In sales you are either scoring or losing points. The more points you score, the higher the acceptance. The fewer points, the greater the rejection. The middle ground between acceptance and rejection is the no man’s land called noncommitted — the “I’ll have to think it over” zone. The professional who controls the point spread controls the sale. Imagine that the sales process is made up of 100 points. Zero indicates you have scored no points, meaning your prospect either doesn’t know you yet or you have not scored any points in your favor. We all start with zero points, unless our reputations precede us, favorably or unfavorably. One hundred points means a sure-fire sale.

Anywhere from zero to 50 points puts you in what I call the “Red Zone” of selling. When you ask for the sale, if your total score is anywhere between 0 and 50, you’ll hear an emphatic “No.” This is a common word heard in the prospecting stage. Can you still sell in this zone? Yes.

Anywhere from 50 to 75 points is the “Yellow Zone” of selling. When you ask for the sale, if your total score is anywhere between 50 and 75, you’ll hear something noncommittal. There’s some interest here, enough to take you out of the Red Zone, but still no sale. You can still sell in this zone.

Seventy-five to 100 points is the “Green Zone” of selling. When you ask for the sale, if you’ve scored anywhere between 75 and 100 points, you’ll hear, “Where do I sign?”

Caution! There are degrees of interest within these zones of selling. For example, if you’re at 49 points when you ask a closing question, you’ll hear a Red Zone response, but a less committed “No” than you’d hear if you’d only scored 25 points. Moving your prospect into the Yellow Zone is easier at 49 than it is at 25.

The same holds true for the Yellow and Red Zones. There are degrees of safety within each of these zones. What if you’ve only scored 76 points when you ask the closing question? You’ll get a “Yes,” but not by much. If you say the wrong thing, or seem unsure of position, you stand to lose the sale and drop back into the Yellow Think-It-Over Zone. You are now no longer in the Green at 76 points, but back down in the Yellow at 71. You might hear, “On second thought, I’d like to sleep on this and get back to you.” What to do?

First, use common sense. Trust your inner voice. It usually corrects inappropriate behavior. Second, know and practice the strategies for selling in the three point zones. Ask your closing question. If you get a positive buying signal (any change in behavior, facial expression, or language that suggests acceptance of your offering), you are in the Green Zone.

Follow these steps for the Green Zone.

Summarize what’s been said to clarify the details.

Confirm the sale on a minor point.

Asking for the “big decision” is sometimes too threatening, so ask for a smaller decision like “Shall we fill out the paperwork here, or back at the office?” You are not asking for the sale, but where the paperwork should be filled out. Agreement here means you’ve made the sale, but be sure to note by how much. You could lose points by using a chewed up pen for filling out the paperwork, an ineffective handshake, or too much oversell talk.

If you ask a closing question and get a Yellow Zone response, use these procedures for the Yellow Zone

Hear them out.

Resolve concerns by asking questions that redirect the prospect’s focus.

If you detect positive buying signals and begin to enter the Green Zone, follow Green Zone procedures (summarize what’s been said and then confirm the sale on a minor point).

When a prospect hesitates, she has real concerns. It is essential to learn all her concerns, and resolve them one by one. I like to switch the prospect’s focus from hesitancy to the benefits because the Yellow Zone means the prospect is not yet sold on all the overriding benefits, or at least not enough to outweigh her concerns.

A prospect doesn’t have to be 100 percent sold in order to buy. Most people are willing to make concessions, depending on what they value most. Using questions is the most powerful way to control focus. Ask, “I can understand your concern about…, but if you decided to go ahead, what are the reasons you’d want to?” The prospect will start to sell herself on the benefits; when you note positive buying signals, follow the Green Zone.

It is unlikely you’ll be in the Red Zone when you ask a closing question after a sales conversation because if you’ve qualified the prospect properly in the beginning, you will usually score in the Yellow or Green. Red Zone “Noes” are generally received during the prospecting stage when you are qualifying whom you will spend time with. Not everyone is a good prospect.

Should you find yourself here, follow these steps in the Red Zone:

Hear them out.

Resolve concerns by asking questions that control the prospect’s focus. If you are moving into the Yellow Zone, follow those procedures to move into the Green Zone.

Ask your question of last resort, “Where do we go from here?”

The Red Zone is deceptive. We may think there is no possibility for a sale, but most often it’s our own assumptions that kill the sale here. You are never finished with the sale, unless the company or person you are selling to goes out of business or dies. It may just mean the time isn’t right, today. You’d be astounded at how often you’ll be invited to call back in a few days, weeks, or months when the receptivity level and need are high. Your prospect will let you know if you will just ask, “Where do we go from here?” If prospecting, try this powerful question to get out of the Red Zone “Noes.” Introduce yourself and ask, “Do you reevaluate your situation once in awhile?” What person doesn’t occasionally reevaluate his situation once in awhile including insurance policies, property values, current vendors, telephone systems, car, etc.?

Generally this will get you a “Yes,” pull you out of the Red Zone of prospecting and into the higher point zones of Yellow or Green.