May 17th, 2012
Can’t you tell when somebody wants something from you? I certainly can. And it usually feels inconvenient and intrusive. So you can understand, then, why your potential sales clients will often run for cover when your sales call is only about “making the sale.”
Most people sense that sales calls are self-serving to the person calling. You can almost hear the unspoken thought, “You want something, right? Otherwise why would you be calling?” This triggers almost immediate resistance.
For sales calling to be done in a non-intrusive way, we must shift the perception away from “you want something,” into “you are being helpful.” When our sales calls do not feel intrusive, people naturally are more open to talking with us.
To be perceived as helpful, we must actually be helpful. If we try to use “being seen as helpful” as just another sales technique, people will sense our hidden agenda and react with suspicion. Be sincere in your sales calling approach and show a genuine desire to help the other person.
Focusing on being helpful takes us away from the traditional sales calling mindset. In the old sales calling mindset, we talk about ourselves and our product or service. In this new sales calling approach, we’re focusing on potential clients and what may be helpful to them.
Until next time,
Keep calling and keep it conversational…
Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game, makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets even the sales gurus don’t know. To receive your 10 free audio mini-lessons visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
May 16th, 2012
Selling scripts are designed to be linear and step by step so you can move cold calls in the direction you want them to go. From the traditional cold calling point of view, that direction is toward a “yes.” Because if you don’t get a “yes” at the beginning of the cold call, you’re not “selling.” But that’s the biggest problem with scripts. They give you only one path to follow.
If you can start a conversation that triggers a “What do you mean?” response from your potential client, then you’ll find you can explain yourself in a natural way. It creates a two-way dialogue, which in turn lets you learn what you need to find out. You flow with the conversation without feeling you’re getting off-track.
Until next time,
Keep calling and keep it conversational…
Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game, makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets even the sales gurus don’t know. To receive your 10 free audio mini-lessons visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
May 15th, 2012
Can’t you tell when somebody wants something from you? I certainly can. And it usually feels inconvenient and intrusive. So you can understand, then, why your potential sales clients will often run for cover when your sales call is only about “making the sale.”
Most people sense that sales calls are self-serving to the person calling. You can almost hear the unspoken thought, “You want something, right? Otherwise why would you be calling?” This triggers almost immediate resistance.
For sales calling to be done in a non-intrusive way, we must shift the perception away from “you want something,” into “you are being helpful.” When our sales calls do not feel intrusive, people naturally are more open to talking with us.
To be perceived as helpful, we must actually be helpful. If we try to use “being seen as helpful” as just another sales technique, people will sense our hidden agenda and react with suspicion. Be sincere in your sales calling approach and show a genuine desire to help the other person.
Focusing on being helpful takes us away from the traditional cold calling mindset. In the old sales calling mindset, we talk about ourselves and our product or service. In this new cold calling approach, we’re focusing on potential clients and what may be helpful to them.
Until next time,
Keep calling and keep it conversational…
Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game, makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets even the sales gurus don’t know. To receive your 10 free audio mini-lessons visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
May 14th, 2012
Sales pressure is a mighty saboteur. And it comes in all shapes, sizes, and flavors. Beginning any conversation with the anticipation of a sale puts the whole conversation under pressure. This doesn’t normally create good outcomes. It usually triggers pressure, resistance, and tension.
People have received so many calls with such a strong focus on sales that they respond in a defensive manner to any sales calls at all. If you can release your expectations while making a cold call, you’ll diffuse the underlying tension that comes with sales pressure. And you’ll be surprised how often others will welcome talking with you.
Most of us truly believe that our product or service can help others, so we assume that anyone who fits the profile of a potential client should buy what we have to offer. Isn’t that one of the first things we learn in our sales training?
But this is a recipe for disaster when it comes to cold calling. When we make a call assuming someone will be interested, we’ve automatically moved into expectations. No matter how well camouflaged they are, sales expectations block the flow of natural conversation and put pressure on the other person.
So move away from making any assumptions when making cold calls. After all, how much sense is it to have assumptions about someone you’ve never spoken with? How much can you possibly know about their problems, issues, needs, budget, or other key information?
If you approach your calls from a place of genuine interest rather than expectations, you’ll diffuse any sense of sales pressure. The other individual will relax and the interaction will flow naturally.
Until next time,
Keep calling and keep it conversational…
Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game, makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets even the sales gurus don’t know. To receive your 10 free audio mini-lessons visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
May 13th, 2012
Typically, collection agencies call companies to see if they can be hired to collect invoices that are unpaid. They usually talk about their services as opposed to making their sales calling focus on the problem.
