What is a ‘Trial Close’ Anyway?

If you are anything like me, you have asked yourself “what the heck is a trial close?” My manager’s or even trainers would tell me, “and then you hit them with a trail close.” At this point I would in turn ask them what a trial close was and I would proceed to get a rambling and run around answer that I didn’t understand, eventually just telling my manager I would do it. However, I did not actually change anything in my sales process because I did not understand what they were asking me to do.

Until one day, I was talking with a fellow salesperson and the subject of “trial closes” came up and I admitted to them that I really didn’t know or understand what a trail close was. I actually thought that it was when you asked a closing question prior to the close step or when you ask the customer for a commitment to buy. When I said this to them, they actually laughed a bit, and couldn’t believe that I had been selling as long as I have and didn’t know what a trial close was. They went on to explain this 8^th wonder of the world to me. In one simple sentence they explained to me what no other manager or trainer could:

“A trial close asks the customer for an opinion where a direct close asks the customer to make a decision.”

Instantly the trail close made sense. Customers are much more likely to give you their opinion about something, even when you might not want it. However, customers, and people in generally are much more cautious about making a decision.

Once I understood what a trail close actually was, I was immediately hooked. These things are great at ensuring that I am moving the sale in the right direction and that it is going to close when I ask for the sale.

Here is an example:

A lot of people can get stuck transitioning to the Investment Proposal from the Demonstration Drive. This happens because the customer is nervous about ‘going inside and looking at numbers’ because they know that they are going to be asked to make a decision. And it also happens because the Salesperson is nervous because they are going to have to ask the customer for a decision and they are afraid the customer is going to say ‘no.’

So now let’s ask a trial close during the Demonstration that will help with this transition:

This is a powerful question to ask the customer’s opinion about the car. The customer only has a limited number of responses:

1 – 6: A score of one through six probably means the customer has significant issue with the vehicle and probably will not buy it. You will want to use a follow-up question like the one below to determine what is not right about this vehicle so that you can find the customer a vehicle they will drive.

7 – 9: A score of a seven, eight or nine typically means the customer has some slight or small concern about the vehicle, however this most likely will not stop them from purchasing the vehicle. That’s right, the vehicle does not need to be a perfect ten in order for the customer to purchase. They just are not going to purchase at a lower score like a four, five, or six. After a customer gives you a score of a seven, eight, or nine you will want to follow-up with a question like the one below to provide you with additional information to close the deal.

10: A score of a ten, pretty much equates to a sale. It means that you listened to your customer wants & needs, likes & dislikes, must-haves & can’t stands, and selected the perfect vehicle for them. Then you selected, presented and demonstrated the perfect vehicle for them. You Earned the Sale!

In this example, knowing that the customer believes the vehicle is a one through six is going to tell you that you need to pump the breaks, do not continue forward with the Investment Proposal, go back to the Customer Profile, determine what went wrong and select a new and better vehicle for the customer. On the flip side, if the customer tells you that the vehicle is a seven through ten, it will give both you and the customer the confidence that this is the right vehicle for them and the next logical step will be to continue forward with the sale to the Investment Proposal.