VIDEO: The Primary Objective of a Cold Call or Your Prospecting Efforts? It’s About Finding The Fit, Not Focusing On The Result
Mar 31, 2010 Cold Calling Tips, Prospecting, Cold Calling and Networking, Sales Coaching, Sales Training, Videos, cold calling, telesales
What’s the initial objective of a cold call or your prospecting and new business development efforts? Rather than focusing all of your energy on making the sale, first determine if there’s a good fit between you, your prospect, and what you are selling.
Instead of feeling that the intention of prospecting is to get a sale, provide a demonstration, submit a proposal, or schedule an appointment, the initial intention of prospecting is to determine if there’s a fit worth pursuing.
While this may sound a bit strange, closing the sale and earning the business of a prospect is not your initial goal. Instead, your primary objective is to determine whether you and your prospect are a good fit.
Take a moment and think about how this change in your attitude and mindset would change your cold calling approach as well as your experience.
While your traditional approach may be to produce a measurable result, now your primary objective is to discover whether you and your prospect are a good match and if this relationship is worth moving to the next stage of your selling process. If you feel that you constantly have to push the sales process forward, you’re not taking into consideration that the prospect may simply not be ready, let alone may not be a good fit for what you are selling. Pushing the sales process forward before a prospect is ready only creates pressure for the both of you, fostering an unhealthy relationship from the start.
By changing your thinking and your approach, you’ll now be able to focus your energy and precious time on the right prospects who are more inclined to buy from you, rather than wasting your time sending out proposals and following up with people who you have no business following up with in the first place. Filling your sales funnel with unqualified prospects does nothing for you other than cost you time when you spend it on people who are simply not a good fit for you or your product and service.
Here’s a clip produced by CanDoGo.com on how you can make this critical shift in your thinking which will result in more selling opportunities and less cold calling reluctance.
Tags: appointment setting, coaching salespeople, cold call reluctance, cold calling, prospecting, Sales Coaching, telesales
VIDEO: The Initial Objective of A Cold Call – Find The Fit Early Or Waste Precious Selling Time
Nov 20, 2009 Sales Coaching, Sales Training, Videos, cold calling, sales tips, tele-sales, telesales
Think about the intention or the end result of your prospecting efforts. Rather than focusing all of your energy on making the sale, first determine if there’s a good fit between you, your prospect, and what you are selling.
Instead of feeling that the intention of prospecting is to get a sale, provide a demonstration, submit a proposal, or schedule an appointment, the initial intention of prospecting is to determine if there’s a fit worth pursuing.
While this may sound a bit strange, closing the sale and earning the business of a prospect is not your initial goal. Instead, your primary objective is to determine whether you and your prospect are a good fit.
Here’s a video I did on cold calling that I recently produced with a great new company I’d like to introduce to you that’s offering some free and valuable advice to home businesses and career minded professionals. That company is Home Business Brains. Click on the “read more” link below for the video.
Tags: cold call, cold calling, Sales Coaching, Sales Training, telesales
When Cold Calling, How Do I Determine How Much Qualifying Is Enough?
Nov 16, 2009 Cold Calling Tips, Prospecting, Cold Calling and Networking, Sales Coaching, Sales Training, coaching salespeople, cold calling, telesales
I received the following question from a salesperson the other day who was struggling when it came to qualifying his prospects during a cold call. He was looking for an effective way to best qualify his prospects and how to avoid wasting time when meeting with the wrong ones. What follows is his initial inquiry and my response, which I felt important enough to share with you, as many salespeople seem to be struggling with this very issue today.
That is, “When cold calling, exactly how much initial qualification is enough before determining the next step in my selling process? Do I do all of my qualification up front on the phone before scheduling a face to face meeting or do I wait until I meet with the prospect and then conduct a more robust needs analysis? How do I make this determination?”
Here’s the email I received:
“Hello Mr. Rosen,
I am a salesperson selling health insurance who is currently working on my sales system. My target market is owners of small businesses. I call them and set appointments from telemarketing leads. I have a script in which I use to set the appointment and qualify them, before meeting them face-to-face. I’d be curious to know what strategy you feel is best regarding my two approaches below.
First Approach: Do minimal questioning and qualification and just set the appointment. Then at the appointment, conduct a fact finder to find out their situation and what they like or don’t about their current health insurance plan. Then, set another appointment and come back with a proposal and recommendations. I will pre-close them on the first visit.
Or is this a better this way?
Second Approach: Call and qualify them and ask them all the questions over the phone to find out their current situation on this initial phone call. Then, I will bring the proposal to the first face to face appointment, recap what we discussed over the phone, explain the plan and try and make the sale. Pretty much try and make the sale on the first face to face visit.”
