CHAPTER 11
OBTAINING COMMITMENT
Outline of Chapter
I. Obtaining commitment today
A. Part of the Process
B. Importance of securing commitment
II. Financial terms and conditions
A. Discounts
B. Credit terms
C. Shipping costs
D. Presenting price
III. When to attempt to obtain commitment
A. Buyer’s comments
1. Buyer questions
2. Requirements
3. Benefit Statements
4. Responses to trial closes
B. Nonverbal cues
IV. How to successfully obtain commitment
A. Maintain a positive attitude
B. Let the customer set the pace
C. Be assertive, not aggressive
D. Sell the right items in the right amounts
V. Effective methods
A. Direct request
B. Benefit summary
C. Balance sheet method
D. Probing method
E. Alternative choice
F. Other methods
VI. If commitment is obtained
A. No surprises
B. Confirm the customer’s choice
C. Get the signature
D. Show appreciation
E. Cultivate for future calls
F. Review the actions to be taken
VII. If commitment is not obtained
A. Some reasons for lost opportunities
1. Wrong attitudes
2. Poor presentation
3. Poor habit and skills
B. Discovering the cause
C. Suggestions for dealing with rejection
1. Maintain the proper perspective
2. Recommend other sources
3. Good manners are important
VIII. Bringing the interview to a close
IX. Selling Yourself
Teaching Suggestions
1. First, try to get the students’ perceptions about closing. Do they think it is necessary? Devious?
Manipulative? You might accomplish this by asking each student to share the first thing that
comes to mind when you say the word “closing”. Record these comments on the board. If
comments are slow in coming, ask them to think about the tackiest closing used on them and how
it made them feel or review the first Thinking It Through in the chapter.
Alternatively, you could start by putting up these numbers. Todd Pollock is the VP of ticketing &
suites for the Las Vegas Golden Knights NHL team (see Discussion Question 8). He claims that it
may take 100,000 people saying no to find 10,000 who buy tickets. Ask students if they’ve ever
thought about the importance of closing something that it would seem most people would want –
a seat at a major league sporting event. Then talk about the need to upsell – maybe the closing is
for a higher value seat or package.
This is a good time to discuss the Opening Profile. What is Kimberly’s approach to closing? Does
she sound pushy or simply assertive? Segue into an overview of professionally obtaining
commitment. Note that salespeople don’t just have one goal (get the business!) on every call,
which Kimberly points out. Rather, they attempt to obtain commitment on the objective of the
2. Discuss why obtaining commitment is important. State that the goal is still to help the buyer solve
real problems, not just to sell your merchandise. Have the students name some products/service
that they recently really needed to purchase and ask how they would close themselves. What
causes hesitation and why is closing important to both the seller and the buyer? You may want to
introduce students to the old saying, “Nothing happens until someone sells something.”
3. Talk about when to attempt to obtain commitment. Note that there is no one psychological
moment that you can not miss or you lose the sale forever! Go back to the examples they
provided about products/services they recently really needed — was there only one right time to
close?
4. Spend time talking about how to successfully obtain commitment (attitude, customer sets pace,
assertive not aggressive, right item in right amounts). Go back to any horror stories (from
suggestion #1) and use those to illustrate the difference between assertiveness and aggressiveness.
Bring up the point that many sales trainers emphasize the importance of the seller maintaining
complete control including the pace of the interview. Do your students agree? How could that
help you gain commitment more easily? How could it hinder your attempts?
In reality, control should not be an issue. In a win-lose or parent-child or teacher-student
relationship, control can often be important. But in a sales situation the buyer and seller are
attempting to become partners through a win-win relationship (more like partners in a relay race
or three-legged race).
5. Discuss the effective methods listed in the text. After you describe a method, have the students
provide a clear example. After discussing the four methods, ask students if they appear devious,
manipulative, etc. If so, ask why? How would they suggest obtaining commitment? What method
do they like someone else to use on them?
Mention that there are literally thousands of other closing methods. Ask students how they feel
about each method.
