Solsticewitch13's BOS: The Danger of "Selling Past the Close"

Monday, January 24, 2011

The Danger of "Selling Past the Close"

Posted: 23 Jan 2011 10:15 AM PST

WE ARE IN the business of promoting an idea: The currently prevailing notion that "Islam is a religion" of peace is false. With some people, it is only a matter of education. Those are the fun ones. They are undecided on the issue because they don't know much about it. We provide the information they have been missing, and they are become a new member of the counterjihad.

But with the rest of them, it is not a matter of education; it is a matter of salesmanship. To succeed requires more than simply knowing about Islam. It requires skillfulness in dealing with people. And one big mistake I've made myself and seen others make is "selling past the close" as it is known to salespeople. The term refers to the phenomenon of a salesperson convincing a client to buy a product, but after that point, instead of writing up the sale, the salesperson keeps persuading, keeps selling, which produces growing doubts in the client ("why is the salesperson still trying to convince me?"), so much so, the client changes her mind and decides not to buy. The salesperson sold past the close.

I want us all to remember this. All we need to do is open eyes. All we need to do is dispell a few myths. Reality will then do the work of presenting confirming evidence for their new understanding.

If you go too far, if you push too hard, if you reach too far, trying to convert them to being a committed member of the counterjihad, you will cause a backlash, a recoil, and they will become more firmly entrenched in their old way of thinking.

Aim for something small and specific: Get them to accept as true that intolerance toward non-Muslims and the command to push for Islamic law are central and clear in basic, mainstream Islamic doctrine. It isn't a matter of interpretation. The doctrine is as clear as day. You don't even have to convince them this is true! All you have to do is get them to wonder if it is true, and invite them to find out for themselves.

This makes our job easier in some ways. The only difficulty is restraining our passion enough to resist "selling past the close."

Read more about this principle:

Selling Past the Close on Heavy Hitter Sales

Selling Past the Close by Chris Conrey