The Sale is Closed Stop Talking

By Ira Levofsky

We have been asking the same questions for so long that we already know the answers. After all, that’s how we have been trained. If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a thousand times. Don’t ask a question you don’t already know the answer to, right?

In fact we have asked the questions and heard the responses so many times that often we don’t have the patience to wait for the prospect to answer. Laugh if you want but you know it’s true. Unfortunately as we succeed we take these mental shortcuts. We know what our prospects will say and do but don’t give them the chance to say it or do it. In fact, sometimes we even talk our way right out of the deal. The Sale is Closed – Stop Talking was written to help you get back to basics. Try it, you’ll like it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ira Levofsky
• Release date: Mar 6, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370700745

Ira Levofsky

Who is Ira D. Levofsky? He is one that believes that even though his message often third person, delivered with a heavy measure of whit, often politically incorrect and occasionally carrying a sense of artistic vulgarity carries an important message. The message that there are leaders in all walks of life who are not out enduring the heat of day, dodging the torrents of rain nor shivering from the cold while the sun sets on their assigned task. They cannot and often have never had the experience, the adrenaline driven thirst for success with each and every labor that envelopes your being, yet they lead. Though the modern day term may be Arm Chair Quarterback, the definition holds true throughout time and testament. By right of birth, serendipitous luck or earning the grade then forgetting the roots of the journey which brought them there, many sit upon their high perch directing those who will toil in their names. Their purpose, stature and often their very existence is based on your effort, your courage and your individual success at everything you do. This, my new friend, is a fact of life. The formidable challenge which I put before you in my written works as I have placed before myself daily in life is to succeed and lead in life itself, by example, deed and word. Sleep well in the fact that you have done the right thing, set the right example and completed the task at hand to the best of your ability satisfying your own expectations every day. If others shine due to your success or avoid one of life’s many pitfalls due to the lessons learned from your experience, then you are truly blessed. This is how I live and the true description of one Ira D. Levofsky which I put in place as my profile for purposes of this quick introduction. “It is easier to whisper advice from behind cover than to test its merit at the point of attack” (Unknown)

Book preview

The Sale is Closed

Stop Talking

Ira Levofsky

Published by Smashwords.com

Copyright © 2017 by Ira Levofsky

All rights reserved. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

For permission requests, write to the Author, addressed

Attention: Permissions Coordinator at [e-mail]

Ordering Information

Quantity sales: Special discounts are available for corporations, associations and others. For details, contact the publisher at the address above.

Orders by U.S. trade bookstores and wholesalers. Please contact Ira Levofsky:

www.Roksci.com

Printed in the United States of America

DEDICATION

In sales you don’t get a trophy for participating.

You only win or lose.

Let’s win.

Ira

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

I had a doctor’s appointment1

So Why Read This Stuff?9

Choose Sales as a Career12

Sweat Equity

Anatomy of a Salesman’s Day

Buyer’s Remorse. It’s an Evil Mother

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

It’s Always the Money

Did someone order the fish?

The First Kiss

Witches and Liars

Interpretation

Enthusiasm

Motivation

Perspective

When We Assume

And I don’t understand

I Split My Pants

Hey, we’re out of coffee.

I Like Mine Shiny

Ride the Wave

Close the deal.

The Roar of the Engine

Does Your Prospect Really Want it?

I had a Doctor’s appointment

Acknowledgements

First a disclaimer: If one of the stories in this book resembles you, someone who I have worked for or has worked for me in the past and you are portrayed as a total asshole, it’s because you are. The names and situations may have changed.

But you know who you are.

This book is dedicated to all those who hit the street every day with no certainty of income yet overcome and succeed.

There are neither self-help groups nor government programs to show you the road to success nor build the skills to help you ask for the sale.

I’ve tried everything. Recently I even joined a procrastinators group and will let you know if it helps. We are meeting soon.

The road to sales success is paved with worn out shoes and creative closes.

I hope this book increases your percentages and accelerates your success.

This book is dedicated to you.

Cover Photo by Elliott Paul

I had a doctor’s appointment

Return to Table of Contents

Like so many others, my doctor’s office is in a three story building full of other medical businesses. As a byproduct of my years of cold calling, even though his office was to the right off of the elevator I turned left as I always do when working a building.

Walking down the hall I observed that though there were all kinds of doctors, specialists and labs on that floor, the signs on their doors were not the same shape or lettering type. One thing however stood out to me as a common theme.

