Sales and Closing Skills Training Course

Duration 10 days 17 modules · 65 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Sales Executives, Account Managers and others
Fee from USD 2,200 KSh 190,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-S-082

Before you join: Participants should have some customer-facing sales, account management, business development or commercial support experience.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Sales results often fail at predictable points: sellers qualify weak opportunities, present features rather than commercial value, avoid difficult questions, concede too early, or leave meetings without a clear commitment. Strong closing is not a single line or pressure tactic. It is a disciplined process of selecting the right prospects, diagnosing needs, shaping a credible proposal, managing stakeholders, resolving risk and agreeing specific next steps.

This course develops the practical selling and closing skills needed for complex business-to-business, public-sector and institutional sales. Participants learn to plan accounts, apply ideal customer profile criteria, use SPIN and consultative questioning, quantify value, present solutions, manage objections, negotiate concessions and ask for commitments. The programme also covers buying committees, procurement, competitive positioning, pipeline control, forecast discipline and post-sale handover.

Teaching combines concise instructor briefings with realistic sales cases, role plays, group analysis, peer feedback and structured application planning. Participants progressively build work from their own sales context, including an account plan, discovery plan, value case, stakeholder map, proposal outline and closing strategy. They leave with a complete sales opportunity plan that can be used with a live prospect or strategic account.

The course suits sales professionals who already interact with customers and want a more repeatable method for progressing opportunities to contract. It is also relevant to account managers, business development staff, customer-facing technical specialists and managers responsible for sales performance.

What you will be able to do

  • Qualify opportunities using ideal customer profile criteria, BANT and opportunity scoring
  • Plan strategic accounts using stakeholder maps, account objectives and contact strategies
  • Conduct discovery meetings using SPIN questioning and active listening techniques
  • Build quantified value propositions linked to customer priorities and decision criteria
  • Present solution recommendations using structured sales narratives and proof points
  • Handle objections using clarification, reframing, evidence and confirmation methods
  • Negotiate commercial terms using concession planning and conditional trading
  • Produce and present a complete opportunity plan with a closing strategy

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Run discovery conversations with clearer questions and stronger customer insight
  • Recognise poor-fit opportunities before investing excessive sales time
  • Explain commercial value without relying on feature-led product presentations
  • Respond to objections calmly with evidence, diagnosis and agreed next steps
  • Prepare closing conversations with defined commitments and fallback positions

For your organisation

  • Improves sales time allocation toward qualified, winnable opportunities
  • Creates more consistent customer discovery and opportunity documentation
  • Raises proposal quality through clearer value, evidence and decision alignment
  • Reduces unnecessary discounting through planned concession management
  • Improves pipeline visibility and forecast quality for sales leadership

Course modules

17 modules over 10 days

Participants can map a sales process to buyer decisions, risks and commitments.

  • Sales stages aligned with buyer actions, evidence requirements and exit criteria
  • Customer buying journeys distinguished from internal seller activity and CRM stages
  • Economic, technical and user buyers identified within common buying committees
  • Decision criteria translated into sales priorities, proof requirements and actions
  • Sales ethics, truthful claims and confidentiality during commercial conversations
  • Opportunity momentum measured through customer commitments rather than seller optimism

Participants can prioritise target prospects using defined fit and potential criteria.

  • Ideal customer profile criteria covering need, budget, authority and urgency
  • Market segments assessed by revenue potential, accessibility and strategic fit
  • Target account lists ranked using weighted opportunity scoring criteria
  • Triggers for prospecting identified from business events, changes and announcements
  • Buyer personas developed from responsibilities, pressures, measures and objections
  • Research sources checked for reliability before account outreach begins

Participants can create an account plan for a priority customer or prospect.

  • Account objectives defined through revenue, retention, growth and relationship measures
  • Stakeholder maps showing influence, attitude, access and decision roles
  • Power-interest grids used to prioritise contact and engagement strategies
  • Relationship gaps identified between current access and required buying access
  • Account risks recorded with early warning indicators and response actions
  • Contact plans scheduled around customer priorities, events and decision milestones

Participants can secure relevant first conversations through focused outreach and opening techniques.

  • Prospecting messages built around credible triggers, relevance and customer outcomes
  • Cold-call openings establish permission, purpose and concise commercial relevance
  • Referral approaches use shared context without overstating relationship strength
  • Voicemail and follow-up sequences create clear reasons for response
  • Opening meeting agendas agreed with purpose, participants and intended outcomes
  • Rapport built through informed preparation, curiosity and professional credibility

Participants can conduct discovery conversations that reveal needs, consequences and decision requirements.

