Google

3 Simple Rules For Your Next Sales Call


The other day I received a call from a telemarketer selling a website "starter kit" for small businesses. If you are reading this right now, then you undoubtedly know that I have a website. Normally, I would quickly get the telemarketer off the line so I could get back to showing people how to make more money. But this call got my attention because I thought that this might be a potential service that I could recommend to my clients. So I decided to listen to this sales pitch to evaluate the offering and the approach that the telemarketer used.

Well the rep started by going straight into a sales pitch. She was using the age-old technique of trying to complete her benefits-loaded-sales-pitch before I knew what hit me. This technique is very similar to television, radio, or print advertising where if you show your ad to enough people with a pulse, then you will eventually find a few people who actually need the service.

Instead of getting annoyed with the sales rep, I decided to have fun with the call. Once she was done with her somewhat lengthy pitch, I asked her "Do you have any idea what I even want?" Well of course, she did not because she had not asked me a single question. I could tell during her pitch that she was tense by the sound of her voice. So I started to ask her questions about the service. She answered my questions very well. I noticed by her voice that she was getting more relaxed and comfortable by my asking questions of her. I guessed that she likely was thinking that she had a buyer or a hot-prospect on the line.

Once I had asked enough questions, I told the rep that this service was not for me as I already have my own website (through the conversation, she never asked this critical, obvious question). I told her that I would keep her service in mind for clients that might need a website starter kit. I could tell that she was distressed. She tried a final closing attempt on me by pleading "Well, don't you want to at least try it out?" I said "No way - do you have any idea what a pain the a%$ changing web hosting services is?"

Lest you think of me as cruel for wasting this poor sales rep's time, I remind you that as buyers we do this to salespeople everyday when we consider making a purchase. Have you ever asked many questions of a salesperson only to go home, think over the decision, and then never buy the product? Many salespeople and entrepreneurs put up with this behavior from prospects because they exhibit this behavior themselves when making purchases.

If the seller had followed these 3 simple rules, she could have been on to the next suspect on her list, instead of wasting 20 minutes on a no-sale conversation:

  • Ask questions first to find a pain to solve. If no pain, then move one to the next suspect!
  • Don't give away free consulting. Keep your leverage until you know that the prospect is likely to buy your product or service.
  • When you find pain, leverage this to make the sale. People will pay a lot of money for the things that they really want.

    • Too many companies don't invest in the best for their sales-people. They expect you to be already trained in sales or a "natural". Well naturals aren't born, they are made. If your company isn't investing in you, then invest in yourself. People who truly make things happen, are willing to do whatever it takes to get what they want.

    © 1999-2004 Shamus Brown, All Rights Reserved.

    Shamus Brown is a Professional Sales Coach and former high-tech sales pro who began his career selling for IBM. Shamus has written more than 50 articles on selling and is the creator of the popular Persuasive Selling Skills CD Audio Program. You can read more of Shamus Brown's sales tips at http://Sales-Tips.industrialEGO.com/ and you can learn more about his persuasive sales skills training at http://www.Persuasive-Sales-Skills.com/

    MORE RESOURCES:

    RELATED ARTICLES

    Closing That Big Sale With Conference Calling
    So you're in business. Whether it is micro, small, medium, or enterprise; you know the one key element you need to succeed in your business ? sales.
    Sales Therapy 101: Breaking Your Fear of Cold Calling
    Almost every day, visitors to my Unlock The Game? website click on my live instant-messenger chat button, which invites them to "Ask Ari a selling question."And do you know what their most common question is?Yes, you guessed it: "Is there any way I can break through or overcome my fear of cold calling?"Most of us have at least some resistance to cold calling, and some people I talk with have such a paralyzing visceral and emotional fear of cold calling that they can't even consider doing it.
    Telemarketing Tips for Direct Sales Success
    Unfortunately, the DNC legislation has many small businesses that use telemarketers a bit concerned about their choice of direct sales tactic. However, there are still many ways to have your message get into the right people's hands without annoying them.
    Control Your Sales Calls From The Start
    Sales calls that you control are what all salespeople want. I am a big believer that questioning is the most important skill for sales professionals.
    Phone Tips To Get Things Done: Professional Phone Skills
    It happens all the time, you hear someone over the telephone and you make a generalization about the person you are speaking with. It may not be fair and it is akin to judging a book by its cover, but it's true nevertheless.
    Conference Calling Evolved
    Originally the conference call was limited to businesses paying exorbitant fees to the telcos. For business, it still made sense economically because the costs were less than the travel costs involved in bringing the people together.
    K.A.R.M.A. of Phone Prospecting
    Do you ever wake up on the wrong side of the bed? Does the rest of the day just follow suit? Have you ever thought that your attitude towards the day might just be coming back to you through misfortunes and bad things through out the day?Well it happens and it is called KARMA.KARMA is defined as if you put a negative out there it will come back to you in the form of another negative.
    7 Ways to Jump Start Your Cold Calls
    Cold calling has to be one of the most feared aspects of every sales person's and business owner's day. With some important key tips, you can make cold calling painless and enjoyable and as easy as calling a friend.
    Telesales
    HEADSETS & TELEPHONESThe equipment your personnel use is important. Don't let others tell you any different.
    Overcoming Objections Over the Telephone
    In sales, one of the things you will be doing a lot of, is making phone calls. You can't escape it.
    What Level Of Telephone Sales And Customer Service Do You Provide?
    Using the telephone as an effective sales and customer service tool begins before you ever pick up the receiver to answer the telephone or make an appointment or sales call. When you reach for a ringing telephone, you need to put a smile on our faces and then greet people with the same enthusiasm you'd show them in-person.
    4 1/2 Steps for Doubling Your B2B Appointments
    Cold calling. Most people hate to do it and there is a cottage industry of people making a profit by selling ideas on how to generate business without cold calling.
    Predictive Dialers - Human Interaction Maximized
    Predictive dialers are many steps removed from their predessors, the automatic dialers of the past. Whereas automatic dialing allowed callcenter agencies to dial numbers quickly and efficiently, predictive dialing also processes and makes use of a whole range of information, linking callers to live voices every single time.
    How To Know Youre On A Winner
    The catchword today for business is flexibility.With changes in suppliers, customers, and the processes connecting them altering almost daily (or so it seems) the future clearly belongs to the organisations which can adjust to change quickly and effectively.
    3 Simple Rules For Your Next Sales Call
    The other day I received a call from a telemarketer selling a website "starter kit" for small businesses. If you are reading this right now, then you undoubtedly know that I have a website.
    No More Cold-Calling? Well, Almost...
    We do not advocate cold calling in High Probability Selling. However, cold calling is necessary at times.
    This is a Sales Call: How to Begin Prospecting Calls with Integrity
    "Hello. I'm looking for Sharon Morgen?" "Sharon DREW Morgen.
    10 Tips for Telephone Success
    The telephone is an often under-appreciated and much maligned piece of office equipment. Have you stopped to consider how much business you conduct over the telephone? These 10 tips will help you improve your telephone presence and presentations.
    7 Cold Calling Secrets Even The Sales Gurus Dont Know
    More and more e-mails are arriving in my in-box from people who hate cold calling. Here's what they're saying:? "Cold calling terrifies me.
    The Cold Calling Conspiracy
    A consipiracy exists in the world of selling. A cold calling conspiracy.