The Prospector vs The Closer

For the longest time in our industry we were always looking for the "closer", that individual who could go in and get the sale. I. like many of you, have worked in stores that utilized the "liner/closer" system. But our industry has changed, you can no longer "live off the door". Today the successful salesperson must develope a prospecting/follow up system to build and maintain his customer base. So, which is better, hire the prospector and teach them to close or hire the closer and teach them to prospect?

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Permalink Reply by Craig Lockerd on October 28, 2010 at 1:20pm

..you and Rick Emmons need to talk he is going to be in the air today flying back from Vegas but should be able to be reached tomorrow...
Rachael Schulz Dunbar said:

Hire a green pea that can read, write, and spell and teach them to do both.

or

just hire me.
lol!

Permalink Reply by Tony Mento on October 28, 2010 at 3:06pm

First of all, let me apologize beforehand for giving such long winded responses, but when something like this topic fuels my interests enough to respond, I feel like I want to get it all out there. If nothing else, I may prompt more responses from others. Now that I said that, here goes..

With what some consider to be limited experience in the "car biz" (approx 2 years, currently BDC Manager), but lots of experience in the "customer service" and "business development" biz (over 30 years owning my own businesses), and nearly 40 years as a car buyer, I will share my thoughts on this subject. For the record, I personally associate "closers" with being more aggressive and stronger personalities, whereas I associate “prospectors” with being a bit less aggressive, more patient and more process oriented.

From my experience, although both Prospectors and Closers are important to the overall sales process, in today’s environment the prospector has become much more relevant and important to the future success of the company. In a nutshell, I believe the prospector will always have more opportunities to close a deal than the closer will. I feel it may be taking a bit longer, but this way of thinking is finally reaching the auto sales industry.

It is my opinion that in the past, and in some cases today, companies needed that elevated pressure salesperson that knew all about the product and could push the prospective buyer in to doing something that they had no idea they would have done without the closer's influence. But, today the buyers are far more astute, and much more aware of what purchase they want to make, and many times, by the time they get to the dealership they already know all about what they want and they are convinced that they are going to buy. This point is proven every day, just by the increasing number of purchases that are made online or over the phone.

One of the important keys to growth and success, both personally for the salesperson and the dealership, is letting people know what you do through pro-active prospecting. Finding those prospective buyers who sometimes didn’t even realize they were looking for any car, let alone your car. At the same time, there is an opportunity to possibly connect with that “someone that knows someone”.

The internet continues to prove to us that social networking is the key to success. In the not so distant past, social networking was all about the local Chamber of Commerce and/or community social and business organizations and functions. Today it’s all about Facebook, Twitter, Linked In and any other internet networking tool available. It is important to combine both. Let the local and business community know who you are and build a rapport on the internet with as many people as you can. It is important to remember that since the beginning of time… for the most part, “people prefer to do business with people they like”.

How all of this relates to the question at hand is that it appears to me that prospectors seem to understand, accept and flourish in this concept far better than the closer. To their credit, closers are out there to make the deal… now. Prospectors are more patient and are out there to build relationships.

In the long run, which I feel has more value to the dealership, the relationships they build will open opportunities to contribute to the success of the salesperson and the dealership now and in the future. I have always found that the best closers are more aggressive and always on the move. Not to say they are wrong, but closers are generally looking for the next best opportunity to improve themselves, which may or may not benefit their current employer. They usually lack follow up skills or even accept, or understand, the need for them. In fact, in many cases have trouble fitting in to social settings because they don’t have the patience for relationship building.

On the other hand, the prospector understands the importance of consistency and is usually looking long term and to build a future for themselves, which in turn will obviously benefit the employer. They not only understand the importance of building relationships, but they thoroughly understand the need, and possess the skills, to follow up and maintain those relationships. In most cases, the only thing the prospector needs to be trained in is to be able to identify when the deal is ready to be closed, which I find to be much easier to teach, and in most cases can be learned through hands-on experience. Now again, I feel there is absolutely a need for both, but in the environment where most buyers already know what they want, all they are looking for is a salesperson they like and can relate to, in order to support their own decision and guide them through their purchasing process.

I am looking forward to hearing what others think about this. Thanks for taking the time and again, I apologize for the length!

Permalink Reply by David L Hoier on October 28, 2010 at 3:14pm

Ditto! Kidding of course. but your points are well taken. I would only say that aggression is not the only skill set required in closing, persistence and understanding of customer psychology are both necessary traits, among others,

Tony Mento said:

First of all, let me apologize beforehand for giving such long winded responses, but when something like this topic fuels my interests enough to respond, I feel like I want to get it all out there. If nothing else, I may prompt more responses from others. Now that I said that, here goes..

