For several weeks I had been trying to connect with someone who had expressed interest in sales training for his team. We were both interested in speaking with each other but business just kept getting in the way. We managed to schedule an hour to talk but circumstances prevented us from connecting. I reached out again via direct message on Twitter and suggested a time on Friday.
Friday came along and I hadn’t received a reply from my contact. I was tempted to send him another direct message but chose to call instead.
My goal was to schedule a day and time to have a conversation and I had an appropriate message ready because I expected to get his voice mail.
You can imagine my surprise when he picked up the telephone and I was even more surprised when he said he wanted to talk right away. We ended up having our conversation even though we hadn’t scheduled it.
Here’s the lesson…
Too many sales people rely strictly on electronic forms of communication (I confess that I have been guilty of that too). It’s quick and easy and rejection tends to be easier to deal with.
Plus, it’s less intrusive.
We often think that we are intruding on our prospect’s time when we call without an appointment. And, we are especially if we launch into a self-aggrandizing pitch about our products or company.
However, a telephone call is still a much more effective way to connect with people. Just because you don’t have a scheduled appointment doesn’t mean your customer or prospect won’t take your call. After all, my prospect had not been expecting my call. I know he had a ton of work on his desk–every executive does. And, I know that our 60 minute conversation took a substantial bite out of his schedule. However, he was still willing to talk.
Granted, timing is critical because most executives spend the bulk of the day racing from meeting to meeting. However, if you are fortunate to catch them at their desk they may very well take your call if;
1/ They recognize your name and number on Caller ID
2/ You have developed a level of trust with them through previous correspondence
So what are you waiting for…pick up the telephone and call that hot prospect!
Could your sales team use some motivation? Give me a call and we can discuss a program that will help them improve their sales results while giving them a boost of motivation. Kelley@Fearless-Selling.ca or 905-633-7750.
During a sales training workshop I conducted for a client last week the biggest challenge that the group of sales reps faced was the ability to connect with people in order to schedule an appointment.
We brainstormed ideas to connect with people including; the importance of leaving high-value voice mail messages, using multiple mediums (telephone, email, direct mail, etc.), enlisting the support of an internal champion, and calling at off times (early in the morning and late in the day).
Ultimately, at the end of the day we agreed that there is only one strategy that will enable you to connect with key decision makers, prospects and contacts.
Persistence.
Here’s why…
Your prospects are dashing from meeting to meeting or dealing with an ongoing slew of problems which means they are away from their desk for a good chunk of the day.
When you’re fortunate enough to catch them at their desk, there’s a good chance they will glance at their caller ID display to see who is calling. Unless it’s a return call about an important issue they’re dealing with or an internal person (boss or direct report), it’s highly likely they will ignore the call.
A friend of mine is a middle manager in a relatively large company, and on average, he receives upwards of 150 email messages every single day plus dozens of phone calls. He confided that he seldom returns a call from a sales person unless that person has a unique product or service or he/she is exceptionally persistent.
Lots of people say you need to work smarter. Unfortunately, when it comes to connecting with busy customers you also need to work harder and longer.
Could your team benefit from a sales training program? Give me a call and we can discuss the best approach. 905-633-7750 Kelley@Fearless-Selling.ca
There’s nothing like real-life examples to point out the good, the bad and ugly about sales calls and how they can help or prevent you from increasing your sales. Here is a post-mortem of a sales call I received yesterday afternoon.
The call didn’t get off to a great start because I answered the telephone with, “Good afternoon, Kelley Robertson” and the caller said, “Hi, I’d like to speak with Kelley Robertson please.” Um, didn’t I just say that it was me?
Lesson: Listen carefully when your prospect answers the telephone.
She introduced herself and I caught her name but not her company. She even repeated her company’s name a few times during our one-sided conversation but I never did catch it. It wasn’t until see snet me an email that I figured out who she represented.
Lesson: Make sure that you clearly articulate your name and that of your company.
Anyway, she mentioned that she came across my name from the Top Sales World website and the series of webinars that were conducted last week. She asked if I knew one of the presenters and it turned out that it was one of few whom I didn’t.
Lesson: Attempts at building rapport need to carefully thought-out.
Like most salespeople she told me about her company and what they did. I have to admit that her approach here was because she didn’t spend a lot of time talking about her company and their services. This is rare.
Lesson: Limit the amount of time you talk about your company in the early stages of a sales call.
After she told me about her company she proceeded to ask me several questions about document production including workbooks for my training programs etc. Unfortunately, she made the classic error of trying to pitch a service that I had little need for. Here’s what I mean…
She asked how I review my workbooks after I submit them to my printer and I told her that I didn’t need to because I have been working that printer for almost 15 years and they have never misprinted a workbook. It appeared that pre-printing proofing was a hot button for her but it wasn’t for me.
Lesson: Never discuss aspects of your product or service that have little or no relevance to your prospect’s situation.
Finally, she asked if she could send me information and arrange a 20 minute demonstration of their service even though I said I had no intention of changing suppliers. After all, my printer has been doing a great job for more than 15 years, why would I change?
