I'm sure most of you have been taught that a good way to secure an appointment with a prospect is to use an "Alternative Close" ...

"Mr. Prospect, I have time in my schedule next Tuesday afternoon about 2PM or Thursday morning before 10AM. Which would be better for you?"

Now what could possibly be wrong with that?

Several things, actually -- but fundamentally, it violates MasterStream's cardinal rule: "Pay Attention to Tension."

So what's the actual damage in using an Alternative Close?

First, it doesn't reveal anything useful about your prospect's level of productive tension.

Second, it suggests to the prospect that their situation can actually wait until next Tuesday. Third, it doesn't optimize productive tension by following the "72 HOUR" directive.

Fourth, it doesn't fill the holes you already have in your schedule today and tomorrow.

Fifth, it fosters a false sense of security about the future effectiveness of your sales efforts.

Sixth, it has a very strong chance of damaging your relationship with your prospect.

Seventh, ... well, I can certainly identify even more problems the Alternative Close routinely causes, but I think you get the idea:

Using an Alternative Close is NOT a smart way to schedule an appointment.

The key to understanding and preventing all of this damage is best presented by telling you the right way to ask for an appointment in the first place, so ... What's the BEST WAY to close for an appointment?

A far more powerful closing statement would focus on communicating a strong sense of urgency...

"Mr. Prospect, when is the soonest that you could be able to meet with me?"

There's a LOT more happening in that question -- the "Urgency Close" -- than meets the eye!

First, how your prospect responds reveals EXACTLY what is happening with their level of productive tension -- and that alone will give you a great deal of important information about your chances of actually getting the appointment ... having the appointment stick ... and whether you'll close the deal. Obviously, if they say, "Can you be here in an hour!", you know they're pretty serious -- but what about if they say something LESS SPECIFIC:

Responses like the following tell you that your prospect is UpGrid and ready to take things seriously -- and so should you! Whatever it takes to make time for these prospects is a smart investment:

"I've got some time this afternoon." "Would tomorrow morning be a possibility?" "I'd like to meet ASAP." "How soon would work for you?"

The responses shown below indicate your prospect's level of productive tension is more MidGrid and will take action sometime in the reasonable future. While they don't have the urgency offered by the first group of responses, they still offer you the assurance that your time would be well spent:

"I'm flexible ... how about later this week?" "I can clear some time the day after tomorrow." "Our committee meets every Monday morning ... how about then? "Let's talk again next week."

Hearing your prospect respond with something like these reveal that they're DownGrid about their situation -- even if they agree to an appointment, they're very likely to reschedule, cancel or just stand you up. Unless you want to waste your time, be leary of:

"I'll be off on vacation all of next week, so ..." "Perhaps you could just email me some information." "Why don't you just call me after the first of the month?" "Let me get back with you later." Another reason why the Urgency Close is so effective is that it conveys the message that the prospect faces a possiblity of dire consequences if they don't act quickly. On the other hand, using the Alternative Close opens the sales professional to dire consequences themselves! Think about it -- If you ran a proper Path of Self-Discovery question series during Phase 2 of the MasterStream Protocol, you just helped your prospect identify a problem area they face and find disturbing enough to do something about. What do you think they'll be thinking about between now and next Tuesday? Maybe they'll ask for their friends' recommendations ... Maybe they'll make a few calls ... Maybe they'll meet with someone else ... Maybe that someone else will change their mind

... Maybe you don't have an appointment next Tuesday!

The Urgency Close also obeys the "72 Hour" directive. Why is that important? Simply because tension goes down over time and as soon as your conversation with the prospect ends, another situation will demand their attention -- another appointment, their kids, a business trip, car problems, whatever. You're looking at a 72-hour window of opportunity for you to seize before time and trouble take your prospect's tension elsewhere.

Because of this, it's critical to PULL every appointment into a more immediate slot whenever possible. If the prospect suggests a time beyond 72 hours, remind them how serious their situation is and see what happens:

"Mr. Prospect, is that really the soonest we can get together?"

From a purely selfish perspective, your primary goal is to continuously keep your next 72 hours jam-packed with qualified prospects. Don't let your attention be diverted from this task. It is tantamount to your success! Along the way to filling the next 72 hours, you'll talk to plenty of people who can't meet with you until next week -- but focus on the immediate future.

Moving appointments into a tighter schedule also shakes out the GREAT prospects from the GOOD ... and the GOOD prospects from the BAD. That may force you to confront something else about your business:

Are you filling your calendar with HOPE instead of with SUBSTANCE?

If you're pleased with yourself when you get a prospect to agree to meeting with you a MONTH from NOW, you could have a problem. If a tentative, "Ok, you can stop by next week" makes you feel like you've accomplished something, you could have a problem. If ANYTHING other than a solid appointment booked with a qualified and genuinely interested prospect puts a smile on your face, you could have a problem! The problem is: entertaining a false sense of hope that those appointments will actually transpire and that great things will happen when they do. There will always be the occasional exception, but my general rule is:

"If it doesn't happen soon, it won't happen at all."

Finally, the Alternative Close's history of use is both long and wide -- EVERYONE has been taught it for GENERATIONS. That means that the vast majority of the prospects you're trying to convert to customers have heard it ... and probably used it. Unfortunately, it also rings loud and clear that you've recently completed a basic

sales training program -- and recognizing that could easily turn off the very people you're trying to impress. So start using the Urgency Close immediately, and watch both your calendar and your wallet grow!

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About the Author

T. Falcon Napier is an internationally-recognized human development expert, specializing in sales, leadership and change management. His organization identifies, certifies and supports independent and corporate training professionals in the design, delivery and reinforcement of the entire family of programs and professional services based on the MasterStream Method. Qualified instructors are encouraged to learn more athttp://www.masterstream.com