Latest / Closing the Deal with Fexingo: Sales, Negotiation, and Revenue Conversations for Operators / How One Rep Used Silence to Save a Six-Figure Deal
Transcript
- Lucas: Priya had been working this deal for six months. Six months. Targeted account, multiple demos, a proof of concept that went well. She finally gets the CFO on a call — the final approval step. She states her price: one hundred and eighty thousand dollars annual. And then she stops talking. Luna: She just went silent after quoting the price? Lucas: Completely silent. She told me later she counted to twelve in her head before the CFO said anything. And those twelve seconds felt like an hour. But the CFO eventually said, 'Okay, we can do that. Send over the contract.' She didn't discount. She didn't justify. She just waited. Luna: That is so hard to do. Most of us panic in that moment and start adding value props or caveats. Lucas: Exactly. And that panic destroys your leverage. The moment you talk after your price, you signal that you're not sure it's fair. The prospect's brain registers that as a reason to negotiate. Luna: And I love that you brought up the neuroscience. There's actually research on this. A study from Princeton showed that when someone pauses after making a statement, listeners perceive them as more authoritative, not less. Lucas: Right. The silence is read as confidence. But the rep's internal monologue screams, 'They hate it. I need to explain. I need to fill the gap.' So they blurt out something like, 'Of course, we have some flexibility depending on tenure,' and just like that, they've given away margin. Luna: Priya's case is a great example of doing the opposite. And it's worth noting that she had already built value over six months. She wasn't dropping a cold number. Lucas: That's the key context. She'd earned the right to be silent because the prospect already understood the value. The price was just the final checkpoint. Luna: And I think this is one of those moments where listener support makes a real difference. Keeping shows like this ad-free means we can spend time on real cases like Priya's instead of rushed tips. If these conversations have moved your work forward, you can support us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Lucas: No pressure at all. Just a small note for those who find value in the deep dives. So back to Priya — she later told me that in her first year selling, she would have immediately said, 'But we can do one sixty if you sign by Friday.' Luna: Classic rookie move. You're giving a discount before they even ask. Lucas: Exactly. And the research backs this up. There's a 2018 study in the Journal of Marketing that found that salespeople who stayed silent after a price quote closed deals at a 12 percent higher rate than those who added a justification. Luna: Twelve percent. That's huge. But I think the harder part is actually staying silent when the prospect does push back. Like, what if the CFO had said, 'That's too high'? Lucas: Then you can respond. But you still don't have to fill the silence after their objection. Let them elaborate. Often they'll talk themselves into a softer position. Luna: So the rule is: state your price, then shut up. No matter what. Lucas: Almost. I'd refine it: state your price, then shut up until the other person speaks first. And if they speak but don't accept, you can ask a question before you give a concession. Luna: What kind of question? Lucas: Something like, 'What specifically is too high about it?' That forces them to be concrete. And while they answer, you're back in silence mode, gathering information. Luna: I love that. It's not about being aggressive. It's about being present and letting them reveal their hand. Lucas: Priya told me she learned this from watching a senior rep close a deal years ago. The senior rep quoted a price, the client said, 'We need to think about it,' and the senior rep just sat there smiling. After about ten seconds, the client said, 'But I think we can make it work.' Luna: Because the silence made the client uncomfortable, not the rep. Lucas: Right. The client wanted to fill the void with a positive statement. It's a pattern. Priya replicated that exact move. Luna: So this isn't about being cold or robotic. It's about discipline. Lucas: Exactly. And the discipline is harder than it sounds because our natural instinct is to bond, to reassure, to connect. Silence feels antisocial. But in negotiation, it's a power move. Luna: I want to ask about a nuance. What if you're on a video call and the prospect is looking at you expectantly? Does the silence still work? Lucas: It works even better because they can see you're composed. If you break eye contact or fidget, you lose it. But if you hold steady, it amplifies your authority. Luna: So part of this is also controlling your body language. Don't shuffle papers, don't look down at your phone. Lucas: Exactly. Priya said she literally clasped her hands on the table and looked at the CFO calmly. She wasn't glaring. Just present. Luna: I think it's also worth noting that this only works if your price is reasonable. You can't quote an absurd number and expect silence to work magic. Lucas: True. The price has to be within the zone of possibility. But within that zone, silence increases the likelihood of acceptance without discount. Luna: So for someone listening right now who has a deal on the table and hasn't sent the proposal yet, what would you advise? Lucas: When you present the proposal, state the price once. Then ask, 'How does that look to you?' Then stop. Let them answer. Don't jump in to explain the ROI slide again. Luna: And if they say 'It's a bit high'? Lucas: Then you say, 'I understand. What were you expecting?' And then stop again. You'd be surprised how often they'll name a number that's higher than your walk-away point. Luna: That's the beauty of it. You might not even need to discount. Lucas: Priya's CFO initially had a budget of one fifty. But after her silence, he didn't even mention it. He just accepted one eighty. Because the silence signaled that one eighty was the number. Luna: And she saved herself thirty thousand dollars in discounts by just not talking. Lucas: Thirty thousand dollars. That's not a small number. And she did it without any special training. Just a mental rule: don't speak first after your price. Luna: I think that's the takeaway. It's a simple rule, but it's incredibly hard to execute under pressure. But the more you practice, the more natural it becomes. Lucas: Exactly. Start in low-stakes situations. The next time someone asks for your consulting rate or your product price, just say the number and stop. See what happens. Luna: I'm going to try that this week. I already have a call where I usually fill the silence. I'm going to let them talk first. Lucas: Report back. I'd love to hear how it goes. And if it fails, we'll talk about why. But I think you'll be surprised. Luna: Alright, we're going to leave it there. Thanks for listening.