The one-call-close mentality—the notion that you can close a deal on the first contact—is something that I preach on my sales floor daily. When I’m trying to get my people fired up, I reference the one-call close and remind them that every dial can be a sale. If people sold every client they got on the phone, then they wouldn’t have to come into work for a few months. Not surprisingly, no one has ever gotten close.

It is what we strive for that defines our accomplishments, so we go into every call full throttle, ready to close if only provided the opportunity.

So, how does this pan out?

Most prospects don’t buy at all. The ones that do buy typically do so after completing some research on their own, and it takes a few calls to close. Every once and a while a prospect will prove a one-call close. There’s nothing like a swift victory to keep the ball rolling.

We operate on a once-call-close mentality. It is not a reality. The reality of sales clearly dictates that you’re going to lose more than you win, and the ones you do win will require multiple calls, special pitches, and quality follow-up. We focus most of our effort on follow-up: when we set an appointment for a call, we’re always punctual; and we deliver on the promises we make to prospects so we can turn them into clients.

Give us 1% of your trust, and we’ll earn the other 99%. To earn the rest, it almost always takes multiple calls.

But when that phone is ringing and we’re waiting for the prospect to pick up, we’re not envisioning all that footwork. In those few final seconds of preparation, we don’t focus on a drawn-out close that might take weeks, and we don’t think about the 4th, 5th, and 6th calls. If and when the prospect picks up, the only thing that should be on the minds of my team is the one-call close that they’re positive they can pull off.