Here was my response:
The answer is – BOTH. There’s always a minimal amount of non negotiable qualification that must be done before meeting with a prospect. Then, when determining how much deeper you can go in your qualification, depending upon the situation it could go either way, so let the customer decide.
The IDEAL scenario is the second one you mapped out. And it’s all in the spirit of saving you your precious and limited time following up and meeting with people who you shouldn’t be meeting with in the first place. The cost of meeting with unqualified people is compounded exponentially because you’re not only meeting with the wrong prospects but you’re now losing time that you could have invested meeting with the right ones – the ones that your competition is meeting with.
Of course, there are those situations where the prospect simply doesn’t have the time nor desire to answer all of your questions during an initial phone call and at that point, it’s going to be a judgment call on your part. So, to minimize the risk of meeting with the wrong prospects and maximize your time when meeting with the qualified ones, what I would recommend is making a list of the non-negotiable qualifying questions that must always be asked, regardless of the situation, so that you get a baseline understanding whether or not this person is even a candidate for your product or service.
Here’s a great way to handle how much qualifying you can do over the phone and how to do it in a way that would encourage the prospect to spend more time with you during this initial telephone conversation.
Simply put, let the prospect decide. After all, people want to save as much time as possible and would appreciate any opportunity to be more efficient when it comes to leveraging their time. That said, the next time you speak with a prospect over the phone, use the following approach during your initial needs analysis/qualification process.
After asking them a couple of preliminary, non negotiable questions, deliver the following message.
“Mr./Mrs. Prospect, I know you’re busy and I want to respect your time. That said, I want to share two options with you that would save you some time when deciding what solution is best for you and whether or not there’s even a fit here. We could schedule a time where I can visit with you to learn more about your business and your objectives and then at that time, schedule another meeting where we could discuss my proposed solution, or, to speed up this process and avoid scheduling another meeting, we can continue our conversation now on the phone so that at the end of this conversation, you would have a very good sense as to whether or not I can deliver more value than your current solution is providing you and if it even makes sense for us to meet face to face in the first place. Which option would work better for you at this time?”
When you give people a choice and share with them the benefit of investing a little more time with you on the phone, you’ll find that your prospects are much more willing to do so. And if you’re saying that your prospects are, “too busy to spend more time with me” or “this won’t work in my industry,” I would challenge you to re-think whether or not this is truly your prospect’s objection or a costly assumption that you’ve created in your own mind. If this new marketplace has changed the way we sell and engage with our prospects, then the old rules of how we qualify and set appointments with our prospects much be challenged as well.
This win – win saves both you and the prospect time, while ensuring that you’re meeting with more of the right prospects.
Tags: cold calling, discovery, needsd analysis, prospecting, qualifying, sales, Sales Coaching, Sales Training, selling
PODCAST: Is Cold Calling Really Dead? A View into the Mind and the Day of a Salesperson
Jul 10, 2009 Cold Calling Tips, Prospecting, Cold Calling and Networking, Sales Coaching, cold calling, podcast, sales tips, tele-sales, telesales
Listen to this podcast here.
You get to your office, sit down at your desk and open up your calendar. A concerned look sweeps over your face. “Only one appointment this week.” You look at your pipeline and get that squirmy feeling inside your gut, as you realize your pipeline is not as full as it used to be. You’re wondering where you’re going to find your next prospect.
The uncertainty begins to sweep over you. The stress starts creeping into your body, for you realize you can’t keep procrastinating making the cold calls you need to in order to book more appointments with key decision makers. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: cold call, cold calling, podcast, prospecting, selling tips, telesales
PODCAST: Crafting a Compelling Opening Statement When Cold Calling and Prospecting
Jul 10, 2009 Prospecting, Cold Calling and Networking, Sales Training, cold calling, podcast, sales tools, telesales
Listen to this podcast here.
Enough theory for a moment. People need answers; granular, tactical, “How do I do this the right way and what do I say when I finally connect with a prospect when cold calling?” type of answers.
Those proactive souls who happen to cold call me and reach me live in an attempt to generate another prospects to fill up their rapidly drying pipeline certainly deserve the acknowledgment for putting forth the effort. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: cold calling, cold calling script, opening statement, podcast, prospecting, template, tips on cold calling
Are Salespeople Asking Prospects the Wrong Questions?
Jul 1, 2009 Cold Calling Tips, Prospecting, Cold Calling and Networking, Sales Coaching, Sales Training, cold calling, sales articles, tele-sales, telesales
“Are salespeople asking their prospects the wrong questions?” As I mentioned in my last post, this was a conversation that came up while being interviewed by Geoffrey James for an article he was writing for Selling Power magazine on what managers need to do to effectively coach their sales team when cold calling.
