The one mistake that quietly kills deals late in the sales process

We break down why promising B2B deals stall late, how emotion drives risk-averse decisions, and the simple safety question that surfaces hidden doubt before prospects go silent. We share a practical way to keep diagnosing, invite objections early, and protect forecast credibility.

• why late-stage losses waste time and damage credibility
• the three mistakes: relaxing early, leaving discovery, and confusing agreement with commitment
• hidden emotions in B2B: risk, doubt, consequences
• how to keep diagnosing throughout the cycle
• validating hesitation and lowering pressure
• proactive objection strategy vs waiting for resistance
• the safety question that surfaces the truth
• owning the process while staying consultative

Please like and subscribe, and um let's get into it
Please let me know if there is anything, any questions you have or any subjects you'd like me to cover
I put out a new podcast every Monday

Welcome to the podcast!

Chapters

• 0:13 Why Vanishing Deals Hurt
• 1:41 Forecast Risk And Lost Credibility
• 3:58 Three Classic Late-Stage Mistakes
• 7:42 The Hidden Emotions In B2B Buying
• 9:50 Keep Diagnosing And Validate Hesitation
• 12:10 Proactive Objection Strategy
• 14:11 The Safety Question That Surfaces Doubt
• 16:53 Own The Process And Build Trust
• 18:40 Wrap-Up And Listener Invitation

