Successful “Cold Calling”
I’ve been watching a debate on LinkedIn about “getting past” the PA to sell a product or service. PAs are “gatekeepers” for their bosses and are there to ensure that they aren’t distracted from running the business. Cold sales calls are a distraction.
There were two sides: one that viewed the PA as a barrier or
obstacle; the other that viewed them as an ally to be won over, as someone who could
point you in the right direction. Which
side do you think would be more likely to “get past”?
Selling is about identifying,
understanding and then responding to a customer’s needs.
If your product/service doesn’t respond to those needs then no matter
how good it is, it won’t sell. The PA
will tell you politely (or firmly, depending on how “pushy” you are) that they
aren’t interested.
The problem is, your product may actually be right for the organisation, but you
haven’t taken the time to find out why.
When medieval armies wanted to take a castle, they could
either:
·
Storm it (at great cost in lives and equipment)
without any guarantee that they would be successful, OR:
·
Reconnoitre, identify weaknesses (problems),
identify opportunities, undermine the foundations, send in spies, win people
inside over and then enter with less/no resistance.
Getting in to see a prospective client is no different
(although I would avoid adopting a “siege mentality”). In my experience, you’re more likely to
progress if you follow a few simple steps:
Show interest in your
prospect (reconnoitre). They
have problems and need solutions. Your job is to find out what the problems
are. To do this, you need to:
Do your research (identify potential problems). It’s amazing how much information you can
find online. If it’s a small
organisation with a small internet profile, there may be ways of asking people
in the community, or even by acting as a “mystery shopper” (I’ve done this to
test a client’s ability to respond to customer enquiries).
Ask Questions (win people over/make allies). Questions form the basis of your
research. Make them a mixture of
“closed” (designed to elicit a “yes/no” response) and “open” questions
(designed to elicit longer, descriptive answers). Have your list of questions ready,
particularly if you’re meeting face-to-face.
Listen (win people over/make allies). Your prospect will tell you as much by what
they don’t say as by what they do
say. Listen more than you talk; when you
do talk, make sure that it’s to ask another question, clarify a response, or
show you understand. Give the person
time to talk. We recently decided not to use a particular estate agent to
sell our house because he wouldn’t stop talking. If that was how he treated us, what would he
do to potential buyers?
Win allies (establish trust).
People realise quickly that they’re being viewed as a potential
“target”. If they feel that this is how
you view them, can they really trust you?
Once you’ve done your research to identify your prospect’s
potential needs, call the PA, explain who you are and why you’re calling. Be brief,
be relevant, be to the point. No one likes a
waffler or time-waster. Have your “script” ready, but try not to sound like
you’re reading it. If they sound
interested or want to hear more, tell them.
Make sure that your message is strong.
Next, ask for their
help (people love being asked for help) to establish to whom your offering
is interesting and to whom you should speak (quite often, it may not be the GM
or CEO).
Expect to be asked, “Do you have a website?” or, “Can you
send something in writing?” Agree to do
this and ask if you can call once they’ve had time to look at your proposal,
brochure or website (say in 1 week). You
now have your “invitation to come in”.
It’s up to you to convince.
I have spent more than half my life working in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With more than 20 years in the world financial services industry running different service, operations and lending businesses, I started my own Performance Management Consultancy and work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email . My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Customer Care, Productivity, Selling
posted by William Martin @ 17:38
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