Alternative Close - Definition & Meaning

Published in Marketing and Strategy Terms by MBA Skool Team

What is Alternative Close?

Alternative close is a technique employed at the last stage of selling a product in which a salesperson puts forth two or three alternatives before a prospect in order to complete the sale-process.

It is sensible to limit the number of alternatives to two or three because any higher number will distract the customer’s decision of buying a product. Generally, only two alternatives are presented.

The alternative close technique works on the Assumption Principle where it is believed that the customer has already made up mind to buy the product and needs a few alternatives to complete the buying process. Hence, the technique should be used with a great care and the salesperson should not sound as if he is forcing the customer to buy the product. 

Some of the examples of alternative close technique are:

  1. After a customer has selected a product to buy, the salesperson presents two options to make payment, either by cash or by credit card.
  2. A customer has decided to buy Honda City car and the salesperson presents two colour variants before the customer, either Green or Grey, to choose from.

This article has been researched & authored by the Business Concepts Team. It has been reviewed & published by the MBA Skool Team. The content on MBA Skool has been created for educational & academic purpose only.

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