The answer to this question? Well, it’s actually yes and no. Yes, many salespeople are asking good questions that help uncover whether or not the prospect is a fit for the product or service they are selling. Conversely, many are asking the wrong questions that drive the prospect away from you, rather than move them closer to a sale.
The real universal gap that I see after coaching and training thousands of salespeople, Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: cold calling, discovery, disqualifying, prospecting, qualifying, qualifying prospects, questions, questions that sell, Sales Coaching, sales questions, sales tips, Sales Training, telesales
The Seven Types of Prospectors – Get Your Copy of This ebook For Free Today
Jun 18, 2009 Cold Calling Tips, Communication, Prospecting, Cold Calling and Networking, Sales Coaching, cold calling, tele-sales, telesales
Download this ebook for free here.
Our new marketplace requires new strategies and a new way of thinking in order to achieve more and thrive. Here, you can access these new resources I developed specifically for salespeople and sales managers to attract more prospects, boost your sales faster and coach your sales team into sales champions so they can close more sales today.
Here’s the second in a series of new resources and ebooks I’m giving away.
The Seven Types of Prospectors
What kind of prospector are you? Although developing a unique, personalized approach to prospecting is encouraged, there are some pitfalls to be aware of and some communication styles to abandon that you may not even be aware of which will sabotage your prospecting efforts. Use this guide to uncover which of the seven types of prospectors you most closely resemble and what you can do to adjust your prospecting approach and communication style for maximum impact.
Download this ebook for free here.
Tags: books on cold calling, cold calling books, Cold Calling Tips, prospecting, Sales Coaching, sales tips, Sales Training, telesales, teleselling
Through the Eyes of a Salesperson: Is Cold Calling Really Dead? Develop a Permission Based Prospecting Strategy to Set More Appointments with Qualified Prospects
May 28, 2009 Books by Keith Rosen, Prospecting, Cold Calling and Networking, Sales Coaching, Sales Training, cold calling, sales tips, sales tools, tele-sales, telesales
Lately, I’ve been getting a high volume of calls from sales managers and their salespeople struggling to meet their sales goals. So, let me paint you a visual of the typical scenario being played out through the eyes of a salesperson; one that you may be intimately familiar with.
You’re on your way to work and during your commute, you’re thinking about what you hope to accomplish that day.
You get to your office, sit down at your desk and open up your calendar. A concerned look sweeps over your face. “Only one appointment this week.”
You look at your pipeline and get that squirmy feeling inside your gut, as you realize your pipeline is not as full as it used to be. You’re wondering where you’re going to find your next prospect.
The uncertainty begins to sweep over you. The stress starts creeping into your body, for you realize you can’t keep procrastinating making the cold calls you need to in order to book more appointments with key decision makers.
You remember what your boss told you. “Your funnel is drying up,” he says. “You’ve got to get on the phone and make more calls to your existing clients and to new prospects if you want to meet your goals.”
“Okay I can do this,” you tell yourself.
You find some people to call.
You take a deep breath and start dialing their number. “C’mon just answer the phone,” you say to yourself.
“Voice mail.” You don’t leave a message because you never get your calls returned anyway.
You dial the second number on you call list. Someone answers the phone and you hear, “Mrs. Johnson’s office, how can I help you?”
“Great, another gatekeeper,” you mutter to yourself. You’re actually caught off guard that a live person answered your call. Thirty seconds later, after your valiant, yet ineffective attempt to connect with your prospect, you hear a pleasant but well trained, “No thank you. We’re not interested.” You’re off the phone with the gatekeeper in less than one minute, as she’s been conditioned not to take unsolicited calls, especially cold calls.
You dial the third and fourth number. No luck. “More gatekeepers,” you say. “Why can’t I get past them?” you ask yourself. You start questioning if luck is actually what you really need or if there is more to cold calling than you originally thought.
“Okay one more shot.” You push yourself to dial the fifth number on your call list.
Someone picks up. Shockingly, it’s the prospect! Maybe you’ll get ‘lucky.’ And knowing that you need to open up this call with something gripping and compelling to grab this prospect’s attention to the point where they stop what they’re doing and want to engage in a conversation with you, you say, “Um, Hi. Mr. Smith? Uh, this is Chris from ABC logistics. How are you today?”
“Busy!” he says. And with that, he hangs up the phone.
Now, you’re depleted, frustrated and annoyed. You don’t understand why you’re unable to set the appointments with the prospects who you know you can help and therefore need to meet with. In a discouraging tone, you ask yourself, “Why won’t they talk to me? I know I can help them. If only they’d give me some time on the phone.”