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:07

Hello again and welcome to another podcast. Now I think we've all experienced that situation where you're talking to somebody, you think the deal is going well, they say something like this looks good, and then you never hear from them again. And this is particularly frustrating when it happens further down the sales process. So here I'm talking about when you lose sales or people just disappear fairly late in the day. So that's the purpose of this podcast. Please like and subscribe, and um let's get into it. So I know this can be very frustrating, and there are some dangerous signs that well, there are some traps anyway for us as salespeople that can lead to this happening as an outcome. So I'm gonna start with, I mean, obviously, why they hurt. That's the the first thing, because this is happening quite a long way down through the sales process. So, in theory, at least, what you've been doing is properly qualifying the initial qualification, then a more in-depth qualification, maybe a presentation. Um, maybe you appear to be ticking all the boxes, you think you've identified all the buyers and influencers and everybody who's involved in the sale. This is more relating to uh business to business, and then it all goes quiet. So, this can amount to quite a lot of time on the one hand, and of course, we all have very limited time. So, one of the most important things that we can do as salespeople is to make sure that when we do dedicate time to an opportunity, it is an opportunity that has a pretty high degree of coming to fruition, of actually closing. So that's why the qualification and those early conversations are so important. So that's one aspect of it that is quite frustrating because that because that can write off all of that investment in time that we've put in. Secondly, there's the emotional commitment and salespeople, um that some people don't, but I think most of us to one degree or another get emotionally involved in a sale, particularly if it's one that we've had to put time into. And um, yeah, it can feel like a real slap in the face when somebody who we've been working with for a while just disappears for whatever reason. And the other thing is there's also that false sense of um certainty. Um, in other words, we're feeling more and more confident that this is going to come to fruition. We might be confidently forecasting it. I don't know how you rate your forecast, but um, you could be in the say 75% probability this is going to come in. And of course, that has an impact not only with your sales manager, but also with other people within the organization. So if it's a a manufacturing organization, then that forecast will affect um loading what uh parts of whatever it is you make need to be ordered, all that kind of stuff. And that suddenly collapses. So it can be um disappointing from the prospect of your own credibility in the end, if you've got something that you're feeling pretty confident about, and then things just don't happen. So let's just look at what those, first of all, what those um mistakes are that we make, and often these are mistakes that are made without realizing it. And I'm covering this here because I would much rather you had the heads up here, where it's not going to cost you anything, rather than lose a deal and have to learn the hard way. So the first mistake that people tend to make, that salespeople tend to make, is they relax too early. I'm one of the in terms of forecasting and in terms of how I approach sales, I don't regard the sale as one until I have the order in my hand. That's the point where I've won the sale. And then from there on I'm you know confident about it. And I think it's important to recognize that at any stage in the sales process, no matter how much time you've put in, no matter how much time you've spent with the client, no matter how many hoops you've jumped through to meet their requirements, you don't have the sale until it's in your hand. So you don't know what's going on in the background. It could be a competitor is coming with something, a new offer, or they have a new product that suddenly is much more attractive to uh uh this prospect. Um, maybe there's been a change of personnel somewhere, and your particular company isn't viewed that well by them. I mean, there are lots and lots of things that can happen. So relaxing too early is really important, as in, it's really important not to do it. Um, shifting from discovery to presentation is also another mistake. And what do I mean by that? So, discovery is having those open conversations with clients where you are trying to understand their requirements, understand their fears, understand their reasons, their motivations for looking to buy from you, and staying on top of that. And it's important to recognize, particularly when a sale has been going on for a while, that you just keep rechecking those, you check in definitely periodically, and it might have to be more frequently than you might imagine, simply because you don't know what's happening in the background. And the mistake that is made is switching from discovery to presentation, where you're just presenting your um solution and you're not you're no longer listening or taking in new information from the client. So it's really important that no matter how long your sales process, you keep taking information in from the client, you keep listening to them, you make sure that nothing has changed, particularly something that's quite critical to you closing this particular deal. And then the other mistake is simply to confuse agreement with commitment. So um potential clients may might well agree with you, but it doesn't mean they're committing to buy. And in fact, some people, so I use disc when I in my um in-depth course, and that looks at four different the four different types of people that we we have, and one of those types will agree simply to avoid any kind of what they feel is a confrontation or conflict, so they might well be aware that the situation has changed, that things are different, or somebody else has come in and they're now offering a much more attractive deal, but they won't tell you because they don't get want to get any kind of uh have any kind of conflict with you. They they imagine that if if they were to give you this information, uh you might then pressure them and they'll do whatever they have to do to avoid that. So you may want to check in and make sure the commitment is still there, but these are the three mistakes that are very easy to make, and particularly when you're late in the deal. So, just to recap, relaxing too early, shifting from discovery to presentation, and confusing agreement with commitment. So, why do late objections happen? Well, in the last or a couple of podcasts ago, I forget now, um, I spoke about buyer motivation, particularly in terms of business to business and what drives buyers emotionally. And when we look at business to business, we we tend to think it's more about facts and figures that there isn't that much emotion in there. Whereas business to consumer, there's a high degree of emotion quite often. However, you have to remember that when it's business to business, the person making the final decision on whether to go ahead and then which solution to go ahead with, this can be a career-defining situation for them. If they get it wrong, it could really blow up in their face and it could be a major problem for them personally. So self-protection could well be one of the motivations that's going on. There might also be doubt, and uh there might be doubt that hasn't been voiced. So it's really important again to go back to this discovery phase and keep communicating and making sure that there are no hidden concerns that you haven't dealt with. And you need to be aware of them because they could be showstoppers for you as well, and this is also important to know. And they may also be concerned about the consequences of the decision that they're about to make. So those consequences may be if it goes wrong, that would that would be a reasonable uh thing to be concerned about. But buying your solution, investing in your solution may also impact other aspects of the business. So it might