Ways to Bring Stalled Deals Back from the Dead

Have you ever come across a situation where, you were about to close a deal, but then out-of-the-blue, the buyer turned non-responsive?  These stalled deals occur from time-to-time. Two principal reasons for lost sales are budget and timing. Understanding how to reconnect with your prospect will make the entire experience more fruitful.  

So, let us examine a few reasons as to why deals are rendered dead-in-the-water: 

 Prospects may be unwilling to take the plunge as they may have been hoodwinked in the past. In situations such as these, a lot more effort will have to be applied in order to build rapport and eventually convince them. 

Prospects cannot afford to buy a product from you  A client who does not have enough funds to buy your product; will most likely not tell you upfront. This situation is awkward to admit especially to a stranger. Chances are you’re not going to hear about this from them; well, not to your face in most cases.

A study suggests that if there are more decision-makers (around 5 to 6 members) who take part in a B2B sales meeting, the less likely you are to close the deal. As opposed to a scenario where there is just one prospective buyer. In the latter situation, the likelihood of a deal being reached increases by as much as 80%.

69% of prospects figured salespeople do not meet their business requirements on the initial call.  

If you are selling, a whole new product, this task may seem a bit more challenging as nobody likes to take unnecessary risks.

Here are 9 ways on how to defibrillate

your stalled deal:

Be Positive:

The sales world is a highly competitive ecosystem and being positive will almost always help you in achieving your goal. Positivity is just as contagious as doubt, so even a hint of doubt comes across as off-putting and is likely to lessen your possibility of closing a deal. Be attentive rather than focusing on your financial goals.

Identify the cause and rectify: 

If you are aware of the reason as to why a deal is now firmly grounded in quicksand, then the task of addressing it becomes a lot easier.  For example – if a customer’s requirements change and now, they may not need your product/service as much as they did at an earlier interval, revisit your product and custom-tailor it to meet your buyer’s needs in the most efficient way possible.

Don’t play the part of a broken record:

In order to revive a dying deal, you will need to approach your prospective client with a fresh pitch. And this will require a lot more thinking out-of-the-box. For instance, “Would you like to consider this test period”, “Could we help you put together a trial period account?”

A major factor in ensuring a sale is closed, is to keep the conversation going.

Usher a sense of urgency:

A ‘limited period’ offer lends a sense of urgency to your product or service and it gives your clients a much-needed nudge in the direction of finalizing the deal. Your only goal here is to help them see added value in making their purchasing sooner rather than later.

Create easy exit opportunities to reduce risk:

To settle the contract, create an easy way for a buyer to opt-out of your offered service, whether it’s cancelling their membership or getting a full refund.

There are sentences which might inspire you.

“If our product does not give you the aforementioned results, we will give you a full refund…”
“During the installation process, should you have any queries, our support team will be happy to help 24/7
“If you wish to cancel your membership, you can do so in less than 2 minutes. You can even do it online”
Offer a discount percentage on the total bill
Notify your buyer you are offering a limited time discount in a promotional mail which is an effective way to create urgency

Online presence:

The sooner you earn your buyer’s trust, the easier you will be able to sell your product. The best way to build trust in today’s digital age, is being on social media and blogs.

Create testimonials from comments that have been made online or even through short videos.
Blogs on your product by various third-party users.
A well-drafted press release
Names off well-known organizations that use your product.
Mentions on social media

Be transparent about your product costs:

Effectively explain the pricing structure of your product or service to your buyers, this will help you to provide insights and qualify leads based on your prospects budget. This is a key exercise that will help you build trust.

Clarify all objections

If there is any objection from your prospects, address them carefully. By answering a prospects query (no matter how silly it may come across as) in a clear way you not only improve trust level but add value to your ability to deliver.

Use CRM to collect insights

With a CRM platform you can do more than just keep track of your prospects’ movements, it helps to quantify and to manage all points of data with respect to your sales activities, and it also allows you to analyze data about your leads and to uncover insights.

Kate is the content marketing manager at ReachStream and is responsible for driving more traffic to the website. Her sharp wit, creativity, and extensive knowledge about the industry have allowed her to precede over the content team, turning in more leads and retaining more customer.
During the last two years, she has actively participated in strengthening the content team. Content might be the king, but engagement is the queen, and this lady rules the house.
Other than motivating the team, Kate loves to meditate and go for long walks.