5 Closing Mistakes That Cost You Sales (and How to Fix Them)

Here is how to deal with mistakes that sabotage your close rates.

You’ve had the perfect call. The lead was happy with your solution and even said, “This looks great!” And then… nothing.  😶

Sometimes, a good product and a charming pitch won’t save you as it’s all about the tiny missteps that quietly sabotage your chances.

Let’s break down five of the biggest deal-closing mistakes and what to do instead.

#1: You skip the most important question: How do they decide?

Sure, most buyers follow a typical customer decision making process: they identify a need, research options, compare, and decide. But every company has its own internal maze of stakeholders and processes that you should be well aware of.

Some have legal teams that won’t approve anything without a two-week compliance check. Others can’t make the tiniest decision without the CEO giving the final word — even if it’s a $50/month tool.

Anyway, the top factors that shape the company’s decision making process and ones you should pay attention to are commonly as follows:

• Timing and urgency. Learn more about their internal deadlines and external pressures with questions like: “When would you like to have this ready?” or “What’s driving the timeline for this project?”
• Purchasing power. You might be talking to a fan of your solution — but can they sign off? Ask questions like “How have you made purchases like this before?” or “Who signs off once you’ve chosen a tool?”
• Key evaluation criteria. Ask what matters most for them in a solution. What are their must-have vs nice-to-have features? What do they prioritize most: ease of use over customization or price vs long-term scalability? The knowledge of things they cherish the most will help you build more persuasive statements.
• Perceived risk. What’s holding them back? Are they afraid of switching tools, user adoption issues, or internal resistance? The more you know about their fears, the quicker you can address them and move on.
• Contract terms and flexibility. Some companies can’t do annual contracts. Others need payment terms, exit clauses, or specific compliance requirements. Our advice? Don’t assume — ask.

🎁 Bonus tip: Internal alignment matters. Which teams will use your solution? Do they all need it? For instance, your main contact loves the solution and is ready to seal the deal. But if other teams aren’t involved early, the deal can easily hit the wall later.

IT might raise concerns about data security or integrations, or procurement might say it’s not a current priority. And this brings us to another mistake….

#2: You’re pitching to the wrong person

So, you asked about the budget, but not about the boss. You wowed your main contact, but they can’t sign the deal because they have to check with the REAL decision maker in the company. Pretty frustrating, huh?

Next time, you can try to identify and engage with the decision makers as early as you can. The perfect scenario is to find out who the decision makers in the company are before the sales discovery call happens. But if that’s not the case, you can ask your lead questions like:

• “Would it make sense to loop in your [manager/CTO/finance team] so we’re all aligned?”
• “Happy to share this with you, but would it help if I walked your team through it directly?”
• “Out of curiosity, how are decisions like this typically made on your team?” (helps you understand the internal hierarchy)
• “Who else will have a say in the final decision?” (helps you uncover hidden influencers or blockers)

🎁 Bonus tip: Equip your contact with materials they can share. One-pagers, ROI decks, or a short video walkthrough can help them advocate internally.

#3: You forget to confirm deadlines

Deals with no follow-ups and clear steps tend to quietly fade away. Why? Because there is no urgency. Why should your lead care if you’ve just (unintentionally) given them the whole time in the world to decide?

Here is what to do:

• Create a sense of urgency. Tie your offer to a business outcome or a time-sensitive challenge they mentioned. For instance, “If you want everything up and running by next month, we should wrap things up this week.”
• Discuss their internal deadlines and align them with your process. If their contract with another solution provider is ending soon, use that as an anchor: “If you want a smooth handover from your current tool, we should get started by [date].”
• Guide your lead. Offer next steps. Don’t leave it vague with a “Let me know.” Instead say, “Here’s what happens next — I’ll send over the proposal today, and we can review it together on [date].”
• Confirm key dates in writing. Summarize timelines and expectations in your follow-up email so everything stays on track.

🎁 Bonus tip: Schedule the next step with your lead while you’re still on the call or right at the end of your meeting. This way, they won’t forget to confirm the meeting. Plus, you can send a quick summary email right after your call: key takeaways, questions raised, and next steps.

#4: You overload your lead with info dump

You’ve got a lead and now you’re too excited to show them everything your product can do. Guess what. Most leads don’t want (or need) a 45-minute tour of every single feature. What they want is to see how your solution solves their specific problems.

Here’s what to do:

• Focus on 2–3 high-impact use cases based on their pain points. Show them how your product fits into their day-to-day, not how many bells and whistles it has.
• Use language that mirrors their goals, such as “You mentioned X — here’s exactly how we help with that.”
• Use real customer stories or short examples to make your points tangible. Instead of saying “we have analytics,” say “One of our customers used this dashboard to cut churn by 20%.”

🎁 Bonus tip: Tailor the pitch to your lead’s role within the company. The CEO might care about long-term ROI, while the team lead might care about ease of use. So, speak their language.

#5: You assume silence means “not interested”

Sometimes, a lead falls out of the communication with you because something else became more urgent — a product launch, internal changes, or even just inbox overload.

Same happened to you? The key is to not take it personally and follow up with value.

• Send them helpful material. Something relevant to their goals or recent conversation, such as “Thought of your company when I saw this article on [their challenge] — might help with your upcoming launch.”
• Use multiple channels. A quick LinkedIn ping or voice note can cut through the noise.
• Mention the urgency and deadlines you’ve agreed upon, something like “I remember you wanted to have everything in place before the end of the month. Happy to help move things forward if the timing still works!”
• Offer to help reframe the timeline. If they’ve hit a delay, you can say, “Totally understand if things got pushed back. Want to align on a new timeline that makes more sense for you?”

🎁 Bonus tip: Follow-ups don’t need to be formal. Something as simple as “Hey! Just resurfacing this in case it got buried 🙂” can work wonders.

Final thoughts

The best closers are great listeners and clear communicators. They guide their prospects, don’t rush them, and make it ridiculously easy to say “yes.”

So next time you’re mid-conversation with a lead, remember: it is about saying what matters, to the right person, at the right time.

What to do when in doubt? Just ask.

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