  • SPIN questions sequence situation, problem, implication and need-payoff inquiries
  • Open and closed questions selected for different discovery purposes
  • Active listening techniques capture facts, emotion, language and unstated concerns
  • Problem statements tested before proposing products, services or solutions
  • Needs developed into measurable business, operational and personal consequences
  • Meeting notes separate customer evidence, assumptions, actions and unresolved questions

Participants can qualify sales opportunities and determine appropriate pursuit actions.

  • BANT assessed through budget, authority, need and timing evidence
  • MEDDICC elements applied to complex opportunities with multiple decision makers
  • Opportunity scorecards distinguish qualified deals from hopeful sales activity
  • Competition assessed by incumbent position, alternatives and customer preference
  • No-decision risk identified through urgency, sponsorship and change costs
  • Pursuit decisions documented as advance, nurture, redirect or disqualify

Participants can construct a customer-specific value proposition supported by credible evidence.

  • Value propositions link customer pains, gains and differentiated capabilities
  • Customer outcomes quantified through revenue, cost, risk, time and quality
  • Value drivers prioritised using customer evidence rather than internal assumptions
  • Business cases state baseline, proposed change, benefits and investment requirements
  • Proof points selected from case evidence, demonstrations, references and data
  • Differentiation framed against buyer criteria rather than competitor feature lists

Participants can deliver a structured sales presentation matched to buyer priorities.

  • Presentation structures move from customer priorities to recommendation and evidence
  • Executive summaries state the problem, outcome, approach and investment rationale
  • Features translated into advantages, benefits and customer-specific commercial implications
  • Demonstrations planned around priority use cases and acceptance criteria
  • Visual aids simplify decision data, implementation steps and expected outcomes
  • Presentation questions used to test relevance, agreement and remaining concerns

Participants can prepare proposal content that supports evaluation and buying decisions.

  • Proposal structures reflect customer requirements, evaluation criteria and decision process
  • Scope statements define deliverables, assumptions, exclusions and customer responsibilities
  • Pricing narratives connect investment levels with measurable customer value
  • Implementation plans show milestones, governance, dependencies and risk controls
  • Executive proposal pages communicate recommendation, rationale and required decisions
  • Proposal reviews check consistency between discovery evidence, solution and price

Participants can diagnose and respond constructively to common sales objections.

  • Objections classified as price, value, risk, authority, timing or competition
  • Clarification questions separate stated objections from underlying customer concerns
  • Feel-felt-found responses used carefully without dismissing buyer concerns
  • Reframing techniques connect objections to agreed needs and decision criteria
  • Evidence responses use data, references, pilots and implementation safeguards
  • Confirmation questions test whether the concern has been adequately resolved

Participants can build support across multiple stakeholders without bypassing governance.

  • Buying committees mapped across sponsors, champions, evaluators and gatekeepers
  • Individual stakeholder priorities linked to tailored messages and evidence
  • Champions developed through mutual plans, information and internal credibility
  • Executive sponsors engaged with strategic outcomes, risk and investment decisions
  • Procurement stakeholders addressed through process, compliance and commercial clarity
  • Internal consensus risks surfaced before formal evaluation and contract stages

Participants can prepare negotiations with clear objectives, limits and concession trades.

  • Negotiation objectives distinguish target, reservation point and walk-away position
  • BATNA assessed before entering commercial discussions with customers or suppliers
  • Concession plans identify tradable items, cost and reciprocal conditions
  • Package offers combine price, scope, term, payment and service variables
  • Authority limits clarified before negotiating discounts, liabilities or delivery commitments
  • Negotiation agendas separate relationship issues from commercial decision points

Participants can conduct commercial negotiations while protecting value and relationships.

  • Anchoring used responsibly to frame commercial discussions and proposed terms
  • Conditional trading follows the principle of give-get rather than unilateral concessions
  • Silence, summarising and calibrated questions manage pressure during negotiations
  • Price challenges redirected toward scope, value, risk and contractual variables
  • Deadlocks addressed through option generation, escalation paths and adjournment
  • Agreements recorded with actions, owners, deadlines and outstanding conditions

Participants can ask for and secure appropriate customer commitments at each sales stage.

