We have all seen that movie where there’s a sharp negotiator who walks into the room for the first time and closes the deal for a million dollars.

Maybe it wasn’t in a movie, but we’ve all heard the tales of the super smooth guys and girls that can sell anything to anyone the first time meeting them.

Is this realistic? is it something we should strive for? And is it possible for people to achieve such feats?

Yes some people are capable of doing that with great personal flair, but for most of us that’s not even a remote possibility.

And personally I wouldn’t even recommend that... even if I could teach you to do that.

Just to put the record straight... I don’t know how to teach you to sell that way.

It's very daunting and emotionally overwhelming to try and sell the “big thing” in one sitting.

It’s also very troubling to the client because, who likes taking big dramatic decisions the first time they meet a total stranger?

If customers have this level of resistance and tension at the beginning of the sale, isn’t it likely that they’ll suffer from buyer’s remorse or buyer’s regret later?

In either scenario, they will associate all these negative emotions with you. This doesn’t bode well for you being a credible and comfortable business partner for the future.

Instead of going for the big kill at the beginning, why not start by making “little sales” and “little commitments” that move the client closer to the final sale?

What could the “first sale” be? The very first commitment could be to get the potential customer to agree to a meeting to talk.

“Madam customer from all we’ve explored so far, it looks like it makes sense for us to have a meeting and go over proposals in more detail... are you open to that?”

The second sale or the second commitment could be to get feedback over different options in the proposal.

“If I understand you correctly sir, options A, B, or C would be adequate for us to achieve XYZ.... which one jumps out at you the most?”

After you take the potential customer through processes like these, then it’d make sense for you to make the move for the final commitment or the final sale.

At this stage, it should be clear if most people are ready to buy...

“So if we’re in agreement Mr and Mrs Ogendengbe, the next step is the payment of a deposit for the amount of XYZ to confirm your date.”

This is the process that we “mere mortals” ought to take when we’re involved in complex sales scenarios involving products or services that cost a lot of money.

We can keep entertaining ourselves with the superstar negotiators and sales people in movies while trying to learn from the “smooth operators” who go the “big kill” every time.

This is a much more easier and emotionally calm way to go about making the sale which doesn’t freak out the potential buyer.