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The Ben Franklin Close

DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
edited November 2014 in Sales
Here`s a very effective sales technique I used with great success back in the 80`s, when I was selling Craftmatic Adjustable Beds.I also believe it can be incorporated into sales letters and ads as well.It`s called The Ben Franklin Close. It`s also known as The Balance Sheet Close.Here`s how it works:You`ve just finished making your sales presentation to a husband and wife, but the couple is on the fence and can`t make up their mind. You`ve tried everything in your arsenal of sales closes, but can`t still get them to commit. Suddenly you say, "You know, Benjamin Franklin was one of the wisest and most respected men in history. Wouldn`t you agree, Mr. & Mrs. Jones?" (It`s important to get the prospects to agree with you.)"Whenever he was faced with a tough decision - much like you are today. He would take a plain piece of paper, draw a line down the middle and put a plus sign on one half, and a minus sign on the other. He discovered that by listing all the positive elements on the plus side of the paper, and the negative things on the minus side, the answer would become obvious. That makes a lot of sense, wouldn`t you agree?" Again, it`s important to get the prospects to agree. "With your permission, I`m going to borrow Ben Franklin`s method for just a moment. Since you`re having a tough time making a decision, lets list the benefits--some of the reasons you should make this purchase. Then we`ll list the negatives. Fair enough?" Once again, get the prospects to agree. Now simply list all of the positive qualities of your product or service. Better yet let the prospect list most of them. Whatever the prospect writes down will obviously be the main points of interest to him or her. Make sure you develop a complete list. After you`ve listed all of the positive points, let the prospect list the negatives." Don`t say a word while the prospect is listing the negatives.The list of negatives will always be shorter than the list of positives. Why? Because usually the only negatives prospects can think of have to do with price or affordability.So how can you incorporate the Ben Franklin close into a sales letter or ad? Here`s how I would do it:Knowing that the average website only closes 1 or 2 percent of first time visitors, at the end of my sales letter I would have a link that says, "Read this only if you`ve decided not to order today."Then I would have a separate page summarizing my product or service again, using The Ben Franklin Close. It`s definitely worth testing!Dale King DKing2007-6-4 7:21:0

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