Selling on the Telephone Part 2
Selling on the Telephone Part 2
How to Deal with Gatekeepers
It is important to remember what screeners are paid to do. Basically, they have two functions, to protect their managers' time and to help people. When talking with gatekeepers remember these two key areas. Build credibility and sound authoritative with gatekeepers. Sound like a CEO, not a sales rep. Express the benefits you will bring their boss. Convert the screener into an advocate for you because of the value you will bring to their company. This will make the screener look good!
Be honest with screeners and ask them for help. Many will be happy to offer advice on how to get through, and help you identify the decision-maker. Ask a few brief questions; they have more calls to answer. Finally, if a difficult screener will not work with you, call before or after hours. Oftentimes, the decision-maker will pick up the phone when the screener has left for the day.
Dealing with Voice Mail
Voice mail is the best, and the worst, thing to happen to sales people in the last 20 years. It is a fact of life in selling and must become a positive tool in your sales efforts. Remember, trust is low in your first few contacts with customers. Prepare a voice mail presentation that clearly communicates how you can add value. Be professional, confident and honest. Do not use dishonest tactics such as bait and switch to lure people into returning your call. Most people will not return voice mail messages, unless there is value. Always leave a message that adds value. Do not call too often; once per week maximum.
Do not wait for people to call you back. You should take the initiative and call them. A recent survey found that we receive over 200 communications everyday in the workplace. Your voice mail message is one of 200 communications for the day! Your call must add value. Let the client know you will be calling again in your message. Mention referrals or people that you may have in common.
Keep accurate records and track how many calls are returned. Modify your scripts to maximize your returned calls. If voice mail does not work, try other options. Never give up because voice mail messages are not returned.
Prepare a Script
You must have a script to effectively sell on the phone. The script is not read word-for-word; it is presented in a manner that consistently gets your message across. Do not wing it. Important items will be forgotten. Make a note of what works and use it again. Modify the script as you go. Focus on the direct value-added benefit of what you are selling.
Scripts are very important in the early stages of selling a new product or service. Over time, the information will flow more easily and the "script" will be memorized. Match your presentation to the mood and feel of the customer. Include in your script probing questions, trial closes and responses to objections.
Follow-up and Persistence are Key
Do not stop calling back until you have a decision or people ask you not to call again. Telephone selling is a numbers game. The more calls you make the closer you are to the next sale. Prospecting is often best performed over the phone, and in today's competitive environment there are times when it is necessary to make 100+ calls a day. If customers tell you this is a bad time, ask when it would be a good time and call back at that time. Ask for referrals from buyers and those that turn you down and do not take rejections personally.
How to Handle Tele-Sales Burnout
If you feel burnout coming, take a break. Pace yourself. Make calls in short spurts of 45 minutes to an hour. If a break doesn't work, then search within yourself, because professional selling may not be for you. In fact, telephone selling is not for everyone, however successful sales people, and business people for that matter, must be able to communicate effectively and sell their ideas or products over the phone.
There is much more to telephone selling. These are a few of the critical fundamentals. Keep on dialing, that next call could be the sale that makes your year!
Selling on the Telephone Part 2 - To learn more about this author, visit Thomas Young's Website.
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As reviewed in part one, telephone selling is in a boom. It is very common to find sales and marketing managers growing their telephone sales team. Telephone selling has proven to be a very effective sales channel, if used properly. Here are a few more tips on becoming successful at telephone sales.
How to Deal with Gatekeepers
It is important to remember what screeners are paid to do. Basically, they have two functions, to protect their managers' time and to help people. When talking with gatekeepers remember these two key areas. Build credibility and sound authoritative with gatekeepers. Sound like a CEO, not a sales rep. Express the benefits you will bring their boss. Convert the screener into an advocate for you because of the value you will bring to their company. This will make the screener look good!
Be honest with screeners and ask them for help. Many will be happy to offer advice on how to get through, and help you identify the decision-maker. Ask a few brief questions; they have more calls to answer. Finally, if a difficult screener will not work with you, call before or after hours. Oftentimes, the decision-maker will pick up the phone when the screener has left for the day.
Dealing with Voice Mail
Voice mail is the best, and the worst, thing to happen to sales people in the last 20 years. It is a fact of life in selling and must become a positive tool in your sales efforts. Remember, trust is low in your first few contacts with customers. Prepare a voice mail presentation that clearly communicates how you can add value. Be professional, confident and honest. Do not use dishonest tactics such as bait and switch to lure people into returning your call. Most people will not return voice mail messages, unless there is value. Always leave a message that adds value. Do not call too often; once per week maximum.
Do not wait for people to call you back. You should take the initiative and call them. A recent survey found that we receive over 200 communications everyday in the workplace. Your voice mail message is one of 200 communications for the day! Your call must add value. Let the client know you will be calling again in your message. Mention referrals or people that you may have in common.
Keep accurate records and track how many calls are returned. Modify your scripts to maximize your returned calls. If voice mail does not work, try other options. Never give up because voice mail messages are not returned.
Prepare a Script
You must have a script to effectively sell on the phone. The script is not read word-for-word; it is presented in a manner that consistently gets your message across. Do not wing it. Important items will be forgotten. Make a note of what works and use it again. Modify the script as you go. Focus on the direct value-added benefit of what you are selling.
Scripts are very important in the early stages of selling a new product or service. Over time, the information will flow more easily and the "script" will be memorized. Match your presentation to the mood and feel of the customer. Include in your script probing questions, trial closes and responses to objections.
Follow-up and Persistence are Key
Do not stop calling back until you have a decision or people ask you not to call again. Telephone selling is a numbers game. The more calls you make the closer you are to the next sale. Prospecting is often best performed over the phone, and in today's competitive environment there are times when it is necessary to make 100+ calls a day. If customers tell you this is a bad time, ask when it would be a good time and call back at that time. Ask for referrals from buyers and those that turn you down and do not take rejections personally.
How to Handle Tele-Sales Burnout
If you feel burnout coming, take a break. Pace yourself. Make calls in short spurts of 45 minutes to an hour. If a break doesn't work, then search within yourself, because professional selling may not be for you. In fact, telephone selling is not for everyone, however successful sales people, and business people for that matter, must be able to communicate effectively and sell their ideas or products over the phone.
There is much more to telephone selling. These are a few of the critical fundamentals. Keep on dialing, that next call could be the sale that makes your year!
Selling on the Telephone Part 2 - To learn more about this author, visit Thomas Young's Website.
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
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Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained over 1000 Staging Diva Graduates worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular ebooks made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide and Portfolio Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
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Jay Kubassek(Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek) In five years, Canadian-born entrepreneur Jay Kubassek went from selling mufflers at a Midas franchise to revolutionizing Internet marketing with the 2004 launch of CarbonCopyPRO, a online marketing education company, now worth over $20 million with customers in over 160 countries.
As an independent film producer, his upstart film fund Aliquot Films is currently producing a films with Spike Lee and Abel Fererra (starring Ethan Hawke and Dennis Hopper.)
Jay's entrepreneurial spirit is irrepressible. He’s the owner of five companies, a professional speaker and trainer, international real estate developer/investor, extreme sport enthusiast and emerging philanthropist. Jay resides in NYC with his wife Jamie, son Milo and dog Cooper. Visit Jay's official website: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website |
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