A private counselor is meeting with a potential customer. A high school student is trying to sell yearbook ad space to the owner of a pizza parlor. An English department chair is trying to convince the high school to allow a more diverse array of approved reading for students. Whatever you’re selling, it’s not enough to just convince someone to buy it. You have to be clear about exactly what to do. In his new book To Sell is Human, Dan Pink calls this giving people an off-ramp.
How do they buy it? What specific action do you want them to take? Pink says that selling without giving people an off-ramp is akin to giving them clarity on how to think without clarity on how to act.
When we meet with a potential Collegewise family, we end every meeting by asking, “What would you like to do next?” It’s an easy transition, because we start the meeting by describing the three options they’ll have at the end. Option 1: They fill out paperwork, enroll, and get their first appointment on the calendar with their new counselor. Option 2: They say, “This isn’t for us,” and we refer them to a competitor who may be a better fit. Option 3: They want some time to think it over, in which case they pick a day in the future when we call them to find out what they’ve decided. Three options—that’s the off-ramp.
In 13 years, not one family has expressed reservations with that agenda. In fact, it relaxes them. They know there’s no hard sell coming. There’s not going to be an awkward moment at the end when they have to pretend to be interested when they’re not. And best of all, they know it’s an option to enroll at the end of the meeting, and if they choose that option, they know exactly what the off-ramp looks like and they know when it’s coming.
When you think about selling, pitching, or even just convincing someone, don’t forget to build in an off-ramp, too.