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The perfect sales call

Written by: Ross Fattori

Article Overview: 15 things to consider when making sales calls

The perfect sales call

I don’t believe in the perfect sales call. If you do believe there is such an animal, then you’re probably an amateur salesperson or a mediocre one at best.

The best salespeople I know are always learning how to conduct better sales calls. This quest for perfection reminds me of quote by Anthony J. D’Angelo, noted author and personal development guru. He once said: “Become addicted to constant and never-ending self-improvement.”

I’ve been selling for more than 22 years and I’ve been fairly successful at it. But even after all these years, I’m still learning how to master the art of selling. Every sales call I make gives me an opportunity to improve some aspect of the selling process.

Here are 15 points that should be part of any successful sales call.

1. Identify the person who makes the buying decisions. A failure to identify the right individual will lead to a lot of wasted time, frustration and (possibly) embarrassment.

2. Have a specific reason to call. It could be to introduce yourself and your company. It could be promote a special offer. Whatever the reason, narrow your focus and don’t call for the sake of calling.

3. Establish a friendly, trustful rapport. I’ve always been interested in people and business. When you take a sincere interest in someone’s job and career, he’ll be more willing to share information.

4. Never make your pitch right away. Get to know your prospect first and try to establish some common ground. Find a topic related to your prospect’s business or personal life to discuss, before moving onto what you’re selling.

5. Take notes. Our memories are never as reliable as written words. Making notes achieves two things: It helps you to keep track of salient points that are discussed, and it tells the customer that you take the conversation seriously.

6. Never slag a competitor. During a sales meeting, all kinds of subjects are bound to come up in conversation, including comments about competitors. Even if your customer bad mouths a competitor, don’t follow suit. Casually change the subject.

7. Be honest about what you do and what you know. If your prospect asks a question that you don’t know, admit it and say you’ll find out.

8. Establish the value and benefits of your product before discussing price. Price should be the last thing that comes up in conversation. Price is always important, but it’s not the only reason people buy from you.

9. Tell a story – don’t recite facts & stats. The art of salesmanship boils down to storytelling more than anything else. Stories compel the listener’s attention. Facts and stats are boring.

10. Never toss around facts or numbers that you’re not sure of. I once gave a verbal quote to a prospective customer, a quote which was considerably lower than the actual quote I submitted the next day. The customer was not pleased, and I didn’t get the order.

11. Respect your prospect’s time. If you are given 15 minutes, then keep your meeting to 15 minutes. If a prospect wants to extend the meeting, that’s fine. But tell her that you appreciate the extra time and thank her for it when the meeting is finished.

12. Ask for the sale. During most of my sales calls, the prospective customer will decide for himself if he wants to buy my marketing services. Rarely do I have to actually ask for the sale. But never be afraid to do just that.

13. Thank your prospect for his/her time. Time is a precious commodity that’s in short supply. When a prospect agrees to see you, make sure that you thank him/her for taking the time to meet with you.

14. Analyze the sales call after you leave. Did you sound confident enough? Was your prospect really interested in your product? Did your presentation waver at any point? Did any questions arise which you couldn’t answer? Could you have phrased that point any better? These are the types of things that you need to ask yourself after every sales call.

15. Follow up. A follow-up email after the meeting is a nice gesture. The email could be a quick thank you, or it could be a short summary of the points that were discussed.

Related Articles
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  Setting Call Objectives
  7 Key Simple Points to Turn Ineffective Sales Scripts to Effective Ones to Increase Sales
  All storms are perfect
  The simple truth to increasing sales; follow up, follow up, follow up!

Article Tags: 22 years, common ground, competitor, d angelo, embarrassment, frustration, guru, mouths, narrow your focus, perfect sales, personal development, personal life, sake, salespeople, salesperson, salient points, self improvement, share information, special offer, successful sales



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