Columbo Close
Wrap up the call, then ask the real question on your way out the door when the buyer's guard is down.
No problem, I'll let you go. Just so I understand, what would have to be true for this to be an easy yes?
The Columbo close borrows the trick of the TV detective who ends every scene with “just one more thing.” You signal the conversation is over, the buyer relaxes because the pressure is off, and then you ask the question that actually matters. “No problem, I’ll let you go. Just so I understand, what would have to be true for this to be an easy yes?” The relaxed answer is usually more honest than anything you got mid-pitch.
Use it when a buyer has gone guarded and you suspect the stated reason for stalling is not the real one. It works because people drop their defences once they think the selling has stopped. It backfires if you use it to sneak in a hard pitch, since that teaches the buyer the “one more thing” is a trap.
Named after the Columbo character and taught widely in sales training, this has no single documented originator, so treat it as folklore rather than a cited method.