mean that some people lose their jobs or some processes disappear. You would need to fill in the blanks here, but you need to understand the impact of what you're offering to other parts of the business. So, having gone through the problems, what are the solutions? So I've already mentioned a few of them, but I'll recap here. So the first thing is to keep diagnosing, like just keep checking in, making sure, first of all, that what is is being um discussed, so that might be options, configurations, whatever it might be, is still correct for them, and making sure nothing has changed. And if you get the feeling that things aren't quite right, and we often get this gut feel when we're talking to somebody that they might be hiding something, it's really important to try and get clarification on that. In a way, remember, in business to business, we're just we're sitting side by side with the client, we're doing consultative selling. This isn't about persuading them to buy from us, it's about working with them to make sure that we're delivering the solution that's what they need. And this also validates any hesitation. So if there's hesitation hesitation there, that is a definite flag that there is some concern that maybe hasn't been voiced, and you you really need to um explore that. It's really important as well to understand that decisions are anchored emotionally and not necessarily procedurally. So I've already touched on this, and I've gone into it in a lot more detail in another podcast, so I won't repeat that here. But the people involved in these sales are people, they're human, and they have fears and concerns and vulnerabilities, and pressures, and responsibilities, and all the things that we all deal with. And particularly if it's a large investment or a significant investment in the business, quite naturally there is going to be an emotional aspect to making that decision. So it's really, really important that you stay with them, that you maintain the conversation, and also that you're you're persistent, you stay with it. You know, don't get turned off if things get delayed. I mean, understand what the delay is, make sure it's valid, but do hang in there because some salespeople, if it doesn't happen quickly, they'll kind of lose interest and uh let it go. And this can also be something that will kill a deal later on. So the real point, or the I guess the real thing I want to share in this particular podcast, is to look at how or the question or questions to ask that minimize the chances of losing a deal fairly late in the um the sales process. So the the purpose of this, we're basically trying to get to the surface any hidden concerns or hesitations that might be there before it turns into ghosting, as in they just disappear and you can't find them again. So the important thing to understand is that by the time a deal stalls, the doubt has probably and most likely already been there for a while. And the mistake, the fundamental mistake underneath all of this stuff that most salespeople will make is to is just waiting for the objection to show up. You can't be afraid of objections. And um, I've spoken about objection handling in other podcasts. In um in my course, uh consultative selling, I go into a really good technique that pretty much eliminates objections, and if they do come up again, you've already got the answers to them. So there's a whole process there. So the difference between an average salesperson and somebody who's a top performer is that average salespeople will generally generally wait for resistance and then try and deal with it. Whereas a top performer is going to go and invite it. They want everything out on the table as early as possible so it can be dealt with while it still has, let's refer to it as a low emotional charge. It's not a critical issue at that point, but it is a concern. The later it gets in the sales process, the more significant it becomes as an issue, and it can be an absolute showstopper for the client. And also they might not want to talk about it, so this is why they disappear. So, what's the question that I'm referring to here? Now, you might want to rephrase this. Nice. I really suggest you do because I think it's important that we use our own words, our own language, and we come across as natural because the most powerful thing, I think, or one of the most powerful things you can do as a salesperson is to just be yourself because people are very sensitive to when they're getting an act and when they're getting a genuine person, and in sales, we want to build trust, so we need to be ourselves. So the question that you want to use is something along the lines of it. Sounds like this makes sense, but I'm curious what still doesn't feel fully settled for you? The important thing to note here is that this is an open question. So as in an open question invites a dialogue, a closed question is a yes-no answer. So what still doesn't feel fully settled for you opens the door the door to for them to uh describe it, and it's not a yes-no. So just breaking this down, it sounds like so. You're basically acknowledging that there has been progress made. So it sounds like this makes sense, first part. But I'm curious. So they use the fr the term I'm curious because it's a way of removing pressure, because this is flipping it back to you, maybe not understanding, but you're not making it about the client, you're making it about you, perhaps not fully understanding what's going on. And then what still doesn't feel settled. So that invites the client to show the emotion, it's more of an emotional question, it's not so much logic. Um, whereas logic would be more about the product. So engaging and connecting with the emotion is really important because they they if they are fearful, if they're concerned, they are going to want reassurance, and you're opening the door for them to get that reinsurance to get that answer. So I'll just say that one more time. This question it sounds like this makes sense, but I'm curious what still doesn't feel fully settled for you. So again, uh you use those elements, rephrase it as you need, but just notice the three elements of that question. Now, the important thing is here, this is not a closing question. This is not asking for the deal, this is a safety question. Depending on the answer you get, you can easily turn that into a closing question if you need to reclose. But this is the really important thing to do, and it's important to do when you're at that stage where you feel that the deal is done, but something isn't quite right, you've got a doubt there, and it's really important as salespeople that we take responsibility, we own it, we own the sale, we drive the sale from step to step. We'll do it in a hopefully in a way that uh isn't pressured, it wants to feel consultative, but it's gently guiding the client to that point where they place the order, and we can deliver the solution. And again, we're doing that because they're talking to you because they need the solution. And this is um something that's been covered in earlier podcasts where I talk about qualifying and really understanding what the drivers are. These are there's a very good chance these will still be current as you go later in the sale. Things may have changed, so it's important to understand that. But do remember that their reason for talking to you is most likely still there. Um, occasionally it will go, but most likely it hasn't. So, I guess that the point I'd like to leave you with here is that when buyers feel safe expressing doubt, they'll stop hiding it. So this comes back to the relationship you have and making sure that the buyer feels that you are there on their side and you are there to work with them. And if they feel that, if they feel they can trust you and that you are there to help them, you're much more likely to get these or have an open dialogue with them about any fears or concerns they might still be hanging on to. Okay, so that's it for um this podcast. I hope that's been useful. Please let me know if there is anything, any questions you have or any subjects you'd like me to cover. Um, I put out a new podcast every Monday. So um I hope you have a good week and uh I will speak to you on Monday. Bye for now.