Everyone has had personal experience being turned-away from a sale because of an overbearing employee. Whether dining out for dinner or shopping at the grocery store, there are always some members of the staff that try too hard to make a sale. Instead of being inviting and open, these sales people come off as aggressive and desperate. As these situations illustrate, there is a fine line between following up on a sale and being annoying. Finding this balance is an important aspect of closing sales, because a majority of clients will need that extra nudge. Here are a few ways to follow up a sale without being overbearing.

1. Change your perspective.

When attempting to make a sale, it can be easy to see two separate team. The competition exists between you and the potential customer. You're trying to get them to buy, and they're trying to resist the offer. While this is a natural way to feel about such a situation, there are better perspectives to take. Instead of seeing a customer as an enemy, see them as a strategic partner. In reality, both of you want to obtain the same goal. The customer wants to see their business succeed, and you want to provide the service or product to help realize that goal. This perspective can help ease the tensions felt during the sales process.

2. Kill the customer with kindness.

This is a strategy that works against any force working in the opposite direction of your goals. Getting upset and frustrated will only make the sales advances more aggressive. No customer wants to do business with someone who is agitated and desperate for a sale. Not only is this attitude annoying, but it also doesn't reflect well on future business. Being nice is a great way to follow up with a potential customer without seeming aggressive or overbearing. A simple message or phone call asking about their business or personal life will accomplish a few things. First and foremost, the customer will be reminded of the deal or offer. Secondly, the potential client will let their guard down a bit when confronted with such kindness.

3. Be persistent.

Following up with a potential customer in a nice way can even come across as annoying or overbearing. Reaching out after an offer requires tactfulness and care. Most professionals recommend waiting around a week before even contacting a client. A week offers enough time for the client to consider the offer while still ensuring that the deal remains alive. E-mail is a great way to follow up without seeming too aggressive. This allows the client to take time to read the message, consider their answer and then respond. A phone call can seem too forward. In the email, it is important to start with a warm introduction. Starting off too cold can turn away prospective clients. It is also recommendable to keep the letter short as the client is surely busy with other projects.

4. Don't be afraid to stand out.

Many people are afraid to stick their neck out when following up with clients. They conflate standing out with being too aggressive or annoying. While these two characteristics can exist together, they don't have to. There are creative ways to stand out without coming across as overbearing. Connecting with the potential client on a personal level is a great way to achieve this goal. At the end or beginning of every correspondence, find a way to connect with your client. This connection could be related to food, a similar hobby, a discussion about the best gap year programs and anything else under the sun. As long as the client can relate, this strategy can help make you stand out.

After making a sales pitch or offer, it is important to follow up with potential customers. Finding the right balance between aggression and silence can be difficult. These four tips can help you follow up after a sale without being overbearing.

If you've chosen a career in sales, you may have developed a good technique for getting the attention of potential customers, but how many sales are you actually closing? If you believe you could be doing better, the problem may not be in your approach. It may be in the way you lead your customers toward that closing. One of these strategies may work better for you and help ensure your prospects are committing to the sale.

Apply Pressure to Commit

One of the most reliable ways to secure a sale is to put on the pressure to compel your prospect to make a decision on the spot. While providing them with information and letting them go home to think about it may seem like a good way to forge a relationship, it will almost always cost you the sale. Once they walk off the lot or out of the store, you'll likely not hear from them again. You can forge a more positive relationship later, once you've made the sale. For now, however, you'll have more luck by getting your prospect to commit to the sale. If you're offering some kind of incentive, make sure the prospect knows the deal is only good during that one visit. Even if you know this isn't true, this will help you apply pressure to commit.

Focus on the Game-Changers

It's easy to get overzealous and start listing all of the features of a specific product or model, but this can overwhelm a prospective customer. A better strategy is to talk to the prospect and find out what features are more important to them. Once you get a better feel for what they want out of the purchase, you'll be better prepared to cater to their specific needs. This can even help you deliver a more personalized sales approach. For instance, if you're trying to sell a car to a young couple with children, pointing out child-safety features of a specific model may bring you closer to making the sale.