  • Trial closes test readiness before requesting larger customer commitments
  • Assumptive closes used only after clear buyer agreement and evidence
  • Alternative-choice closes help customers select between viable agreed options
  • Next-step commitments specify action, owner, date and decision purpose
  • Closing signals distinguished from politeness, interest or noncommittal responses
  • Postponement responses uncover genuine blockers and protect opportunity momentum

Participants can manage a sales pipeline using evidence-based stage and forecast controls.

  • Pipeline stages governed by objective exit criteria and customer commitments
  • Forecast categories distinguish committed, likely, pipeline and upside opportunities
  • Deal reviews examine evidence, risks, next actions and management support
  • CRM records capture stakeholders, needs, value, competition and decision dates
  • Sales velocity analysed through opportunity volume, conversion, value and cycle time
  • Pipeline hygiene removes stale opportunities and unsupported close dates

Participants can hand over sold work effectively and identify responsible growth opportunities.

  • Sales-to-delivery handovers transfer scope, commitments, risks and stakeholder expectations
  • Customer success measures agreed before implementation begins and ownership changes
  • Early value reviews confirm outcomes, issues and corrective actions
  • Renewal plans begin with usage, performance, relationships and contract milestones
  • Cross-sell opportunities tested against customer priorities and proven value
  • Reference requests timed after validated outcomes and customer satisfaction

Participants can build, review and present a complete sales opportunity plan for a live or realistic account.

  • Target account selected using ideal customer profile and opportunity criteria
  • Stakeholder map completed with influence, access, priorities and engagement actions
  • Discovery plan specifies hypotheses, SPIN questions and required customer evidence
  • Value case quantifies outcomes, proof points and differentiated recommendation
  • Negotiation and closing strategy defines commitments, concessions, risks and alternatives
  • Opportunity plan presented for peer review, challenge and revision

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Ideal Customer Profile and opportunity scorecard
  2. Strategic account plan template
  3. SPIN discovery meeting planner
  4. Customer value proposition and business case model
  5. Negotiation concession planning worksheet
  6. Complete sales opportunity plan

Who should attend

  • Sales Executives — need a repeatable process for progressing qualified opportunities
  • Account Managers — need to expand customer relationships and retain strategic accounts
  • Business Development Managers — need stronger prospecting, discovery and proposal conversion
  • Key Account Managers — need structured stakeholder and account planning methods
  • Sales Engineers — need to connect technical solutions with commercial buyer priorities
  • Sales Managers — need practical methods for coaching opportunity progression

Skills and tools covered

Opportunity qualificationConsultative sellingValue proposition designObjection handlingCommercial negotiationClosing strategy

Tools and standards

SPIN Selling, BANT, MEDDICC, BATNA

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to introduce each sales method, followed by case analysis, paired practice, group work and sales simulations. Participants apply tools to a current account or realistic customer scenario from the first week onwards. Feedback focuses on questioning quality, value articulation, objection responses, negotiation choices and closing commitments. Facilitated reviews connect individual techniques to the wider opportunity process. The final sessions are used to refine, review and present a complete sales opportunity plan.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have some customer-facing sales, account management, business development or commercial support experience. They should be familiar with their organisation's products or services, typical customers and normal sales process. Experience of attending sales meetings, preparing proposals or managing customer enquiries is useful. No formal sales qualification, advanced negotiation training, CRM certification or financial modelling expertise is required. Participants will gain most value by bringing an active opportunity, target account or recent sales case they can use throughout the course.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should have some exposure to customer-facing sales, account management or business development. The course does not require a formal sales qualification, but it assumes familiarity with basic customer interactions and the organisation's offering.

Participants should bring details of a live opportunity, target account or recent sales case where possible. Useful materials include a current proposal, account notes, product information and the organisation's sales stages or CRM fields.

It is designed for sales executives, account managers, business development managers and technical specialists involved in commercial conversations. Sales managers can also attend to strengthen coaching and opportunity review methods.

Negotiation is one part of the programme, alongside prospecting, discovery, qualification, value creation, presentations, objections and closing. A negotiation-only course concentrates more deeply on bargaining strategy and commercial deal terms.

Participants leave with a completed opportunity plan and reusable planning tools for active accounts. They can apply the methods in discovery meetings, pipeline reviews, proposal development, stakeholder engagement and closing conversations.

Each training day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. The first week builds core selling methods and practical account materials; the second week develops negotiation, closing, pipeline control and the final capstone presentation.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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