The Closer's Survival Guide - Third Edition

If you want to be a closer, this book is for you.

As with most of Grant Cardone’s books, you either agree or strongly disagree with his selling philosophies and tactics. I find that most of us that have been raised on the older style of sales do not like to embrace change. In “The Closer’s Survival Guide”, the author educates the reader in various ways of closing deals. Deals covered include material items such as electronics, cars, software and toys. These same techniques can be used for non-material deals such as apartment leases, real estate, various negotiations, and even non-profit organizations attempting to fund raise. Mr. Cardone often seems direct in his closing approaches, but he stresses that if you are in the sales business you are really in the closing business. One can sell all they would like, but the big and real deals only happens once the close is done. You are not a person who sells, you are a person that closes deals.

The author takes the traditional sales training methodologies used by so many and turns them completely around. What used to be a high pressure and manipulative sales process, Mr. Cardone instead makes selling something that is a win-win for both parties; allowing all to sleep well at night. Give the customer options and make sure the product or item being sold is right for them. It is not just about meeting one’s sales number. If you truly believe and are passionate about your cause or product, you will want it to be used by everyone. When you become an evangelist of what you are selling, you are often unsatisfied until the person you are selling closes the deal. The author says that when you lose that sense of passion for what you are selling, move on to something else that you are passionate about.

The book is broken down into two main sections. The first being an overview of what closing is and why it is important in any type of deal. The second half of the book is the author going through the many closing examples and where they are best used. It should be noted that the author does not claim that the many examples provided are guarantees to closing deals, he says that one may need to modify them for your specific situation. What is powerful about this book as that is the author gives you many responses as to why a deal cannot be closed you may receive, and how to address them quickly and with confidence. Closes are not only focused on cost as many think, but often can fall into one or many different examples Mr. Cardon provides.

I like that the author also wants to peel back the onion and attempt to get to the real issue when asking for the close. Sometimes a person will simply say they do not have budget, but it often comes down to one not being confident in the product or solution being sold to them. They may have some underlying fear of failure or other repercussions of purchasing your solution, and until the root is addressed you will not be able to close. Often you need to help the buyer understand why these underlying fears are often irrational. Once one gets to the real reason why someone would not want to purchase your product, you can now go for the close using the examples provided. Again, this is not manipulating the buyer, but using question based selling to assist them in making the right decision to seal the deal.

The author highly recommends if you are listening to the audiobook version that you also purchase the print or digital version; he is a closer himself. This is so you have at the ready the many different examples he provides and you can study and practice them over and over. That way when you are put in a specific situation, you know which of the closing examples you want to use. I would agree that this is an important thing to do if you really want to be on board with this method of selling. Why would you not want to have different version of the material so you can consume it in different ways in different situations.

As with the other books I have reviewed by this author, I know many complain that he should not be narrating the books himself. I address this by saying that if the author truly believes and is an evangelist for his own business and products, why would he not want to express that by doing the book’s narration? Remember this is not a novel or fiction book, but a training session into the art of closing. I could easily get over the background paper shuffling noise, etc. because the material was so good.

As I said earlier, you either like or dislike the style and techniques of Mr. Cardone. For those that want something new and fresh for their outdated and manipulative selling approach, this may be the book they are looking for. Yes, it does rehash many of the other books material, but the author is unaware if you have listed or read anything of his previously. I also find it good to hear things over and over as it begins to sink into my head more that way.

40 of 40 people found this review helpful

From 2 to 5 stars.

First 2 hours I was really thinking; common man, come to the point! And then he did. And sure, some of the closures are way out there and may not fit the particular business you are in or your style, but some of them are just awesome and may well be the difference in loosing or closing some major deals. That's why 5 stars.

25 of 27 people found this review helpful

The Book you must read to be a Master Closer

Grant Cardone reads his own book but never really stays on script giving many extra insight to his thinking in this audiobook. I would say if your in sales you want to be a closer. If you can't close you aren't selling anything. This book has everything you need to be a closer except the heart. You have to provide that yourself along with commitment, dedication, and persistence. This is a must read for anyone who ever wants to accomplish anything in life.
This book was purchased for my own education.

20 of 22 people found this review helpful

Great content, strong delivery (but a slow start)

The first 25% of the book is painfully slow, repeating the same points in a pretty cheesy way. Once the author gets to the actual 100 closes, it's great content and swift delivery. The techniques are oriented at retail or transactional selling, not complex corporate deals. But still useful for anybody - even to understand your own behavior as a consumer.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Audio Book Incomplete - No closing techniques

What did you like best about The Closer's Survival Guide - Third Edition? What did you like least?

In the audio version the author references all of his great closing techniques, but there are few discussed in the audio version. He then references his written book for the closing techniques. Nice bait and switch sales pro.

22 of 26 people found this review helpful

Good closes available

one half the book is slow, then it picks up the pace. I would use 25% of yhe closes, but a lot of them seem made up to get 100 total.

8 of 9 people found this review helpful

ok but pretty much the same as sell or be sold

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Some decent closes, but overall just not enough content. Not a good use of money, just listen to sell or be sold...it is basically the same thing and more.

23 of 28 people found this review helpful

Perfect for any sales! Love this book!

Would you consider the audio edition of The Closer's Survival Guide - Third Edition to be better than the print version?

I listed to the audio version. I have often thought (I've listed to this book 3-4 times now) if reading this one would be as powerful as reading... I don't think so. Grant's conviction in his closes are perfect. I have been selling Real Estate for 10 years and I have used several of these closes; however, to hear him use them made me more confident in my ability to apply them better and more frequently.

Any additional comments?

Thank you Grant - You have made my outlook for the next calendar year a bright one! I have shared my goals with my office and will continue to read and listed to your books. You are an inspiration and motivator.

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

half is useful, half is complete fluff

The author spends the first half of the book just talking about how great he is at sales and how important sales is, to the point where his self aggrandizing gets annoying.

The second half of the book is filled with little counters for each objection you will hear when trying to close a sale. This part is very useful.

Would recommend listening to the first chapter, maybe two, then skipping to the good stuff about half way through.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Super useful!

Would you consider the audio edition of The Closer's Survival Guide - Third Edition to be better than the print version?

I don't have the printed version. But the audio is great, with lot's of emotions.

What did you like best about this story?

The number of closes and the way they were presented.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The start of the book, it made me think more about the whole process of selling.

8 of 10 people found this review helpful