Bottom of the Ninth: Three Powerful Strategies for Closing Opportunities Before January 1

It’s been a volatile few months. Many sales teams find themselves in “World Series mode” this quarter, striving to hit aggressive sales targets before the end of the fiscal year – and looking for ways to overcome the obstacles that a turbulent economy has thrown their way. The intensity of this time of year can make selling for a living feel a bit like the playoff season!  

Here's three proven strategies you and your team can use to close more sales opportunities, set the right end-of-the-year game plan, and make the final “inning” of your team’s fiscal year pay off. 

Find out whether people will be busier or slowing down during the holidays.

Some industries can use downtime to make changes, while others may need to get results quickly before things pick up again. For example, construction might slow down in the winter, but tax attorneys or fitness companies may need to make important decisions and changes before January 1st. Decision makers in the second category can be leveraged to help you hit fourth-quarter numbers. 

Know when it’s time to disengage until January.

The fourth quarter is a particularly important time of the year regarding personal time management. It’s the ninth inning. Who you and your team choose to invest precious time and attention talking to matters more than ever right now. Disqualify prospects who are truly not ready, not interested, or simply waiting for a new budget to come along. Your time is valuable, and you will want to spend it with people who are both willing and able to buy. 

Be ready to help them put modest leftover budget dollar totals to creative use.

Some prospective buyers will still have small amounts left in their budgets and will look for intelligent ways to spend them before the year concludes. Such dollars may not be enough to launch a major project…but leaving them unspent is likely to make asking for funding for the following fiscal year more of a challenge for your contact. So: Find out what their situation is. If they’ve got small amounts left in the budget, discuss scaled-down offerings. Could you work with them to put together a pilot program or a small sample order – something that would help them evaluate bigger and better opportunities to work together in the coming year?  The key to making these three powerful strategies work for you and your team in Q4 is to make it all about them…not your yearly numbers.

Find out:

• How will starting to work with you now benefit them?
• How will it help them deliver key results more quickly – and move closer to attaining important personal and organizational goals?
• And what can you do today to add measurable value to their world – sooner rather than later?