The Assumptive Close

It's Sherri Johnson, national real estate coach, speaker, consultant, and founder and CEO of Sherri Johnson Coaching. So glad you're back with us today. I'm really excited. We use this term called the presumptive closing technique, the assumptive close, or the presumptive close. This technique is really a game-changer. And I love the presumptive close technique because when you use it, you will have a higher success rate in converting leads into appointments.

 

You'll convert more appointments into closed listings.

You'll write more offers, sell more homes. Ultimately, you'll be killing it. You'll be making more money and you will be more effective and able to compete at a higher level. So I hope you are into that because I'm going to share some strategies on the presumptive close, why it works, how to use it and give you some strategies, some talk tracks on different ways you can use the presumptive close. A couple of them that I love, when you're trying to get an appointment, agents will say to me all the time, “I don't know how to ask for an appointment or when I do people say no.” And so what happens is if you're asking for an appointment with a yes or no question, you're going to get a yes or no answer, right?

So we want to be strategic.

And we want to ask a yes or no question on purpose. When I want to hear a yes or no answer, that's when I ask a yes or no question. It's very simple. When I want to tie someone down to an appointment, I need to say, the two-step, this is sales 101, okay? It's not mine, but it's been mine for a long time because it works. So I like to say, “Mr seller, I can save you time and money. I'd like to come and see your house now because I add value to the process. I can save you time and money. And before you call the contractor, before you go to Home Depot or Lowe's with your list of home improvements, I can save you time and money.

And I add value to the process.

” And as soon as you get ahead nod or an acknowledgment of that, the very next thing you say is, “Great. What's better for you, Thursday at five or Saturday at 10?” What's better for you, Thursday at five or Saturday at 10 because I'm coming. The appointment is happening. It's not a matter of if it's happening, it's a matter of when. And so this two-step, we can really call it a two option way to get an appointment works. I get text messages. I get Facebook messages. I have people call me and tell me, “This is amazing.”

And it works. And it works so well that that's why it's become such a big part of our, how to convert leads with a presumptive close. Now, the other thing you want to do is say when, instead of if. You just heard me say it's not a matter of if we're coming, it was when. So don't say if you list with me. No, you want to say, when you choose me to sell your home when you choose me to market your home. When implies that we're already doing something. When I have this open for the brokers open. When I have an open house for the public. When I call the seller, so you're already doing it, you're already seeing yourself doing it.

And you're painting a picture of yourself doing it in the future to the client, buyer, or seller.

So you want to use presumptive closing techniques and you'll close more. Even saying Thursday at five or Saturday at 10, it's strategic in itself. Why? Because I choose to give them a weekday evening, as well as a weekend morning, that's a strategy, right? We're being very strategic about the words we're saying. So it's so important to choose words that influence action and bring about a better end result. So the whole idea is that we're helping people go through the sales process. We need to be helping them and closing them at each of those stages of the sales process. If you've never sold anything outside of the real estate, you don't know what I'm talking about probably, but there is a sales process for every sale.

Our job is to speak on purpose, speak with purpose and provide a better navigating series of steps that they go through between I'm ready to start talking about listing my house and I'm actually signing the listing paperwork. So there's a lot of steps that happen in between that. The presumptive close technique will actually help you conversationally talk to potential clients and help them make and choose the next steps in the process. That's what's so great about presumptive close. Practice it, use it immediately, start saying it. And I promise you, you'll convert more leads into clients on your goldmine pipeline. And then from the goldmine pipeline, you'll be converting those people into listing appointments and showing appointments.

And that's the whole idea, isn't it? So be on purpose.

Think about how do I speak? Do I wait for people to ask me to do something or am I taking them through the stages of the sales process? And there's a big difference. One of my very favorite presumptive close techniques, and I have a lot of them, but this one was one of my faves. And I can tell you that this one, let me tell you, when you use this line on a listing appointment, you know you're getting the listing. It's done. So, this is the best part. You're walking through that house, and you're asking really good leading questions. Great leading questions on the tour because when you ask leading questions on purpose, it tells you the next step or the next service point that you have to help these people.

