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Careful who you hire. Your "phone people" project an image of how you do business. A careless comment can harm relationships that took years to build. |
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The right stuff. Even your best face to face salesperson may not take to phone prospecting. Those who combine exceptional prospecting skills (genuine friendliness...business savy...good etiquite) with an iron will to succeed (few have the stomach for "telemarketing") are hard to find. |
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Combine speed with accuracy. Use contact management software. It's the only way to make phone prospecting pay off in terms of quality calls per hour. |
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Always use a script. It's your map. It puts you in control. Without it you lose control. Have one script for cold calls. Another for follow-up calls. And keep testing ways to improve them. |
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Reach key prospects early. Morning hours are usually the best sales hour. Prospects are fresh...easier to reach...and not bogged down by the day's projects. |
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Listen...really listen! Let your prospect do most of the talking. The right script will "open the door"...revealing key facts about your prospect's business and how you can win with their business (current vendor status... price or service issues..key decision makers, etc., etc.). |
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Don't rely entirely on the phone. Follow-up letters and emails are great for building trust and winning confidence. |
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Call backs build relationships. Winning your prospect's confidence --- taking your prospect from the first cold call (when they know very little about your product or service) to having them make an informed buying decision --- seldom occurs with one or two calls. |
619-692-3110
Test My Prospecting With Your Call List
by George Clay
Marketing Direct, Inc.
A simple call list can help you find new customers and make more sales.
That's how my prospecting began for a client in Minneapolis, MN. (NOTE: This story appears in Pro Sales magazine.
My client worked in construction supply sales. He called from Minneapolis and asked about my prospecting program.
He described his market...and explained what makes his company stand out from the competition. He then faxed me a list of prospects culled from his previous sales contacts.
With a script written specifically for these prospects, I began over-the- phone cold calls from my office here in San Diego.
From my initial prospecting I learned which prospects were unhappy with current vendors...and why. To each qualified prospect, my client mailed follow-up letters explaining benefits of doing business with him.
One week later, these prospects again were contacted by phone.
Face-to-face appointments were arranged...and from these appointments opening orders and repeat business were generated.
All without me ever leaving San Diego. Everything was done by phone. And my client got all the credit! The result: Ten new name customers for my client.
The key was my client's call list. Not a big list...perhaps fifty or sixty prospects. But each one selected because my client believed they were strong prospects for future business.
He was right!