Each one including my doctor’s office had a No Soliciting message.

I say a message because there were no formal signs. Simply the words No Soliciting made on a labeling machine or even typed on small slip of paper and glued or taped on to the entrance door.

My doctor’s office even had a typed page on the frosted glass separating the receptionist from the lobby which read Salesmen’s advances are not welcome here. (But tuberculosis is?)

Now the waiting game began. By the way, I truly believe there is a daily office pool on how long they can make you wait before you knock on the frosted glass, right next to the sign taped to the glass reading Please do not knock on glass.

Anyway, all of this extra time on my hands got me to thinking. There were nine offices on the second floor, and assuming the building was fairly structured, I guessed that there were twenty five or so offices in the building.

And you are asking yourself Why do I care?

Well, just hang on for a minute and you will see.

As a self-proclaimed expert at this sales stuff I devised the following sales experiment.

Here in one building, we have twenty five targets that could really use a proper No Soliciting sign. So as not to skew the numbers, we will not include my doctor where I may have an unfair advantage and make it twenty four targets.

Assuming one third of them could be closed on the first call, after my appointment concluded, the experiment began.

It just so happens that there was a Home Depot just down the road and upon asking only three associates where I might find door signs, I arrive at the No Soliciting sign rack.

Remembering the low key mannerisms of the Doctors who were my targets, the eight by ten inch bright red and white no soliciting sign was obviously out.

There was however a brownish door colored placard with subdued lettering approximately the size of a candy bar which seemed to be the perfect product for our experiment.

With nine of them on the shelf at a cost of $1.97 each plus a small roll of two sided tape which cost $3.00, the total cost of inventory and supplies including tax was $ 22.18

Unprepared as I was for this impromptu experiment, there were no scissors in the car to cut the two sided tape.

There was however a nail clipper in the sales bag and ingenuity took over. (MacGyver eat your heart out.)

Finally, completely emptying the sales bag and then refilling it with the ready to hang signs, it’s time to hit the top floor of the building.

Now join with me on this ride and imagine entering the first office tapping on the glass and when it opens the shrew on the other side says Can’t you read the sign?

That’s exactly why I’m here, I say may I speak with the office manager please?

And when the angry bitch office manager appears at the partially open door she stated that there was no soliciting in the building and asked me didn’t you see the sign?

No, I say, "and that’s why I’m here. It seems there are salesmen walking around your building (funny right?) and I am here with these beautiful, easy to read yet tasteful No Soliciting signs.

They are only $5.00 each with installation included. I can hang one on your door or wall right now and you will never be bothered by those pesky salesmen again."

Ah the irony, if only Freud were alive we would be in Starbucks laughing about this one.

With a little prompting she comes out to the front door. Then holding the sign up in position covering the existing paper taped notice, and that’s all it takes. She goes in the office to get a five dollar bill I removed the shiny white paper from the double sided tape and installed the sign. While graciously accepting payment she is assured by me that once again that her days of being bothered by salesmen were over.

Then by explaining to others in the building how their neighbors, even on that very floor had salesman circling their doors and purchased these signs to keep the salesmen out, the next sale is made. This presentation close combination repeats itself five times in a row until we are out of signs.

Ah, good, I see your paying attention. You’re wondering what happened to the other four signs. Well, two of the doctors’ offices had three doors and of course needed a sign for each door.

Now here we are with a tremendously successful experiment plus $22.82 profit which is now Starbucks money in the car ashtray.

I hear you. You’re not here so you won’t get a cup of coffee from this winning effort. But go grab a cup and keep reading. It will be worth the time as your mind will be opened to see opportunities that you would have otherwise overlooked during your down time while waiting and playing a game on your phone.

Now, I have always been a Sales Dreamer looking for the next customer in a yet undiscovered market and as young as nine years old I noticed an untapped opportunity.

While in a pharmacy some elderly women from the high-rise apartment buildings in the neighborhood were buying the latest trend.

Hoop earrings with contrasting colors painted on them. You know black hoops with white dots and white hoops with black dots.

Now being New York City, there was literally thousands of apartment’s right there in the neighborhood and I wondered how many of these older people just couldn’t or didn’t want to make the trip to the store to shop. No, this was BI. Before Internet. Why, even touch tone phones didn't exist yet.

Yea, we had it tough back then but even with the