key in my opinion.
Physical action
- Be presentable. Make sure you don’t stink and your breath is fresh.
- Your prospect should be seated when you go for the close.
- Make sure you are in a position to look people in the eyes.
- Try to remove physical barriers between you and the prospect, like a sales counter.
- Watch your prospect’s body language. Sometimes they may initially say the word “no” but their body will tell you that they are interested to hear more.
Enthusiasm - If you are yourself sold on the product or service you are selling to others, enthusiasm will come naturally.
The subordinate question - A subordinate question is a question to which a positive answer means that the prospect has bought. For example: “Have you sold yourself or should I tell you more?” Another example is to use these three questions in a row:
- Can you see where this would save you money?
- Are you interested in saving money?”
- If you were going to start saving money, when would be the best time for you to start?
Listen - Do your best to understand the prospect’s wants and needs. The only word you shouldn’t hear is “no”.
The impending event - When a prospect stalls, it helps to remind them why they are better off making their decision quickly. Some examples are:
- Other people are interested in buying the same limited resource.
- The price will continue to rise over time.
- They can start reaping the rewards and benefits sooner.
Persistence - Persistence is tough because you have to strike a different balance with different prospects so that you aren’t perceived as being too high pressure, or worse, giving up too easily. Zig says the best way to gauge how persistent you should be comes from thinking like Frank Bettger when he said:

So long as I can forget myself and what I am going to make out of a sale, and keep my mind on the other person and what he will get out of the sale, I have no fear of creating the impression that I am high-pressure
Inducement - This refers to all the niceties of doing business with you. Smile, be pleasant, and add your own personal touch and courtesies when it comes to making life easier for your prospects and customers.
Sincerity - You have to be sincere in order to earn trust, which is absolutely crucial if your prospect is going to buy from you
The narrative event - This key refers to testimonials. Give your prospect vignettes of other people or companies that had similar problems that your product was able to solve.

The 10 steps for a perfect pitch to investors

From p. 387, this plan for the perfect pitch comes from Kevin Harrington, the original Shark Tank shark, who was involved in modernizing and augmenting Secrets of Closing the Sale.

Start with the tease - Capture the investor’s attention by demonstrating the need you are fulfilling, and lean into the drama.
Follow up with the please - Demonstrate how you will fulfill this need in the most efficient, elegant, or cost-effective manner. Tell the investor why your solution is better than any other.
Show your idea, product, or service in action - Give the investor a demonstration of your solution.
Accelerate the value of what you are selling - This is the part where you might say, “but wait, there’s more!” It is where you are showing how your solution goes above and beyond solving the original problem.
Provide testimonials - These can be:
- Consumer testimonial comes from someone who uses your solution.
- Professional testimonial comes from an expert to add credibility to your solution.
- Clinical testimonial comes from a testing facility that adds a scientific stamp of approval to your solution.
- Editorial testimonial is one that is published in a newspaper, magazine, TV show, etc.
- Celebrity testimonial
Highlight your research and competitive analysis - Provide data to show how your solution is unique and how it is better than any other in the marketplace.
Show off your team - These should be experts that provide input in key areas of your business.
Show why you need the money - Discuss how you will use the money you are asking for.
Outline your marketing plan
Ask for the money

For a real cherry on top to stand out to an investor, offer an “accelerated payback”. For example: offer the investor $1 of every unit sold until he has recouped his investment, and then give him the X% equity stake in your business.

9 essential parts of a winning business plan

From p. 393, this outline also comes from Kevin Harrington.

Executive summary - Answers the following questions in less than 2 pages:
- What’s the problem?
- What’s the solution?
- What’s the industry?
- Who’s on the team?
- What’s your progress to date?
- What are you looking for from your investor?
Market description - This is a detailed description of the problem, the solution, and the industry.
Competitive analysis - This section describes how the uniqueness of your solution is a competitive edge over the other players in the market.
Sales and marketing plan - This section addresses your customer acquisition strategy, your branding, and your distribution system. Get down to the dollars and cents of where you plan to spend money.
Proof of concept - Provide previous sales data.
Operations - Describe the management structure and who will do which parts of the work.
People - Give information about your C-suite, advisory and directory board members, and any other high level managers or experts worth mentioning.
Financial projections
Risk analysis - Investors are going to be asking themselves why they shouldn’t invest, so in this section address their concerns and show that you have a plan to mitigate the risks to your business.