Are you finding yourself hearing “let’s wait until after the holidays”  or “we are going to hold out until the new year” from prospects? The holiday brush-off can really put a damper on end-of-season sales, but many salespeople just accept this logic from prospects and take a step back.

CEO of The Sales Leadership Group Jed Blount believes this is a huge mistake. According to Blount, “during this time of year you have to give your prospects and customers a more compelling reason to make a decision now than to wait until later. This means getting creative with your offer, price, value added services, or signing bonuses. It means you may have to give up more to get the deal done than during other times of the year. However, if you don’t close now it is highly likely that you never will.”

Though it may seem to make sense for prospects to hold off on decisions until after the hustle and bustle of the holidays, stay focused on making the sale. Don’t let the holidays shake up your focus and determination; the lax behavior could cost you a sale in the end.