6. Talk about what to do if the buyer says “yes.” Although this would seem easy, many salespeople
make serious mistakes here (e.g. not thanking for the order, acting cocky, acting surprised). You
may want to have students read Building Partnerships 11.1 where the buyer said yes but Les
refused to take the sale and why, as well as Tim Simmons’ story of what happened at Cabela’s.
Sometimes, not taking the sale is the right thing to do.
7. Talk about what to do if the buyer says “no.” It is important for students to learn to deal with
rejection. Ask them if they have ever told a salesperson “no.” Then help them see that they
weren’t trying to be mean to the salesperson. They didn’t say “no” because they didn’t like the
salesperson (at least sometimes). You may want to use the second Thinking It Through here,
where the student is asked what to do if the buyer’s reason for saying no seems that they don’t
trust the seller. Another good feature is the Building Partnerships, and the customer who wants to
think it over.
8. We added some additional coverage on trial offers. Distinguish between a trial close (taking the
buyer’s temperature) and a trial offer (a free period to try the product). In our experience, trial
offers can be very risky and expensive. If there is any reason to want to go back to the old product
because the new one requires some investment to learn, then the likelihood of getting the sale is
small. But if it is something like a car or a new puppy, no one wants to give it up after the trial
offer! Even so, car dealers will tell you that people will ask for a trial only to be able to drive a
new car for a special event, then return it and not buy it. Some discussion on the strategic value of
a trial offer is needed to keep students from “punting” on a sales call by going to the easy close of
a no obligation free trial.
9. Summarize what was covered:
Obtaining commitment is necessary.
Timing of obtaining commitment.
How to successfully obtain commitment.
What methods to use to obtain commitment.
What to do if the buyer says “yes” or “no.”
Suggested Answers to Ethics Problems
1. In the opening profile, Kimberly Drumm says to “Always be closing.” Some have interpreted this
statement to mean to ask for the sale as early and as often as it takes to get the deal. Is that what
she meant? One buyer stated, “All closing methods are devious and self-serving! How can a
salesperson use a technique but still keep my needs totally in mind?” Comment. Integrate into
your discussion the concepts of persuasion versus manipulation.
Most buyers expect you to ask for the order. It should be a natural part of the conversation, and
2. A customer asked the salesperson “How do you intend to solve my problem?” The salesperson
told the customer his approach, and provided a timeline on when each step would be completed.
When asked for the sale, the customer said, “Oh, I’ll just do it myself.” Now that she had the
process spelled out for her, she felt she no longer needed the salesperson. Was her behavior
appropriate? Why or why not? And whether appropriate or not, how can salespeople avoid such
situations?
This actually happened to one of your authors and the offending party was a close friend. I’ve
heard of worse cases, though, such as asking for a design, then using it but not paying for it, even
Suggested Answers to Questions and Problems
1. Review the closing methods in Exhibit 11.3 and write a nonmanipulative and a manipulative
version of each. What is the difference?
In many regards, the language of each version may not vary. For example, a standing room only
close is appropriate when the customer truly faces losing out because of high demand. One
2. The sales process has gone well. You identified two important needs and shown how your product
meets those needs. Your product costs $2,000 per month on a 24-month lease, or $100,000 to
purchase plus a $200 per month maintenance agreement. Delivery and installation is $5,000,
whether they lease or purchase. Supplies to operate the equipment are likely to run about $1,000
per month, based on the volume shared by the prospect. When the prospect asks, “How much will
this cost?,” how do you answer? What additional information would you like to know to help this
buyer make the best decision?
One way is to take this as a buying sign, especially as you are already very far into the sales
process. Here is one way to respond: “It depends. Do you plan to purchase outright or lease?”
3. What is the relationship between value analysis in Chapter 3, the value proposition in Chapter 9,
and pricing? How does your response influence your perception of gaining commitment?
The three should be related. Value analysis determines what the dollar value is to the individual
made the effort to prove value!
4. You’ve made six sales calls over a month with one prospect, qualifying needs with three separate
influencers, and you finally get through to the decision maker. You make your presentation and it
seems to go well. All of the influencers are there; they are all nodding yes, so as you wrap up, you
ask when they’d like to get started. The decision maker replies, “I’d like to think this over.” Two
of the influencers look surprised while the third looks confused. “OK,” you reply, “is next
Tuesday OK to check back?” How could you improve on your answer? Be specific; what exactly
would you say?