The client is looking to bring in more revenue from invoices that aren’t paid. So an approach might be, “Maybe you can help me out for a second?” The reply is once again, “Sure, how can I help you?”
“I’m just calling to see if your company is still having issues with unpaid invoices.” And the response probably will be, “Well, yeah, we are. Who’s this?”
You can then respond in a very relaxed tone, “This is John. I’m with XYZ Collection Agency. I’m just calling to see if you’d be open to some new ideas on how to better solve that problem.”
Until next time,
Keep calling and keep it conversational…
Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game, makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets even the sales gurus don’t know. To receive your 10 free audio mini-lessons visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
May 12th, 2012
Avoid changing who you are when you make your cold call. There’s no need to be on “stage” or sound enthusiastic. Just be your everyday relaxed self, as if you’re calling a friend. People know when you’re being genuine, and when you’re not.
Set aside the traditional phrases and strategies calculated to win a sale. Simply be who you are, interested in your potential client’s point of view. This will help get you back to the cold calling basics of treating potential clients like human beings rather than commodities. Your being natural opens the gateway to real human-to-human connection, which builds trust.
So, by being natural, you’re also bringing integrity back into selling. When you’re not playing a role, you’re working with the other person to build a sincere conversation.
Until next time,
Keep calling and keep it conversational…
Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game, makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets even the sales gurus don’t know. To receive your 10 free audio mini-lessons visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
May 11th, 2012
You can diffuse underlying cold calling pressure within any conversation by focusing first on whether you are a good fit. Invite the other person to focus on this with you. And determine together whether a good business relationship might genuinely be possible.
When our honest objective is not to make a sale but rather discover the truth of the situation, we have released expectations. The key is to offer options, so the person we’re talking with doesn’t feel pressure from us. This would only trigger the defensive reactions we’re trying to avoid.
So allow the conversation to have a natural sense of rhythm. Define mutual interest before launching into a description of your solution to a problem you probably know very little about at this point.
The person will almost always respond by saying “Sure. How can I help you?” You’ve now diffused any immediate cold calling pressure. You’re being genuine and not using the canned phrases that every other salesperson is using. You’ve gotten rid of the usual initial pressure and tension that comes along with sales expectations. Releasing your expectations to avoid conveying a sense of sales pressure get you better results in the long run. Potential clients become more interested and involved as a result, and also much more truthful about where they stand.
Until next time,
Keep calling and keep it conversational…
Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game, makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets even the sales gurus don’t know. To receive your 10 free audio mini-lessons visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
May 10th, 2012
Focus on simply opening the conversation rather than trying to control it, so that potential clients feel comfortable telling you the truth about their situation. We’ve been taught for too long that we have to control the process. We never stop to think that our cold calling scripts make it impossible for us to be flexible in how we communicate.
Does surrendering your use of a script seem scary? But when you are able do this, you can begin to engage total strangers on the phone in ways that feel as comfortable as calling a friend. Yes, it’s possible, and don’t let anyone tell you it’s not.
Until next time,
Keep calling and keep it conversational…
Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game, makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets even the sales gurus don’t know. To receive your 10 free audio mini-lessons visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
May 9th, 2012
If you’re already convinced in your own mind that they should be a fit, a certain amount of pressure has already started before the conversation has really even begun. The last thing you want is to introduce this into the conversation. So rather than moving into a sales presentation immediately, maintain the natural flow of interaction instead.
You can diffuse underlying sales pressure within any conversation by focusing first on whether you are a good fit. Invite the other person to focus on this with you. And determine together whether a good business relationship might genuinely be possible.
When our honest objective in your cold call is not to make a sale but rather discover the truth of the situation, we have released expectations. The key is to offer options, so the person we’re talking with doesn’t feel pressure from us. This would only trigger the defensive reactions we’re trying to avoid.
Until next time,
Keep calling and keep it conversational…
Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game, makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets even the sales gurus don’t know. To receive your 10 free audio mini-lessons visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
May 8th, 2012
How can we make cold calls “work” when we’re talking to someone we haven’t met, about something they may not need? Well, it’s really simple. First we look at how to relate to them rather than hoping they’ll relate to us and our solution.
When we approach cold calling with a question about what their needs are, potential clients respond much more readily to the idea of talking with us.
Until next time,
Keep calling and keep it conversational…
Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game, makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets even the sales gurus don’t know. To receive your 10 free audio mini-lessons visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
|
|
