Many of the strategies that we engage in today, whether in our thinking as well as in our actions, are often counterintuitive to what we may believe would be the solution to achieving our goals and objectives; especially as it relates to cold calling and prospecting for new business.

Here’s a sample of the top paradoxes of prospecting that make prospecting so challenging. However, once these paradoxes are woven into your thinking, you’ll notice how these contradictions will provide you with a competitive edge that no other marketing piece, feature or benefit of your product or service could even come close to.

1. You want the sale (appointment, demo) but you must detach from the outcome and have no expectation, since the sale is not the initial goal of prospecting.




2. You want the prospect to say “Yes” to taking the next step in your sales process but you have to qualify them first to see if there’s even a fit worth pursuing.




3. You want the prospect to buy from you but must learn to give value unconditionally, whether or not they buy or meet with you.




4. You want to deliver and push through your presentation but you must get the prospect’s permission even before you present.




5. You need to keep your eye on your objective, set your goals and plan your strategy for the future to determine the path to travel on but you must bring yourself back into the present moment during every prospecting conversation.




6. You want to make more money and achieve greater success in your career but you have to make the sales process about the prospect, instead of you, in order to do so.




7. You want to sell to each prospect you speak with but need to qualify them to see if you even want them as a customer. (Remember, if you want to build a business or career you hate, just find the people to work with who you just can’t stand.)

Lets face it. You and I both know that the ultimate objective of your prospecting efforts is to sell more and boost your income. However, to achieve this goal, it’s just not where you are going to focus your energy and thoughts.

If you can understand and embrace these paradoxes, you now have the opportunity to respond to each prospect in a healthier, more productive, and more enjoyable way.

Quite often when we think of qualifying a prospect, we believe this process to occur earlier on in the relationship. However, the qualifying process can take on many forms. Here are three different strategies you can incorporate into your prospecting efforts as it relates to qualifying your prospects at a much deeper and more rewarding level. You’ll notice new selling opportunities right in front of you that you never knew existed before.

#1 – Learn from Each Call – Conduct Valuable Research

For those calls where you feel you’ve given it your best effort and you’re just not getting anywhere:

“I do apologize for the intrusion as well as my approach. I can understand how people are a bit skeptical of a cold call. Quite frankly, so would I. May I ask, when making a decision on what [venders to choose, products to buy, services to use], how do you go about gathering your information? This way, if I ever get a second chance to speak with you, I can honor your decision making process and hopefully connect with you in a way that you are more comfortable.”

OR

“What would have made you more receptive to my call today?”

#2 – Prospect Your Prospects

For those prospects who may simply not be a fit, yet may know people who are:

“Mr. Prospect, thanks again for taking the time to speak with me today. I’ve certainly enjoyed our conversation. Based on what you are currently doing, it seems that our product is not a good fit for you. However, I hope our conversation reinforced what a great job your current vender is doing for you.

While there may not be anything I can provide you that would make a measurable difference in comparison to what you are doing now, maybe there’s another way we can work together. In your line of work, I’m sure you run across other people who have shared similar challenges that you had and might be looking for a better solution. If you know someone who is always looking out for ways to do things better and who you feel could benefit from our product, would you be comfortable referring them to me?”

Then, continue with: “That sounds great. Then may I ask who you know that would be a good candidate for our service?”

3 – Get Permission to Follow Up and Prospect Them

For those prospects who may now be in your pipeline and need follow up to insulate them from your competition, while keeping your finger on their buying cycle and when they may be ready to buy:

“Mr. Prospect, thanks again for your time today. Before we rap up this conversation, I’ve noticed that in the past, when I have attempted to reconnect with someone months after our first contact, many things have transpired. Changes in their position, in their company, or in their life often have tendency to divert even the best-laid plans. Since there are so many things that can happen in two months, I was hoping that I could stay in contact with you without stepping over the line and being annoying about it. With your permission, can I contact you from time to time with updates about our product or valuable information that you may find of interest as it relates to your business?”

A monthly newsletter, a free trial, an article of interest, a great new product feature or being a resource for additional needs they may have are just a few ways to deliver value during this “down time” and keep your finger on the pulse of every prospect you speak with.

With all this talk about qualifying and how to qualify a prospect, it’s critical to ensure that, especially those of you who are attempting to cold call for the first time or prospect in a more unique or innovative way than you’ve done before, you understand the difference between qualifying and judging a prospect.