How about asking: “How does it sound to you right now? What concerns do you have? Is there
5. One sales manager who worked for a refrigeration equipment company taught his salespeople
the following close: Ask questions that allow you to fill out the contract. Assume the sale is made
and hand the contract to the buyer, along with a pen. If the buyer doesn’t immediately take the
pen, drop it and make the buyer pick it up. Once the buyer has the pen in hand, he or she is more
likely to sign the contract, so just wait silently until the buyer does.
a. Would you label this seller as assertive or aggressive?
b. Is this a trick (manipulative) or merely dramatization (persuasive)?
c. How would you respond to this behavior if you were the buyer?
6. You’ve identified a process by which your company could recycle packaging material, saving the
company about 10% of the packaging costs. But when you talk this over with the person in
charge of shipping, he says, “You’re just a sales rep! Go sell something and let me do my job!”
What do you think is driving his reaction? How would you respond? What would you do next?
While many specific factors could be influencing his behavior (including a bad pastrami
sandwich), two are most likely. The first is simply too much pressure to do other things and not
enough reason to spend time looking at this one (perhaps because of how his performance is
7. As you think about the concept of creeping commitment, identify four different times in a sales
call that a salesperson might ask for commitment other than asking for the sale.
The first ask is for time – time for the call or an appointment. The second is to ask for permission
to ask questions and if the agenda for the call seems appropriate. The third ask might be to
8. Todd Pollock, sales VP for the Las Vegas Golden Knights, says he hears no 10 times, sometimes
20, for every yes. How do you deal with that rejection? What strategies would you try if you were
in Todd’s situation?
Salespeople tend to handle rejection in different ways – some ways are “adaptive coping” and
some “maladaptive.” One rep we knew would not introduce herself on every tenth phone call.
9. What would you say to a friend to gain his or her commitment to go on a spring break trip?
Describe exactly what you would say to your friend, using each of the following methods (make
any assumptions necessary):
a. Alternative choice
b. Direct request.
c. Benefit summary.
d. Balance sheet.
e. Probing.
10. A customer is willing to order 100 cases listed at $20 per case in order to get a 15 percent
quantity discount. Terms are 2/10, n30. The customer pays five days after receiving the invoice.
How much did the customer pay?
Suggested Answers to Case Problems
Case 11-1: Global Sourcing for Allied?
Questions:
1. What form of closing did Sean use to gain Sarah’s commitment to the idea? Was that
appropriate? Why or why not?
Sean uses the direct approach with “Will I have your endorsement at the meeting?” Some
2. List how you would attempt to obtain commitment using three other methods of your choice.
Write out exactly what you would say for each method (and be sure to identify the method).
3. Although you have been shown only a portion of the conversation, evaluate Patsy’s performance
in terms of the following:
a. Selling benefits, not features
b. Using trial closes
Sean does a good job of asking questions and getting Sarah’s perceptions. While not necessarily
c. Using communication aids to strengthen the presentation
Sean’s lack of documentation appears to really slow things down. We don’t know if he pulls them
d. Responding to objections
Sarah asks questions that really represent objections, such as how much demand is there. Sean’s
e. Attempting to gain commitment at the proper time
Case 11-2: Prodio
Questions:
1. Assess Carmen’s approach to presenting price. Is her style something Bob should emulate?
Some students will say no, that she was too aggressive and pushy. There are some elements,
though, that are worth emulating: she was prepared with the paperwork, and willing to tolerate
2. Prodio’s implementation team will need to work very closely with Shirley and her people, and it
doesn’t appear that Shirley wants to be helpful. What could Carmen have done to avoid this
situation? Assume this meeting was called by John. How could Carmen have handled it
differently?
Shirley is clearly not a proponent and this purchase, as presented in the case, probably represents
a loss of prestige and budget for her. The best solution would have been to get Shirley on board
End o f Chapter Role Play Case
There are three closing situations. In the ARM situation, the buyer was instructed to hesitate at a
trial close. When you debrief this role play, note that a trial close is a great device to find out
what to do if a student salesperson gets stuck. If you ask for a sale or a trial close, the customer
will tell you what to do with an objection if the customer isn’t ready to buy! Further, the buyer
asks for free training. Most students say yes because they haven’t counted the cost of providing
that training. Who will do it? If the rep does it, then when do sales calls get made? If someone
else does it, who pays for it?
