·
Make
only one call per day to each prospect.
·
Call
consistently.
·
If
you leave a message, tell the prospect you will call them back and indicate
when - and then stick to it. Say: "If
I don't hear from you by February 12th, I'll call you back on the 13th."
·
It
takes at least 4 to 8 attempts to reach your prospect over a period of weeks,
or even months.
Get down to business quickly:
·
No
one cares for phony friendliness.
·
State
your business.
·
Be
professional.
·
“Greg, Jim Ullery calling. 239-599-8408.”
·
Sharing
more in a voice mail is a waste and not relevant.
·
There
is no need for company, title, reason for the call.
Share the name of a prominent person that referred you:
·
Open
the call, with the name of the person that referred you. Say: “Greg Meeks suggested that you
might be interested in hearing about my services.”
·
Do
not open with your own name.
·
When
you close, the calls say, “As I indicated earlier, our mutual friend
Greg Meeks encouraged me to call you.”
Sound like a trusted advisor:
·
Bring
personal value to the relationship.
·
Buyers
want to work with confident Sales Pros.
·
Do
not convey hope to meet or gratefulness for a few minutes.
·
Converse
as if you are calling a collaborator with an idea.
Mention a precise point you want to have a dialogue with them about:
·
Use
a voice of expectation not one of question or doubt.
·
Will
vs. would - Now vs. sometime.
·
“I will appreciate the ability to hear your
comments about the proposal I sent you last week.”
Present a
strong value proposition:
·
Talk
in terms of outcomes that you will deliver.
·
Do
not talk about your product or service.
·
Use
metrics.
·
Use
business terminology.
·
Use
time frames.
·
Use
dollar amounts.
·
Use
percentages.
·
Do
not round numbers 2.3 is far more believable than “a bit
more than 2.”
·
Say: “We help companies in the
conversion to cash cycle with a 23.2% reduction in time and expand order sizes
by 13.3%.”
·
Mention
how the call will benefit them.
Share the primary business drivers that are enhanced when customers work with you:
o Employee turnover.
o Productivity.
o Waste.
o Time to market.
o Operating cost.
o Share of customers.
o LTV – Life time value.
o Cost of goods sold.
o Customer retention.
o Compliance.
o Collections.
o Inventory turns.
“When you return my call, I will
make clear how my services can increase your company's turnaround time.”
o Increases your likeability.
o Helps make the prospect feel good
about you.
o Encourages them to take your
calls.
o Have an effect on people that yet
another voicemail or email does not.
o Customers thank Sales Pros for handwritten notes.
Do your homework and demonstrate that you have:
·
Researched
the target prospect on the internet.
·
If
you have worked with similar companies tell them.
·
Say:
“I
was recently on your website and noticed
...” or “I have worked with other chemistry development firms and I know
the industry struggles with…”
Put them on “gentle rain”:
·
You
have tried everything you can and you are not ready to give up entirely.
·
Send
interesting things of value (not simply advertisements) every month or quarter.
·
Stay
at the top of the prospect’s mind.
Get rid of self-serving verbiage:
·
A prospect
does not care to talk about the Sales
Pro or their company.
·
No
self aggrandizing puffery.
·
No
creative crap.
·
No
procedural drivel.
Create a deadline:
·
Gain
agreement from the prospect as to next steps.
·
Remind
the prospect of the agreement to take the next step based on the agreed follow
up dates.
·
Say:
"I'm
calling since the last time we spoke; we agreed to have further dialogue today
about…."
·
If
they do not return your call in a couple of days, keep calling, and gently
remind them of your mutual agreement.
Mention a newsworthy recent event:
·
Let
the prospect know that your call is triggered by an event.
·
Cite
the event being relevant to the offering you wish to provide.
·
New
management, an acquisition, an expansion, a change in the market, change in
environmental policies all provide reasons for such dialogue.
·
Read
online industry trade publications.
Call early or late in the day:
·
During
normal hours, C-level executives have “directors of first impressions” on duty. Some prefer to call these “gatekeepers”.
·
Call
quite early in the morning or late in the day.
·
Do
not leave a message attempt to reach the executive when they are alone and
likely to pick up the phone on their own.
·
To
bypass the voice mail system attempt to dial one number higher than the main
number.
·
Learn
to ask for after hour numbers.
Use a call outline:
·
You
do not want to ramble on.
·
Every
word counts if you are leaving a voice mail.
·
A
call outline helps you stay on task and focused.
Change your media:
·
If
a prospect has not responded to a call you made within 5 - 8 business days,
email them.
·
Everyone
has his or her own preferred way to communicate. Find out which communication tool is easier
for the prospect.
·
Do
not be surprised if social networking sites become places to communicate.
Prospects that go silent:
·
Whether
in voicemail or email, when you are ready to write an uncommunicative prospect
off, let the prospect know that this will be the final attempt you make to
reach them. Try something like:
"I noticed that it's been X weeks since we last spoke, and I'm assuming
that is because you are no longer interested in our product. That is OK; I understand that we are not a
fit for everyone. The last thing I want
is to become a follow-up pest! If you
are still interested, you can reach us at 239-599-8408. If I do not hear from you, then I will assume
that you are moving ahead in a different direction, and I will not call again
to interrupt. I wish you all the best on
your project, and thank you for considering us”.
If the prospect is still interested, this may
result in a quick return call or contact. If it does not, you have at least
achieved an understanding that you are not in the running this time.
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