With what some consider to be limited experience in the "car biz" (approx 2 years, currently BDC Manager), but lots of experience in the "customer service" and "business development" biz (over 30 years owning my own businesses), and nearly 40 years as a car buyer, I will share my thoughts on this subject. For the record, I personally associate "closers" with being more aggressive and stronger personalities, whereas I associate “prospectors” with being a bit less aggressive, more patient and more process oriented.

From my experience, although both Prospectors and Closers are important to the overall sales process, in today’s environment the prospector has become much more relevant and important to the future success of the company. In a nutshell, I believe the prospector will always have more opportunities to close a deal than the closer will. I feel it may be taking a bit longer, but this way of thinking is finally reaching the auto sales industry.

It is my opinion that in the past, and in some cases today, companies needed that elevated pressure salesperson that knew all about the product and could push the prospective buyer in to doing something that they had no idea they would have done without the closer's influence. But, today the buyers are far more astute, and much more aware of what purchase they want to make, and many times, by the time they get to the dealership they already know all about what they want and they are convinced that they are going to buy. This point is proven every day, just by the increasing number of purchases that are made online or over the phone.

One of the important keys to growth and success, both personally for the salesperson and the dealership, is letting people know what you do through pro-active prospecting. Finding those prospective buyers who sometimes didn’t even realize they were looking for any car, let alone your car. At the same time, there is an opportunity to possibly connect with that “someone that knows someone”.

The internet continues to prove to us that social networking is the key to success. In the not so distant past, social networking was all about the local Chamber of Commerce and/or community social and business organizations and functions. Today it’s all about Facebook, Twitter, Linked In and any other internet networking tool available. It is important to combine both. Let the local and business community know who you are and build a rapport on the internet with as many people as you can. It is important to remember that since the beginning of time… for the most part, “people prefer to do business with people they like”.

How all of this relates to the question at hand is that it appears to me that prospectors seem to understand, accept and flourish in this concept far better than the closer. To their credit, closers are out there to make the deal… now. Prospectors are more patient and are out there to build relationships.

In the long run, which I feel has more value to the dealership, the relationships they build will open opportunities to contribute to the success of the salesperson and the dealership now and in the future. I have always found that the best closers are more aggressive and always on the move. Not to say they are wrong, but closers are generally looking for the next best opportunity to improve themselves, which may or may not benefit their current employer. They usually lack follow up skills or even accept, or understand, the need for them. In fact, in many cases have trouble fitting in to social settings because they don’t have the patience for relationship building.

On the other hand, the prospector understands the importance of consistency and is usually looking long term and to build a future for themselves, which in turn will obviously benefit the employer. They not only understand the importance of building relationships, but they thoroughly understand the need, and possess the skills, to follow up and maintain those relationships. In most cases, the only thing the prospector needs to be trained in is to be able to identify when the deal is ready to be closed, which I find to be much easier to teach, and in most cases can be learned through hands-on experience. Now again, I feel there is absolutely a need for both, but in the environment where most buyers already know what they want, all they are looking for is a salesperson they like and can relate to, in order to support their own decision and guide them through their purchasing process.

I am looking forward to hearing what others think about this. Thanks for taking the time and again, I apologize for the length!

Permalink Reply by Tony Mento on October 28, 2010 at 3:59pm

Agreed David, but persistence and understanding the customer are skill requirements that all salespeople of every type should have in common. To me, the degree of aggression is the one of the traits that make the two types of salespeople we are discussing, different.

David L Hoier said:

Ditto! Kidding of course. but your points are well taken. I would only say that aggression is not the only skill set required in closing, persistence and understanding of customer psychology are both necessary traits, among others,

Tony Mento said:
First of all, let me apologize beforehand for giving such long winded responses, but when something like this topic fuels my interests enough to respond, I feel like I want to get it all out there. If nothing else, I may prompt more responses from others. Now that I said that, here goes..

With what some consider to be limited experience in the "car biz" (approx 2 years, currently BDC Manager), but lots of experience in the "customer service" and "business development" biz (over 30 years owning my own businesses), and nearly 40 years as a car buyer, I will share my thoughts on this subject. For the record, I personally associate "closers" with being more aggressive and stronger personalities, whereas I associate “prospectors” with being a bit less aggressive, more patient and more process oriented.