To permanently eliminate any confusion, lets draw a distinction between what it means to pre-qualify and pre-judge someone, such as a prospect. If you read my cold calling book, you know that I’m a strong advocate of pre-qualifying anyone before you invest your very limited and precious time in meeting with or speaking with them. Conversely, pre-judging someone is something you do that shows up in the filter or barrier you have in your listening, which was created out of the assumptions you’ve already made about that prospect.

Here’s another way to distinguish between the two. When you are pre-qualifying someone, you are arriving at a conclusion that determines whether or not there’s a fit worth pursuing based on a defined set of criteria you uncover through the use of well crafted questions. You are solely focusing on the prospect, not yourself and what you have to gain or lose, to determine how you can add value or if there’s a match between the two of you.

Pre-judging said simply, is all about you. Here, you are relying on your faulty and costly assumptions, thoughts and beliefs to determine their needs and whether or not this prospect will potentially buy from you.

When you pre-judge someone, you’re making assumptions about them before you ask any questions or uncover many facts. Maybe you’ve judged them by their appearance, where they live, their type of business or industry, how they sound over the phone or a comment they made. In essence, you’re “already” listening and forming conclusions based on your defined set of criteria rather than the facts.

When you pre-qualify someone, you’re asking questions to uncover their specific needs and objectives, without making any assumptions. You are learning about the prospect based on the responses you hear from the questions you ask. You are being fully engaged and present in the conversation with that person, rather than in your own head forming conclusions or operating off your agenda. This way, you’re making a decision to pursue this prospect based on reliable intelligence instead of your overactive imagination. (Here’s another distinction: authentic fit vs. a pipedream. )

September is Customer Appreciation Month is for Hoover’s. In support of this, Hoover’s has identified a theme for each of the four weeks of the month which I’ll be blogging about. Here’s the schedule.

Wk 1: Prospecting (9/8-9/12)
Wk 2: Qualifying (9/15-9/19)
Wk 3: Presentation Skills and Closing the Sale (9-22-9/26)
Wk 4: Overcoming Objectives (9/29-10/3)

Now that we’re in week two, below are some qualifying questions you can use during the next conversation you have with a prospect. Remember, it’s not just any question but defined, well crafted questions that are going to act as the conduit to more qualified prospects and more sales.

While many salespeople would use questions that qualify their prospects to determine whether or not they are a viable candidate for their product or service, uncovering a true fit between you and your prospects goes much deeper.

There are actually two distinct types of questions: First, there are fact finding questions. These questions relate specifically to your industry and product or service. These fundamental questions provide you with the information you need to uncover whether this prospect is even someone who would purchase what you sell. These questions would uncover the following information. Do they currently have a similar solution you offer. Is your solution a complement or replacement to what they are currently doing? Is the company the right size, offers the right product or service, is the right industry, has the right type and number of employees?

Second, there are those decision oriented questions that move the sales process forward and motivate your prospect to make a decision or want to buy from you. These discovery questions will enable you to uncover how they go about making a purchasing decision, the cost of not making any changes as well as create the urgency for the prospect to make a decision.

Keep in mind when executed correctly, these questions will facilitate a natural conversation, rather than a “pitch.” As you read the questions that follow, remember, it’s a give and take. You’re not interrogating them, but having a conversation to learn how you can best assist them based on their goals and objectives, uncover the process they honor when making a decision and whether or not there’s even a fit.

Finally, look at these questions like a big buffet. Take what you like and what works for you and leave what you don’t.

1. Tell me about your goals and what you are looking for. What would make this relationship successful for you?


2. What are some of the benefits you are looking to gain as a result of (changing venders/providers, equipment, etc.)?


3. What is the most important factor to you in making this decision?


4. Since all of my customers have their own unique needs I want to make sure I tailor the information that I will share with you around what is appropriate for you. Just so I don’t sound repetitive, what do you already know about our company? OR How familiar are you with the types of products and options that are out there in the industry?


5. Is what you are currently doing/using generating the results you’re looking for? How is it working for you?


6. What else are you looking to accomplish if you were to change venders/providers?


7. What would you need to know about us that would confidently make us your first choice? What are you looking for in the company you choose to work with? What is important to you? How do you decide on who to use? Based on what criteria?


8. What information can I provide that would give you the peace of mind in knowing that we are the right company for you?


9. Did you have a good experience with (your current service provider, etc.)? Any bad ones?


10. Is that the only other option you’re still considering?


11. I want you to know that whether or not you choose us, I want to make sure that you have all of the information you need to make the best decision. So how this decision is typically made?


