Caldini’s six ways to close a sale

What is reciprocation?

If someone gives something to us, we immediately feel indebted to them and are more likely to do them a favour to feel better about ourselves

E.g Customers may be significantly more likely to make a purchase or donate to charity if they have already received a small gift or token (free pen/coffee)

—> Sellers who underpromise and overdeliver often use reciprocation = behaviour pleases the client and encourages them to come back another time

What are the 6 ways to close a sale?

1. Reciprocation

2. Commitments and consistency

3. Social proof

4. Authority

5. Liking

6. Scarcity

What is commitment and consistency?

- People prefer to be consistent and expect consistency from others

Once a person has made a commitment to an individual or company, they are more likely to be loyal to them

What is social proof?

Social proof = the way that people's behaviour is used as evidence for how to behave when people are uncertain

How does social proof help close a sale?

- When we see or hear of others behaving in a certain way, it makes us more likely to behave in the same way

- The more people are behaving in this way, the stronger the proof

How do sales persons use social proof to sell products?

sales people use this principle when they make us believe that people like us are already happily using their products or services

How does authority help close a sale?

- People are predisposed to accept authority - an authoritative salesperson is likely to be more successful than a submissive one

outward signs of authority (clothing, body language, titles) could persuade the buyer that the seller has authority and increase the lilkiness to accept their recommendation and offers

How can liking help close a sale?

It is not easy to say no to someone who is friendly and likeable so salespeople are well advised to spend time building a relationship with a potential customer before discussing products

How can you increase liking when closing a sale?

rapport building may include paying compliments, showing an interest in their lives and asking questions to find common ground = helps lower the consumers resistance

How does scarcity help close a sale?

- When goods become scarce they become more valuable, more people want the product and know that they may not be able to achieve their goal

—> by mentioning an item is on offer for a limited time or is about to expire can increase customers interest

What is a strength of these things?

STRENGTH = supported by research

- Beltrami (1992) conducted a Field experiment where 1500 customers were randomly allocated to an experimental group or a control group

- Those who received a gift gave higher ratings for the companies products than those who did not receive a gift

What is a weakness of these?

WEAKNESS

- Principles are Eurocentric = may work best for people from individualistic cultures such as the US and Eastern Europe

- Found cultural difference in the effectiveness of different strategies

○ In Poland, a compliance technique relating to social prrof was significantly more effective than one relating to commitment

- Shows that sales people need an awareness of their clients cultural identity before deciding on the best sales strategy