From my experience, although both Prospectors and Closers are important to the overall sales process, in today’s environment the prospector has become much more relevant and important to the future success of the company. In a nutshell, I believe the prospector will always have more opportunities to close a deal than the closer will. I feel it may be taking a bit longer, but this way of thinking is finally reaching the auto sales industry.

It is my opinion that in the past, and in some cases today, companies needed that elevated pressure salesperson that knew all about the product and could push the prospective buyer in to doing something that they had no idea they would have done without the closer's influence. But, today the buyers are far more astute, and much more aware of what purchase they want to make, and many times, by the time they get to the dealership they already know all about what they want and they are convinced that they are going to buy. This point is proven every day, just by the increasing number of purchases that are made online or over the phone.

One of the important keys to growth and success, both personally for the salesperson and the dealership, is letting people know what you do through pro-active prospecting. Finding those prospective buyers who sometimes didn’t even realize they were looking for any car, let alone your car. At the same time, there is an opportunity to possibly connect with that “someone that knows someone”.

The internet continues to prove to us that social networking is the key to success. In the not so distant past, social networking was all about the local Chamber of Commerce and/or community social and business organizations and functions. Today it’s all about Facebook, Twitter, Linked In and any other internet networking tool available. It is important to combine both. Let the local and business community know who you are and build a rapport on the internet with as many people as you can. It is important to remember that since the beginning of time… for the most part, “people prefer to do business with people they like”.

How all of this relates to the question at hand is that it appears to me that prospectors seem to understand, accept and flourish in this concept far better than the closer. To their credit, closers are out there to make the deal… now. Prospectors are more patient and are out there to build relationships.

In the long run, which I feel has more value to the dealership, the relationships they build will open opportunities to contribute to the success of the salesperson and the dealership now and in the future. I have always found that the best closers are more aggressive and always on the move. Not to say they are wrong, but closers are generally looking for the next best opportunity to improve themselves, which may or may not benefit their current employer. They usually lack follow up skills or even accept, or understand, the need for them. In fact, in many cases have trouble fitting in to social settings because they don’t have the patience for relationship building.

On the other hand, the prospector understands the importance of consistency and is usually looking long term and to build a future for themselves, which in turn will obviously benefit the employer. They not only understand the importance of building relationships, but they thoroughly understand the need, and possess the skills, to follow up and maintain those relationships. In most cases, the only thing the prospector needs to be trained in is to be able to identify when the deal is ready to be closed, which I find to be much easier to teach, and in most cases can be learned through hands-on experience. Now again, I feel there is absolutely a need for both, but in the environment where most buyers already know what they want, all they are looking for is a salesperson they like and can relate to, in order to support their own decision and guide them through their purchasing process.

I am looking forward to hearing what others think about this. Thanks for taking the time and again, I apologize for the length!

Permalink Reply by Rick Bryant on October 29, 2010 at 12:22am

I toyally agree like every industry you will adept or perrish.

Permalink Reply by Ron Terry on October 29, 2010 at 9:27am

All...

Why is this an "either/or" situation? If we are discussing the effectiveness of professional sales consultants in today's environment, both sets of skills are required.

It is leadership's responsibility to provide the training, coaching, support and accountability to develop both capabilities in our sales teams. This requires management intentionality, time and consistency. I really don't see this piece happening to the extent required in our ever demanding marketplace.

What are your thoughts...

Permalink Reply by David L Hoier on October 29, 2010 at 10:23am

Ron, As with all industries, everything begins at the top. It's management that set the tone and direction of the sales staff. Regrettably, some managers are guilty of the "what have you done for me today" mentality, and don;t look at the long range benefits of prospecting, hence their love of closers who get that deal today.

Ron Terry said:

All...

Why is this an "either/or" situation? If we are discussing the effectiveness of professional sales consultants in today's environment, both sets of skills are required.

It is leadership's responsibility to provide the training, coaching, support and accountability to develop both capabilities in our sales teams. This requires management intentionality, time and consistency. I really don't see this piece happening to the extent required in our ever demanding marketplace.

What are your thoughts...

Permalink Reply by Stephanie Young on February 28, 2011 at 11:13am

We all know that consumers are not cookie cutter images. The challenge of a salesperson is to know the consumer and know what motivates them. The more closing strategies that your sales team has in their tool kit, the greater the odds of them closing more sales opportunities.

If a salesperson does not pick up right away the type of consumer they are working with, it can take up to four to five closing attempts before the sale is finalized. This means your consumer has said “No” in four of five different ways. If your sale team only knows two or three closing strategies, they may come up short in finalizing and offer with your consumer. The key to higher closing ratios is training. If you have a prospector, teach them to close. If you have a closer, teach them to prospect.