A few sales statistics surprised us, and they shape every tip on this page:
- An average salesperson makes only 2 attempts to reach a prospect.
- If you follow up with web leads within 5 minutes, you are 9 times more likely to convert them.
- After a presentation, 63% of attendees remember stories. Only 5% remember statistics.
- 44% of salespeople give up after one follow-up.
- 80% of sales require five follow-ups.
Read that again: 44% of salespeople have an 80% chance they will not close, simply because they stop following up. The techniques below fix that, and a lot more. They pair well with our guide on how to increase sales and convert more customers.
107 sales techniques and tips to close more deals
Short answer: this is a practical reference of 107 sales techniques across prospecting, discovery, pitching, handling objections and closing. Use it to sharpen each stage of your sales process rather than as a single trick.
Prospecting and pipeline
- Set aside a fixed block every day for prospecting, and treat it like a meeting you cannot cancel.
- Keep your pipeline full. A full pipeline is the fastest cure for desperation in a sales call.
- Most sales need five or more follow-ups, so plan the whole sequence before you start.
- Do not give up after one try. 44% of salespeople stop after a single follow-up.
- Follow up with web leads within five minutes and you are far more likely to reach them.
- Build a target list of named accounts rather than chasing whoever happens to reply.
- Research each prospect for two minutes before you call so your opener is relevant.
- Use more than one channel: phone, email, LinkedIn and WhatsApp, not just one.
- Track every touch in a CRM so no lead slips through the cracks.
- Ask every happy client for one introduction. Referrals are the warmest pipeline you have.
- Time-block similar tasks, all calls together and all emails together, to keep momentum.
- Warm up cold accounts by engaging with their posts before you reach out.
- Qualify out fast. Time spent on a bad fit is time stolen from a good one.
- Keep a simple daily scorecard: calls made, conversations had, meetings booked.
- Aim for the meeting, not the sale, on the first touch.
First contact and outreach
- Lead with the prospect’s problem, not your product.
- Keep cold emails short enough to read on a phone in ten seconds.
- End every email with a single clear question to invite a reply.
- Personalise the first line with something specific to them, not “I hope you are well.”
- Send when they are likely to read: early morning or just after lunch.
- Use a subject line that promises one clear benefit, not a clever pun.
- On a cold call, earn the next 30 seconds with your first sentence.
- Smile while you dial. It changes your tone and people hear it.
- Stand up during important calls. Your energy and voice both improve.
- Have a one-line reason for the call ready before they pick up.
- Mirror the prospect’s pace and words to build quick rapport.
- Confirm early that you are speaking to the decision maker.
- If you get voicemail, leave a short, specific reason to call back.
Discovery and qualifying
- Ask more than you tell. The best reps listen for most of the call.
- Use open questions that start with what, how and why.
- Find the pain before you pitch the cure.
- Ask about the cost of not solving the problem.
- Understand their buying process and who else signs off.
- Confirm the budget range early so nobody wastes time.
- Ask what they have already tried and why it did not work.
- Take notes and repeat back what you heard to show you listened.
- Ask what success would look like in six months.
- Find the emotional driver behind the practical need.
- Note the exact words they use and reuse them in your proposal.
- Identify the deadline or trigger event driving the decision.
- Ask who else inside their company is affected by this problem.
- Never assume the stated problem is the real problem. Dig one layer deeper.
Building trust and rapport
- Do what you say you will do, exactly when you said you would.
- If you do not know an answer, say “I will find out and come back to you,” then do it.
- Be genuinely helpful even when there is no sale in it.
- Share a relevant client result instead of claiming you are the best.
- Be on time, every time. Lateness quietly kills deals.
- Dress to match the room, or a notch above it.
- Match the client’s communication style, whether formal or casual.
- Admit when your product is not the right fit. Honesty builds long-term trust.
- Send a useful article or idea with no ask attached.
- Remember small personal details and follow up on them later.
- Keep your promises small and over-deliver, rather than the reverse.
- Let customers talk themselves into it. People trust their own conclusions.
Presenting and pitching
- Tell stories. 63% of people remember stories, only 5% remember statistics.
- Translate every feature into a benefit the customer can feel.
- Show proof: case studies, numbers and real client names where allowed.
- Tailor the demo to the problems they told you about, and skip the rest.
- Lead with the outcome, then explain how you deliver it.
- Use their own words and goals back to them in the pitch.
- Keep slides few. The conversation sells, not the deck.
- Quantify the value in money saved or time saved.
- Pre-empt the obvious objection before they raise it.
- Give one clear recommendation, not five options.
- Make the next step obvious and easy.
- Use silence after a key point. Let it land.
- Sell the meeting outcome, not obscure jargon.
- Show, do not just tell. A quick screen-share beats a paragraph.
Handling objections
- Treat objections as requests for more information, not rejection.
- Listen to the whole objection before you respond.
- Acknowledge the concern, then ask a question to understand it.
- ”Too expensive” usually means “I do not see the value yet.”
- Re-anchor on value and the cost of the problem, not the price.
- Never argue. Agree, then reframe.
- Isolate the objection: “If we solve this, is there anything else?”
- Use a past client who had the same worry and the result they got.
- Do not drop the price. Add or remove scope instead.
- Ask “what would need to be true for this to be a yes?”
- If it is a stall, find the real blocker behind it.
- Welcome the hardest question. It means they are serious.
Closing the sale
- Always know how you intend to close before the call starts.
- Ask for the business directly. Many reps never actually ask.
- Use a trial close: “How does this sound so far?”
- Summarise the benefits and the pain solved before you ask.
- Offer a clear next step with a date attached.
- Create urgency only when it is real, such as limited slots or a true deadline.
- Make it easy to say yes: simple terms and simple paperwork.
- Use the assumptive close when the buying signals are strong.
- Confirm the decision in writing the same day.
- If it is a no, ask why. You will learn for the next deal.
- Get a small commitment if you cannot get the big one yet.
- After a yes, reassure them they made a good decision.
Follow-up and persistence
- 80% of sales need five follow-ups, so persistence is the job.
- Add value on every follow-up. Do not just “check in.”
- Vary the channel and the angle each time.
- Set the next step at the end of every conversation.
- Use your CRM to automate reminders so nothing is forgotten.
- Follow up fast after a proposal. Speed signals that you care.
- Keep notes so each follow-up references the last conversation.
- Be persistent without being pushy. Helpful beats nagging.
Retention, referrals and mindset
- The sale starts the relationship. Serve clients well to keep them for life.
- Ask for a referral right after you deliver a win.
- Check in on past clients with no agenda. They buy again.
- Turn happy clients into testimonials and case studies.
- Believe in what you sell. Conviction is contagious.
- Protect your energy and routine. Selling is a long game.
- Keep learning. Review your lost deals as closely as your wins.
Want more? Read 5 of the best sales tips from The Sales Hunter, and the original study on HubSpot.
Leads Dubai is a lead generation company and a certified Google Partner. We help our clients fill the pipeline so these techniques have plenty of leads to work on.