12. Who else is typically involved in this decision?


13. When are you planning on making this decision?


14. How long have you been thinking about making this change?


15. How do you normally go about making a decision like this? What’s the process?

Decision Oriented Questions

1. If you could eliminate three of your biggest problems, headaches, or stresses as they relate to [STATE SERVICE/TASK] what would they be? (If there were three problems that you would want to see resolved with your current service provider what would they be?) (Ineffective solution, frustration, stress, etc.)


2. How does this (current problem, headache) affect you and your life? (Tie in the challenges they are experiencing to their position. What’s their personal cost as a result of these challenges?)


3. If you don’t make any changes, then what do you think it’s going to cost you over time? (What is it going to cost you by not changing? What additional opportunities do you think you’re letting pass by? How will this affect your bottom line?


4. Do you think there are opportunities you may miss out on by not changing? What cost do you incur by keeping things the way they are?)

Do you have a sales team of fearless prospectors? There’s not a company out there who can afford to have their top prospectors, hunters and rainmakers become a little gun-shy when looking to attract and develop new business.

So, are you aware of the limiting thinking you may be harboring towards cold calling and your prospects? When salespeople resist cold calling, a typical response from many sales managers is to provide additional training, role-playing, a revised presentation, or more qualified prospects to call on as the solution to improving cold calling results and productivity.

Granted, salespeople do report an increased level of confidence and a decrease in call reluctance when they have been provided with the right tools, processes, and systems. Unfortunately, these tactics don’t always eliminate the anxiety or level of resistance that salespeople experience when cold calling.

Perhaps the real issue is not tapping into the source of cold calling reluctance. Fixing the symptom without understanding the true source of the problem only results in a temporary solution.

Instead of focusing on strategies that only address the symptom, explore the source of your anxiety to permanently overcome the fear and resistance to cold calling; your beliefs surrounding cold calling.

Cold Calling Isn’t a Dirty Word

When I ask salespeople about their feelings or attitude towards cold calling, I hear the following responses. Compare your list to the following common responses:

Conversely, when I ask salespeople what they love about cold calling, what I get is complete silence.

Whatever you assume or believe about cold calling, your prospects, yourself, selling, and your career is exactly what you’ll manifest in your life.

I know this may challenge traditional wisdom and your current beliefs as well as stretch your perception and point of view. However, if you’re looking for extreme results, then it calls for extreme thinking and not just a change in what you do and how you do it. With the business community continually evolving, change is critical.

Salespeople have tendency to exploit all of the reasons why they don’t like cold calling or why they won’t succeed at cold calling. However, have you ever taken the time to develop the reasons why you will succeed?

To make this real for you, if you believe that cold calling is, “Forcing someone to accept something they don’t want, intrusive, annoying, manipulative, a waste of time, intimidating, scary, something I hate being subjected to myself, and so on,” that’s exactly what you’ll continue to experience every time you cold call.

If you believe that all prospects are a certain way (uninterested, shoppers, rude, are only concerned with price) then how do you think you are going to approach cold calling and deliver your presentation, whether you realize it or not?

Think about the type of prospect that you are going to be attracting and the kind of objections you’ll be hearing? Based on your current assumptions surrounding cold calling, prospects and selling, every new experience will now become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The Joy of Cold Calling

To combat this, consider challenging these assumptions and replacing them with healthier ones that would better serve you. For example, I love (or like) to cold call because:

1. Cold calling is informative. It lets the prospect know where they can locate the best product/service they need.


2. Cold calling is beneficial. I can share all the incredible advantages of my product/service with the people who can benefit from it most.


3. Cold calling is a way to genuinely deliver value, educate my prospects, serve people, and improve people’s lives, regardless of whether or not I make the sale.


4. Cold calling enables me to become a prospect’s trusted expert or advisor so that they can make the best purchasing decision.


5. Cold calling is a way to prevent people from making potentially costly mistakes that result from purchasing the wrong product/service or using a company that may not effectively fill their needs.


6. Cold calling makes it possible to earn the business of more prospects who I wouldn’t have the opportunity to connect with otherwise. The more I cold call, the more I sell. The more I sell, the more happy customers I have.

When working with different sales teams, I always find it interesting that some salespeople attract the difficult customers. They then find themselves in a position where they have to negotiate price, have more cancellations or returns, or have to deal with prospects that want to review three separate proposals before making a purchasing decision.

Conversely, there are other salespeople who seem to effortlessly generate the best leads and get the desirable, loyal customers and repeat business.