Lesson: Recognize low-value leads and move on to other sales opportunities.
Oops, I almost forgot. She did send me an email later that day but her opening line was “Thanks for taking the time to speak with me yesterday!” Plus, the email simply reiterated everything she told me in our telephone conversation.
Lesson: Make sure your follow-up emails include more information or a reason NOT to delete it and make the information is accurate.
I help sales professionals master their sales conversations so they can win more deals. Contact me if I can help you or your company: 905-633-7750 Kelley@RobertsonTrainingGroup.com
Contrary to popular belief, cold calling is still an effective method of generating new business leads and gaining appointments.
I recently interviewed Wendy Weiss, The Queen of Cold Calling, who explained five rules you need to follow if you want to achieve good results from your cold calling efforts.
Belief.
Your belief system will affect your ability to make great calls more than anything else. If you believe that cold calling is too tough or that people will not take your call or that you are interrupting people you will not succeed.
The key is to change your belief system to something positive and this usually begins with the belief that your product, service or offering is of value to your prospect.
Target.
A targeted list is the next critical rule. If you use a shotgun approach and simply dial for dollars you will not achieve good results. The more targeted your list is, the greater the likelihood you will connect with interested prospects.
Skill.
You wouldn’t expect to learn a new language in a month, would you? Cold calling is no different. You can’t expect to go from being a novice caller to expert in a few days or even weeks. You need to develop your skill and proficiency and most people don’t give themselves enough time to accomplish this.
Understand goals.
Each call must have a clear, specific objective that is realistic. Closing a deal in the first call is NOT a realistic goal; however, discovering who the key decision maker is might be. And connecting with that person may be a good secondary goal.
Have a system.
You need to consider three things:
i/ Track your results. Record the days and times you call, the progress made, and details of people you connect with.
ii/ Apply best practices which includes; varying your calling times, making calls every day, creating high-value openings, and using scripts.
iii/ Scripts. Scripts should be flexible and not sound like you are reading from a sheet of paper.
These rules make a lot of sense especially since the business world has changed so much. If you are serious about improving your cold calling results, I strongly suggest you take a look at Wendy’s new book, The Sales Winner Handbook. It’s jam-packed with tons of scripts, email & voice mail tactics. Plus, she has also included a bunch of special bonuses valued at more than $200. Check it out here.
Planning a Sales Meeting, Training or Conference?
If you’re planning a sales meeting, conference or event and need an engaging & informative speaker, call me. I help sales people master sales conversations so they can win more business and increase their sales. 905-633-7750 or Kelley@Fearless-Selling.ca. Here’s a brief video of a live presentation: http://bit.ly/ef5P5l
It seems that too many sales people fail to consider the impact of that first phone call to a new prospect. It doesn’t matter if it’s a warm lead generated by the other person, a referral from a trusted source, a contact form on website or a cold call.
If you don’t ace that first call, you won’t get the opportunity to move that conversation forward and increase your sales. Here are eight ways you can butcher a telephone sales call.
1. Hem & haw. I can’t count the number of calls I get from people who don’t seem to know what to say. They hem and haw and use too many filler words such as um and uh and ah. Think about your opening line. Determine ahead of time exactly what you’re going to say in those opening moments. Script it out and rehearse so it flows naturally and comfortably BEFORE you dial theat number.
2. Mispronounce their name. I wrote a post about this a few weeks ago. One of the quickest ways to alienate someone is to say their name incorrectly. Enough said.
3. Open with, “Uh, John Smith suggested I call you.” If you think an opening like that is going to compel the other person to continue the conversation you need to consider a career change. Before you make that call do your research just like any other sales call. Even though it’s a referral call, you need to demonstrate why the other person should listen to you.
4. Multi-task. A few years ago, a sales person called me and during our conversation I could hear him tapping away on his computer. I think he was capturing my contact info and recording details of our conversation in his CRM system but I found it very distracting not to mention annoying.
5. Immediately start pitching your product. Before you launch into a lengthy diatribe about your product, your company, your solution or anything else related to YOU, ask your prospect a question or two to get them engaged in the conversation. The one caveat to this: it is acceptable to open with a brief (VERY brief! Like 15 seconds or less!) success story or description of a potential problem your prospect might be facing.
6. Call from a cell phone. This one’s tricky because the vast majority of sales people make sales calls from their cell phone. However, if this is your first call to a new prospect, I strongly suggest that you call from a landline to reduce delays, echos, and dropped calls.
7. Open with a long introduction. The longer you talk at the beginning of a sales telephone call, the more impatient your prospect will become and the more quickly they will look for a way end the call.
8. Call late. In some cases, your prospect will ask that you call at a pre-determined time. Never, ever call late! Even if you call five minutes late you demonstrate a lack of respect for the other person’s time. Punctuality is essential!
It is becoming increasingly more difficult to get more sales and increase your business. If your telephone call to a prospect is your first connection with that person and you butcher the call, you will lose the opportunity to move the sales process forward, close the business, and increase your sales.
