Results of Sales Interviews

Results of real estate sales interviews

The result of a personal sales interview depends on its place in the sales process. Only the final interview is intended to close the transaction. Every preceding interview should move the potential client toward that final decision.

An intermediate interview may lead to another meeting or end the attempted transaction. If the relationship continues, the salesperson should secure a meaningful advance toward the sale. If the prospect rejects the offer, the failure may be partial when other properties can still be presented, or complete when the client also rejects the salesperson’s services. In limited circumstances, the salesperson may abandon an opportunity because it conflicts with the company’s values or policies.

During a closing interview, acceptance of the offer produces a successful sale. Rejection produces either a partial failure, when another suitable property can still be offered, or a complete failure when the sales relationship cannot continue.

Classifying results according to Neil Rackham

Immediately after every interview, the salesperson should record and classify what happened. Delaying this task can cause useful details to be forgotten and makes the overall evaluation less reliable.

Following Neil Rackham’s framework, a sales interview can have four outcomes:

• Order: the customer makes a purchase commitment.
• Failure: the offer is rejected and no productive path forward is established.
• Advance: the parties agree to a specific action that moves the sale forward.
• Continuation: the conversation remains open, but no concrete action advancing the sale is agreed.

When an interview does not end in an order or a failure, the objective should be to secure an advance rather than a vague continuation.

Define the next step precisely

The final stage of an intermediate interview should establish a clear agreement with the potential customer about what happens next. The agreement should define:

• Who will initiate the next action.
• Where the next meeting will take place.
• When it will occur, including the date and time.
• Why another meeting is needed, such as presenting explanations, supplying documents or waiting for a relevant event.
• What else must happen to move the transaction toward completion.

It is generally preferable for the salesperson to retain responsibility for initiating the next step, although a firm commitment by the prospect can also be valuable.

Uncertainty about these points should be treated as a partial failure. An interview that ends with only a loose intention to speak again may appear successful, but Rackham’s analysis associates such continuations strongly with eventual failure.

Closing applies to every interview

Closing is not limited to obtaining the final purchase commitment. An intermediate interview is also closed successfully when the salesperson and prospect establish a definite agreement that advances the opportunity. Failing to obtain either a final decision or a meaningful next step is therefore a failure to close that interview.