This is not a coincidence. At some point, you need to ask yourself, “What role is my attitude playing in this? How is my thinking affecting my performance?” Once you can identify your current limiting beliefs surrounding cold calling, I’m sure you will see the answers to these questions staring you in the face.

Here two final solutions to be mindful of when attempting to connect with your desired prospect.

Strategy #6: Get On Their Calendar

If you happen to be calling on a prospect that you have connected with in the past who has an assistant, try this approach. “Hi Jane, Keith Rosen here from Profit Builders. Mary and I have been playing the longest game of phone tag in history. If you have her calendar handy, can you please help me by scheduling in a five minute block of time that works for her so that I can answer her question regarding your sales training initiative?” You’ve now succeeded in scheduling a time to call a prospect when you know they are available and are expecting your call.

Strategy #7: The Back Door Approach

Here are a few more innovative ways to connect with your prospects that don’t require speaking to the concierge.

Call Before or After Hours: Call before or after a live person begins to answer incoming calls. Many businesses today have an automated voice mail system when the office is closed. The intention here is to get into their voice mail system and listen for the prompt that asks you to “Please spell out the person’s last name.” Once you do this, the voice mail system will often tell you the prospect’s direct extension before transferring your call. Now, when you call back during normal business hours, you can ask the concierge to “Connect you to extension 2345 please.” In addition, if you want to circumvent the concierge who refuses to patch you through to their voice mail, calling before or after hours provides you with the opportunity to leave a message with your prospect.

Return Receipt: This approach comes in very handy. When sending out an e-mail to a prospect, use the “return receipt request” option in the software you use to manage your e-mails. If the prospect opens your e-mail and sends a receipt, you not only know that they received your e-mail, but you also know when they have received it. This way, as opposed to trying to track down a prospect when they are at their desk, or checking their mobile device, you know exactly when to call on them, since they are now checking your e-mail! Obviously, this strategy only works if you are in front of your computer often enough to retrieve your e-mails as they are sent.

In an effort to combat market conditions, I’ve noticed an increase in cold calling activity within many organizations regardless of industry. Here are some solutions to be mindful of for you to use when you run into the barrier that may prevent you from connecting with your desired prospect. The elusive gatekeeper.

Strategy #4: Ask for Help

Now that you have the prospect’s name, you begin the initial steps of contacting the prospect. After several attempts, you still have not successfully connected with them.

Another avenue to revisit would be asking the concierge for help. Think about how you respond when someone asks you for help. Chances are, you do your best to help them. So, appeal to their humanity. Here’s a sample of the dialogue to use.

You: “Hi Jane, Keith Rosen here. We spoke a few weeks ago and you were kind enough to help me then. Well, here I am again in desperate need of your help. I’ve been trying to get in touch with Mary Johnson, but have not been successful in getting her to return my calls. I’m sure she is very busy and I certainly don’t want to keep filling up her voice mail with messages from me. Can you help? Any suggestions you can provide, whether it’s an alternative way to get Mary to return my call, a different way to contact her other than voice mail, or a better time that I should try to reach her would be deeply appreciated.”

You now have the opportunity to develop a relationship with the concierge and become the salesperson who gets preferential treatment that the other salespeople who are calling do not. Finally, you might find that once you ask for help, they will immediately connect you to the prospect!

Becoming friends with the concierge provides some immediate benefits that you can realize. As a matter of fact, you’ll be surprised how much insider information you can get. This includes the name of the decision-maker and their contact information, important information about the decision-maker and how to best approach and appeal to them, company politics and procedures, company status and timely news, internal changes, , initiatives, or challenges.

Connecting with them as a person rather than as an obstacle will make your cold calling efforts much less of an effort. So, acknowledge every concierge you speak with. It’s safe to say these types of calls are not the majority of calls they receive. Some are just downright hostile! After all, the concierge is often the first point of contact and in the hot seat when dealing with certain problems. With the barrage of calls that a concierge fields daily, a sincere and authentic complement goes a long way. You now have an internal advocate on your side.

Strategy #5: Work from the Top Down and the Bottom Up

Get your calls transferred over to customer service, technical support, accounting and attempt to get the intel you need from there.

In an effort to combat market conditions, I’ve noticed an increase in cold calling activity within many organizations regardless of industry. Here are some solutions to be mindful of for you to use when you run into the barrier that may prevent you from connecting with your desired prospect. The elusive gatekeeper.

Strategy #2: Ask a technical question:

Here’s another approach that would cause the concierge to happily pass you on to the person you are looking to contact. First, prepare a question that you know only the person who you are looking to contact can answer effectively.