In the FSS case, the buyer is instructed to refuse to buy but to ask for a trial version. How many
salespeople gave in without probing? What if the request was an excuse to end the sales call?
When can the salesperson expect a decision if a trial is given, and how will the customer use it?
The Mizzen situation recalls earlier decision process information regarding the need to have
someone from both divisions see the product before buying it. This is a legitimate request on the
buyer’s part. The salesperson should then close for the next meeting, this time with the right
representatives.
Asset Recovery Management
Today, use the same needs you’ve had all along. However, here is a new objection you can use.
“I’m a marketing guy – this is all too complicated for me.”
At the first trial close, seem hesitant and fail to agree. If probed, you’ll need to come up with an
objection, such as a misunderstanding about the feature or something similar.
When closed after you’ve done the first two things above, agree to buy. Then ask for 4 free
passes to Gartner’s CIO Leadership Summit (a $3550 value each). If the rep gives those to you,
say something like, “Yeah, I figured those conferences were really a racket and expensive.”
FSS
Today, use the same needs you’ve had all along. However, here is a new objection you can use.
“We have to get moving on our acquisitions and I can’t wait for you to take so long.”
At the close, seem hesitant and fail to agree. Ask for a trial account you can use for 1 person for a
week to access all the Gartner research you want. If probed, then say you want your tech guy to
look at it and see if Gartner is worth it.
Mizzen
Today, use the same needs you’ve had all along. However, here is a new objection you can use.
“I don’t see how this will help us develop better marketing programs.” If probed, say you think
sales is a person-to-person game and this technology stuff may not work.
At the close, say you want to think about it. If probed, say you think the IT department should
get involved. You cannot buy today. It must undergo additional review.
EXERCISE 11-1 OBTAINING COMMITMENT: A REPORT ON BUYER‘S REACTIONS
Interview a purchasing agent, a department store buyer, or the owner of a small business, and ask for
his/her evaluation of the closing routines used by sales representatives who call on them. Write your
conclusions in one or two paragraphs below.
EXERCISE 11-2 OBTAINING COMMITMENT IN THE JOB INTERVIEW
Assume you are interviewing for a sales position with a firm that you are really interested in. You have
just spent 25 minutes with the sales manager talking about your needs, skills and attributes. Only a few
minutes remain before the manager will begin interviewing the next candidate. You know that the next
step for all “good” job candidates is a visit to the regional office and an interview with the regional
manager.
1. You now need to obtain commitment. What is your goal (i.e. what exactly will you attempt to get the
manager to agree to do?
Given your answer to #1, outline exactly what you would say using each of the following methods.
2. Direct request method:
3. Benefit summary method:
4. Balance sheet method:
5. Probing method:
6. Alternative Choice
7. If this were a real interview situation, which method would you recommend using? Why?
EXERCISE 11-3 OBTAINING COMMITMENT: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
Go to your library and look up all references you can find on obtaining commitment and closing. These
will probably include books, articles in business magazines, speeches, journal articles, and maybe even
magazines or periodicals devoted entirely to the topic. Complete the following questions.
1. List the titles, author, and source of all materials you found:
2. The following are quotes from several sources:
“Forget 150 ways to handle objections or 50 ways to close the sale. These are commando selling
techniques or gimmicks that make up for not being good.”
“Plays of this sort are typical of manipulation or trick closes recommended in these systems.”
“The emphasis in sales for decades has been on the close of the sale. I believe that this selling
strategy is no longer appropriate.”
“I have no desire to teach my reps how to close the sale.”
Based only on your research, so you tend to agree or disagree with these quotes? [Be sure to include
quotes from your research sources—provide the complete reference citation.]
3.
What are your personal beliefs about the importance of commitment and closing techniques? Be
sure to discuss the techniques described completely in the book as well as the techniques briefly
described in Exhibit 12-3.