Three statements to begin with:

Sales are solutions to a problem or a need that is clearly identified for and understood by, a customer.
Sales are most commonly affected by the one best prepared to solve that problem or satisfy that need.
Almost all needs can be restated as a problem to be solved.

The customer walks into the office, carrying her problem in a large box. She is ushered into a conference room, where there is a rectangular table and four chairs, two each on opposite sides.

The salesman enters the room, carrying the solution in a binder under his arm. The two greet each other, then take their chairs, facing each other. The customer places the problem on the table, in the middle. The salesman opens the binder on the table in front of him.

The difficulties are immediately apparent. The customer is obscured from the salesman by the problem. The customer and salesman are looking at the problem from different angles. The customer cannot fully see the solution that the salesman has in front of him. After an attempt to talk through the solution around the problem, both become frustrated and impatient.

The salesman gets up, folds up his binder and moves to a chair on the opposite side of the table, sitting alongside the customer.

Now, the salesman clearly sees his customer.
Now, they are both looking at the problem from the same perspective.
Now, rather than the salesman presenting the solution, they are sharing the vision of it.
Now, they are on the same side, working together on the problem.

Whenever you want to provide a solution to a customer, remember to be sure that you are positioned on their side, and not aligned opposite them. Make certain that you see your customer — their needs and values — clearly and without obstructions. Position yourself so that your vision of their problem or need reflects their perspective, not from the angle of what you want to sell them.

Share your solution, rather than presenting it, helping them to see how that solution responds to their problem. Make sure that the customer sees and feels all of those priorities, and engages in the process from a partnership perspective.

In all of these, be certain that you believe in the solution being right for the client yourself. Being persuasive is always far less effective than being sincere, collaborative and correct.

We are all, at one time or another in our lives, salespersons. Whether you are selling a product, an idea, a proposition or a service, the core elements of a successful close are identical. The culmination of a sale is simply an agreement between the parties that the problem has been solved; once there is an acceptance of a solution, the close is inevitable.