If you sell printing or advertising, you can try this: “We’re putting some solutions together for you and wanted to know /discuss the (technical requirements for this application service.)”

Since these questions are typically ones that a concierge may not be able to answer on their own, they will often connect you directly with the decision-maker or the person in charge of that department.

Strategy #3: Use Humor

Typically, when asking for the person you want to connect with, a typical response from the gatekeeper may sound like this: May I ask what this is in reference to?”

Here’s a different way to respond:

You: “Of course! I’m a salesperson and I want to relentlessly hound them until they take my call.”

What You Have Accomplished: Lets face it. If you’re talking to a seasoned concierge, they can smell a cold call a mile away. Instead of dancing around this issue, address it head on, yet in a light and humorous way.

This brutal, honest approach will get you to the decision-maker more frequently than trying to manipulate, mislead, or sneak by the concierge. Instead, it gets right to the truth and intention of your call. Since the concierge is always on the lookout for sneaky salespeople, they will actually appreciate your approach. As such, this will diffuse the concierge’s reluctance to helping you.

Cutting right to the chase will actually catch the concierge off guard and often creates a laugh. At this point, the concierge would lower their guard and quite often connect you to the decision-maker or, at the very least, provide you with the information you need for your next call.

In an effort to combat market conditions, I’ve noticed an increase in cold calling activity within many organizations regardless of industry. Here are some solutions to be mindful of for you to use when you run into the barrier that may prevent you from connecting with your desired prospect. The elusive gatekeeper.

Think about your reaction to the word “gatekeeper.” What thoughts does it conjure up for you?

Now, think about the word “concierge.” What comes to mind? When you go to the mall and you need to find a specific store, who do you ask? The concierge. When you are staying at a hotel on vacation and are looking for directions, the hotel’s amenities, somewhere to eat or need tickets to a show, who do you ask? The concierge.

How good are you at making friends? Instead of “getting through the gatekeeper” how about “making friends with the concierge”? Now, doesn’t that just sound (and feel) better?

Consider this for a moment. The concierge secretly wants to help you. The only caveat is, you have to give them a reason to.

After all, if you try to sneak behind their back and get busted for doing so, you have succeeded in creating an adversary. Not only that but you’ve now fueled their justification as to why they need to screen all incoming calls! Now, when you need them in the future, it’s a safe bet that they probably won’t welcome you with open arms. Instead, focus on making the gatekeeper your concierge and internal advocate. Here’s how.

Strategy #1: Brutal Honesty that Complements
The old adage, “Honesty is the best policy” certainly holds true when trying to befriend the gatekeeper, I mean, the concierge. When calling to speak with your prospect or to find out exactly who the prospect is, try this approach in the following example.

You: “Hi, I can really use your help. I’m calling to speak with the person who is in charge of (software engineering/product development/ programming, etc) would that be you?”

Here’s What You Have Accomplished: Asking the concierge, “Would that be you?” or, “Are you the expert in that area?” comes across as a complement and makes the concierge feel important. As such, they are now more likely to give you the name of the contact you are looking for.

For more information or to register, click here.

I’m delivering my last public tele-seminar on Prospecting and Cold Calling this Thursday, entitled, Permission Based Prospecting. I say it’s my ‘last’ one on this subject for 2008, as my new book for managers, executives and business owners on how to transition from managing to coaching salespeople will be my focus for the rest of this year. Here’s the course description as well as the agenda for this 1 hour and 30 minute seminar:

Permission Based Prospecting™

Does this sound familiar? ‘If I could get in front of the prospect, the rest of the selling process becomes easier. It’s just getting in front of them that’s the challenge.’ The fact is most cold calling efforts are doomed from the start. Salespeople lose sales not due to a lack of effort but because they lack a prospecting system they are comfortable with and can trust to generate greater, consistent results. With more business conducted virtually and more sales being closed over the telephone, strengthening your telephone communication skills becomes essential to leveraging your competitive edge – or be left behind.

If you are prospecting the same way you have been for the last several years (including the ‘calling to check in, touch base or follow-up’ approach) or haven’t been prospecting at all, you’re simply making it easier for your competition to take away the new business you are working so hard to earn.

So, if you love to sell but hate (or don’t like) to prospect, then learn from best selling author and renowned executive sales coach Keith Rosen how to maximize your cold calling potential and boost your income by learning how to get in front of the right prospects in less time and create greater selling opportunities without the fear, pressure or anxiety associated with cold calling.

Agenda