You feel you’ve just wasted three hours of your day that you’ll never get back. In desperation, you cry out, “This cold calling thing doesn’t work for me! What else can I do to schedule meetings with more qualified prospects who can buy from me?”
And that’s when you ask yourself this toxic question which is often followed with a ‘yes’ that feeds the justification of your performance. “Is cold calling really dead?”
No, I did not have a hidden webcam secretly installed in your office, in case you’re wondering how I’ve been able to paint such a vivid picture that so closely resembles what you may be experiencing yourself. If anything, take some comfort in knowing that you are not alone and you can do something about it.
So, what is the answer? Is cold calling really dead? The answer is a resound, “Not even close.” Therefore, do not abandon cold calling! Cold calling is far from dead and I see evidence of this every day. After all, a majority of all Fortune 500 companies utilize some form of telephone prospecting every day.
Sure, I realize for many people cold calling and prospecting ranks right up there with getting their teeth pulled without the gas.
However, as an executive sales coach who has coached and trained thousands of salespeople over the years, here’s what I’ve learned very early on. It’s not that cold calling doesn’t work. Cold calling works fabulously well. It’s the way you’re cold calling that doesn’t work. In other words, consider that it’s more about your approach and cold calling strategy; what you say and how you say it – that is ineffective and what your prospects are unresponsive to.
So be careful. Most people who feel cold calling doesn’t work in actuality, have learned the wrong lesson.
For example, if I asked you to go outside and dig a ten foot deep hole with a spoon, do you learn the lesson, “Well, I guess I can’t dig holes very well” or is the real lesson; “If I had the right tools I would have been able to accomplish this goal faster, with less effort.” You see, it’s all about the tools you’re using when cold calling. Even if you handed Tiger Woods, one of the greatest golfers of all time, a pair of lefty clubs, while he still may outperform most golfers he would not be able to operate at his best, at the pinnacle of his potential, simply because he’s using the wrong tools. The same philosophy applies to your career and to cold calling.
Most salespeople sound exactly the same as every other person when calling on the same prospect, rather than develop their unique and compelling message that grabs someone’s ear to the point where they are interested in what you have to say. Why should a prospect want to hear the same approach time and time again? How can that possibly distinguish you?
So if you’re not getting the results you need, instead of abandoning a proven selling strategy, it’s time to upgrade your cold calling and follow up system. With a strong prospecting and cold calling model that is mapped out step by step; which also includes the compelling opening statement you need, the reasons why someone should listen to you in the first place (rather than opening up a call by asking for an appointment, demo, proposal, etc.), well crafted questions to determine if there’s even a fit between you and your prospect, as well as a strong voice mail and follow up strategy, you will see what a competitive edge “cold calling” can give you.
Side note: Over the last year, my cold calling book has been gaining more popularity as competition increases and the need to find more qualified prospects to fill your pipeline intensifies. So, if you’re ready to develop a permission based prospecting system that will enable you:
Here’s the link to Amazon to read all the five star reviews or you can go to my website here to learn more about this book.
Tags: appointment setting, cold call, cold calling, phone tips, prospecting, Sales Coaching, sales tips, telesales
The Anatomy of a Cold Call – The Five Critical Objectives
May 22, 2009 Prospecting, Cold Calling and Networking, Sales Coaching, sales tips, tele-sales, telesales
“What do I need to accomplish in the first few minutes of every cold call I make?” “What’s my overall objective of a cold call?” These questions rank up there as two of the top questions I’m asked. If you’ve been following my last few posts, I’ve been hyper-focused on the importance of sales benchmarking and identifying best practices.
In the spirit of simplicity, there are actually five core objectives during a prospecting conversation which I’ve listed below.
That’s it! Now ask yourself, does your system achieve these five core objectives?
Tags: cold call, coldcalling, prospecting, prospects, Sales Coaching, telesales, teleselling
Podcast: The Danger of Pre-Judging Rather than Pre-Qualifying Your Prospects and Clients
May 1, 2009 Cold Calling Tips, Prospecting, Cold Calling and Networking, Sales Coaching, cold calling, podcast, sales articles, sales tips, tele-sales, telesales
Listen to the full podcast here
In this week’s podcast I discuss the difference between prequalifying and prejudging your prospects and clients. This is a critical distinction to get because if you’re prejudging them, you’re already creating a self imposed barrier to more sales and creating more selling opportunities.
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.
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.
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 any facts.
When you pre-qualify someone, you’re asking questions to uncover their unique and specific needs without making any assumptions so that you can determine very quickly if there is in fact, an authentic fit worth pursuing.
Listen to the full podcast here.
Tags: cold calling, prospecting, sales, Sales Coaching, Sales Training, selling
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