I know you probably had to queue to make your last cold call because of all the eager beavers in your company or business fighting to use the phone. No?
OK, let's face it few of us love cold calling and there's never a queue. So what can you do to ease the pressure?
Well, you've probably heard it a thousand times, referred business is the best type of business. It's between 5 to 9 times cheaper to win. You start without having to justify your existence, battling through gatekeepers, justifying why you're calling. It's much easier to say "Bob Jones asked me to call Richard. He's expecting my call" and then get shoehorned in to speak to the boss.
But there is an art to developing referrals. In the next article I'll cover leveraging your customer relationships in the form of testimonials.
REFERRALS 1. Ask for them all the time. On cold calls, on meetings, when you sign a contract, when you deliver phase 1 of a project, when you complete a project, every quarter until the customer leaves you ...... you get the picture I'm sure.
2. Be direct, ask for them.
You: "John, I need your help but I don't know if you'd be willing to give it?"
John: "Ah go on. Ask away!"
You: "It's my fault because I've been afraid to ask before now. I'm growing my business and I want to grow it by recommendation and referral. I don't suppose you know one or two (JOB TITLE)s in (INDUSTRY) who might be struggling with (PAIN1, PAIN2, PAIN3)?"
And then wait.
They may say "no". If they do are you any worse off? But if they say "yes", may I suggest you ask him to prioritise them.
YOU: "Why did you pick Andrew?"
JOHN: "He mentioned he was frustrated with (PAIN2) when I was talking to him last week."
YOU: "And you'd pick him above Jane? Why's that?"
JOHN: "Because he's having more trouble with his people in that area than the others. I think you can help him"
YOU: "Thanks John. I don't suppose I can be very cheeky and ask you for his number could I?"
JOHN: "Happy to. Here it is"
YOU: Smiling "You couldn't call him yourself and introduce me to him could you?"
JOHN: "OK"
YOU: "You couldn't do that now could you?"
JOHN: "OK, let's give him a try"
If you know John especially well or you've done a great bit of work why not knock it up a notch!
YOU: "Before you call him, can I ask; it wouldn't make sense for you to invite him out to lunch/dinner on me, and you two can catch up for a few minutes, then you can introduce me and we can see whether there's a fit between what he needs and what I do?"
Why would you do this?
A lead on average converts approximately 10% of the time.
A warm lead "Bob, expect a call from Marcus Cauchi. I think he can help you beat the sales target issues you mentioned when we last spoke. It should be worth your while" converts approximately 30% of the time An introduction which looks like this, "Bob, I've been working with Marcus for the last 3 months. He's helped us increase our sales by 37% at the same time as helping me to drive up gross profit by nearly 86%. I think the two of you should meet because he can help you address those concerns in your business."
A warm introduction "Bob, it's been a while. I want to invite you out to dinner to catch up and to bring along someone I think you should meet. He's been working with my team for the last 3 months. He's helped us increase our sales by 37% at the same time as helping me to drive up gross profit by nearly 86%. I think the two of you should meet because you'll get on and I'm pretty sure he can help you make similar improvements in your business. What date works for you next week?". These have between a 70-90% conversion rate in my experience.
Which type of referral do you prefer?
Remember, if you don't ask you probably won't get .....
(C) Marcus Cauchi & Sandler Systems Inc 2007
SALES TRAINING LONDON Word of Mouth Selling Cheap Effective - To learn more about this author, visit Marcus Cauchi's Website.
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Marcus Cauchi
(Visit Marcus's Website)
Marcus Cauchi is London's first licensed
Sandler sales trainer. 19 years in direct
sales, he's sold physical products,
services and intangibles with varied
success. Over 16 years he left behind over
£56 million in deals he could have won,
but did because he didn't know any
better. He thought you had to qualify for
needs, present the benefits of your
solution, trial close, follow up with a
proposal or further information and the
close. He learned the hard way that when
you "pitch" a prospect lies to protect
himself. When you present and answer his
questions, he'll steal your ideas. When
you close, he'll mislead you or defer to
a higher authority (boss, wife, CFO) and
then when he's got you to document in
writing (proposals) and give away your
confidential pricing, he'll shop that
around your competitors to get the best
deal. When you follow up for a decision,
he'll give you unlimited access to his
voicemail and hide. Marcus teaches
counter intuitive selling. Average clients
increase revenues by 100-1100% in a year.
He's probably not for you though as it's
difficult and expensive.
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