And so, now we're taking copious notes, walking through the house, we're walking back to the kitchen table. And my best closing line is to say, “Hey, Jill, I'm actually going to need a key. Probably the front door is the best one. Do you have an extra key to the front door? I'm going to need a key.” Now, while I keep talking and I go back over to the kitchen table, I start talking about something else. Jill is walking straight over to the junk drawer to get me a key. And she puts the key right in front of me. Now, I know I'm getting this listing, right? I haven't even talked about the commission. I haven't even talked about where we're pricing this house yet, but I have the key. So here's what I want you to do. I know it sounds bold. You got to have some courage to do this, but you can do it.

You can do it, you can do it.

And I know you can because I did things that didn't feel comfortable. And then I did them. And then once I did them, I was doing it and it became normal. When you use this line and you get the key, you're going to feel like an amazing rockstar that you already are. I had given this talk somewhere, probably for homes.com somewhere or one of my travels live, and this agent sent me literally a picture of an agreement, a listing agreement for $750,000.

She said, “I used I'm going to need a key. It worked. They were out-of-town sellers, and they mailed me the contract for 750. And they mailed me the key.” Her line that she texted them was, “I'm going to need a key.” They signed the agreement and sent it to her. So you can do this. Not only can you do it, but you're also going to get unbelievable and amazing results from it. So I cannot wait to hear about your presumptive closing. Remember, what's better for you Thursday at five or Saturday at 10? Because I'm coming. Right? That's the presumptive close. I'm giving two options. I'm okay with either one of them. I'm okay with either one. And if they don't work, I'm going to offer two more options. Remember too, that you want to ask good leading questions. Not yes or no questions, unless you want yes or no answers.

The presumptive close technique will work.

You just have to say, “I add value to the process. What's better for you this day or this day? Because we're meeting.” I'm not coming to list your house. Yes, I am, I'll probably list it at some point. But I say to take the pressure off, “I'm not coming to list your house. I want to come over and see it. I will add value to the process. We can talk about a pricing strategy. We can talk about the staging strategy. And again, if you want to sell in a couple of weeks or a couple of months or six months, I don't care. I'm not going anywhere. So whatever works for you and your family is what we'll do. In the meantime, what's better for you this day or this day?” Now that needs to become part of what you say all the time, always, always.

Whether you're at an open house, whether you are on the phone, whether you are prospecting a neighborhood or you are getting a pedicure and you meet somebody. You're at a kid function. You're at a business event with your spouse or significant other. You are anywhere and you can use this assumptive close technique to close deals. I promise you it'll work. I'm so excited. I cannot wait to hear your success stories. So send them to me, put them in RockSTARS in Real Estate with Sherri Johnson, our private Facebook group, or just send them to me at yourock@sherrijohnson.com. Again, let's go make it happen. Let's be strategic. Let's be on purpose and intentional, and let's get back in touch with each other on our next episode. I can't wait to see you. Have a great week, everybody. You rock. I'll talk to you soon. Bye, bye.

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Sherri is CEO and founder of Sherri Johnson Coaching & Consulting. With 25 years of experience in real estate as an agent, broker, and executive, Sherri now offers her proven strategies through coaching, consulting and keynote speaking services nationwide. She is a national speaker for the Homes.com Secrets of Top Selling Agents tour and is the Official Real Estate Coach for McKissock Learning and Real Estate Express. She is also a preferred national coach for multiple Top-10 national real estate brokers, and has been named a RISMedia Real Estate Newsmaker in 2020 and 2021 as an Industry Influencer and Thought Leader.  Learn more about Sherri by visiting https://www.SherriJohnson.com/ Like us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/sherrijohnsonconsulting Follow us on Instagram https://www.Instagram.com/_SherriJohnson