Help Prospects Solve Their Problems

New entrepreneurs focus their businesses on solving problems instead of directly trying to push a sale. This tactic can work for sales professionals as well. Whether you're selling luxury vehicles or covered RV storage units, your goal should be to solve a problem in a unique way. If you can show your prospects why they need your product, they'll be less likely to walk away from the sale. If you can relate your product to the prospect's personal circumstances and make them understand that this specific product is ideal for solving their problem, you're far more likely to make the sale. The most important aspect of succeeding with this strategy is to convince your prospect that no other product will solve their problem as efficiently as your product.

If All Else Fails...

Suppose you've tried these strategies and your own tactics, but the prospect is still reluctant to commit. The first thing you have to realize is that they're still thinking about all you've said, proven by the fact that they haven't left yet. In these circumstances, the price may be the one factor keeping your prospect from becoming a customer. Instead of losing that sale altogether, offer them a different model at a lower cost. This is the time to go into the cheaper model's features because you want them to feel as though they're getting a deal. The prospect will weigh the features against the lower price on this second model, which is often enough to get them to commit to the sale.

Especially in hard economic times, getting people to buy a product is difficult, but it's not impossible. The important thing to remember is that they're looking for a value on something they need to buy anyway. If you can address these two issues in a way that makes your product seem like the ideal answer, you'll get yourself closer to closing the sale.

If you've chosen a career in sales, you may have developed a good technique for getting the attention of potential customers, but how many sales are you actually closing? If you believe you could be doing better, the problem may not be in your approach. It may be in the way you lead your customers toward that closing. One of these strategies may work better for you and help ensure your prospects are committing to the sale.

Apply Pressure to Commit

One of the most reliable ways to secure a sale is to put on the pressure to compel your prospect to make a decision on the spot. While providing them with information and letting them go home to think about it may seem like a good way to forge a relationship, it will almost always cost you the sale. Once they walk off the lot or out of the store, you'll likely not hear from them again. You can forge a more positive relationship later, once you've made the sale. For now, however, you'll have more luck by getting your prospect to commit to the sale. If you're offering some kind of incentive, make sure the prospect knows the deal is only good during that one visit. Even if you know this isn't true, this will help you apply pressure to commit.

Focus on the Game-Changers

It's easy to get overzealous and start listing all of the features of a specific product or model, but this can overwhelm a prospective customer. A better strategy is to talk to the prospect and find out what features are more important to them. Once you get a better feel for what they want out of the purchase, you'll be better prepared to cater to their specific needs. This can even help you deliver a more personalized sales approach. For instance, if you're trying to sell a car to a young couple with children, pointing out child-safety features of a specific model may bring you closer to making the sale.

Help Prospects Solve Their Problems

New entrepreneurs focus their businesses on solving problems instead of directly trying to push a sale. This tactic can work for sales professionals as well. Whether you're selling luxury vehicles or covered RV storage units, your goal should be to solve a problem in a unique way. If you can show your prospects why they need your product, they'll be less likely to walk away from the sale. If you can relate your product to the prospect's personal circumstances and make them understand that this specific product is ideal for solving their problem, you're far more likely to make the sale. The most important aspect of succeeding with this strategy is to convince your prospect that no other product will solve their problem as efficiently as your product.

Suppose you've tried these strategies and your own tactics, but the prospect is still reluctant to commit. The first thing you have to realize is that they're still thinking about all you've said, proven by the fact that they haven't left yet. In these circumstances, the price may be the one factor keeping your prospect from becoming a customer. Instead of losing that sale altogether, offer them a different model at a lower cost. This is the time to go into the cheaper model's features because you want them to feel as though they're getting a deal. The prospect will weigh the features against the lower price on this second model, which is often enough to get them to commit to the sale.

Especially in hard economic times, getting people to buy a product is difficult, but it's not impossible. The important thing to remember is that they're looking for a value on something they need to buy anyway. If you can address these two issues in a way that makes your product seem like the ideal answer, you'll get yourself closer to closing the sale.