How many times have you left a sales call thinking something was going to happen only to find out later that your prospect pulled a vanishing act? Or, maybe you thought you heard the prospect say they were mailing or faxing a signed contract, but it never showed up.
 
As a group, salespeople have a common flaw: They tend to only hear things they want to hear, and seem to struggle with just coming right out and asking a prospect exactly what they want to know.

Make it a standard part of your sales process to get your prospects to share with you where they stand. You can do this by simply asking your prospects to "Sum Up" what they believe the next steps are, so both of you are on the same page. And, if they use any 'wishy-washy' words like "maybe", "probably", or "in the future," use the ‘stroke-repeat-reverse’ tactic to determine what’s really being said. Here’s how this works. The prospect states, “We like what you’ve presented and we are going to sign up for your service in the future.” Your response: “I’m glad to hear you’re going to sign up (the stroke), but when you say ‘in the future’ (the repeat), exactly what does that mean (the reverse)?” Remember, No Mutual Mystification.