What is the difference between a stall and an objection?  A stall is, "I want to think about it," or "I have to meet with other people."  An objection is, "Your price is too high," or "We have a satisfactory supply."  Both are putoffs which basically say, "You haven't sold me yet."  The bottom line is conversion.  You have to convert their lack of confidence, their lack of trust, and their lack of perceived value into a sale.

- Jeffrey Gitomer, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers

Even if you need very specific information... a good strategy is to start with a few open-ended questions and become more focused as you go.  This gives you the opportunity to develop a rapport with the other person while at the same time getting some valuable background data.  It just takes a little patience, which is essential anyway if you want to get honest, reliable information.

-Jo-Ellan Dimitrius, Ph.D. and Wendy Patrick Mazzarella, Reading People

The surest way to grab a sale is to make a great impression from start to finish. To ensure you get it right through and through, if you simply follow our "5 Simple Steps for Sales Calls," you will have a head start on reaching the sales finish line.  Then, if you incorporate some intuitive skills, like positive energy, an engaging personality, and a genuine desire to discover and meet the customer's needs, your customer will always want to buy from you.  

Great service organizations know how to read their customers and respond.  Businesses who lose sight or misunderstand who their customers are, what they want, or what matters most to them, are at risk. Focused service organizations train their employees to notice customer body language, to observe the surroundings for all customer touch points, and how to REACT and RESPOND with informed knowledge. Holding employees accountable for this level of service is what makes the difference. "The secret to world-class service is knowing the true customer and aligning all participating resources and people with the value stream that leads to that customer." -John Murphy

In many service businesses, the industry—not the client—defines quality.  In advertising, when most creative people say, "That's a really good ad," they don't mean that the ad might build the client's business.  They just mean that it has a good headline, good visual—it's good.  Neat.  Cool.  Many architects treasure buildings that are enormously inconvenient for the people who work inside.  Still, architects call them great buildings.  Ask: Who is setting your standards—your industry, your ego, or your clients?

-Harry Beckwith, Selling the Invisible

Qualifying is the blueprint of the sale and the foundation of the sales process. A seasoned sales person knows it is the most critical part of a sales conversation. Qualifying not only gives the sales person the chance to determine the basic details of the sale, it helps define which services and amenities are most important to sell. Most importantly, qualifying uncovers customer expectations, which, when met or exceeded, will lead to customer loyalty. The myth for inexperienced sales people is the feeling that qualifying takes a lot more time to ask all the questions when the customer just wants costs. When in actuality, qualifying keeps the conversation efficient, streamlined, and focused on what is most important to the customer. It will actually save you time!