Developing Professional Telemarketing Skills
is The Fastest Way To Create
Sales Leads For Your Business
But first you have to overcome
your fear of cold calling -
and that can only happen by adopting
a radically new approach to your
telemarketing.
Remember, lead generation via call centres will never compare to the results of an in-house telemarketing campaign. The secret is to unlearn some bad habits...
How to remove the dread, fear and anxiety of using the telephone in your marketing - 6 Common-Sense tips to stop selling and start winning on the phone...
Whenever I talk to any company about using the telephone as an integral part of their marketing strategy, I'm usually faced with one of two scenarios.
One, they have a telesales department who make the calls, do all the hard work, and get little results (and no recognition or thanks as a result).
Two, they have no department to do all the dirty work for them, and so make every excuse under the sun why they are too busy, or why using the telephone won't work in their specific market or circumstances, or why they don't have the right resources.
Either way, these companies are losing out on a vital and highly cost-effective part of their marketing plan. The reasons are understandable, because without the right approach, a poor telephone strategy is the most soul-destroying work anyone can do.
So let's get back to basics, and smash this fear of using the telephone, once and for all.
Get the fundamentals right
1. Remember, your prospects don't care about you, or what you know, or what your company does. They only care about themselves, and their own pressures, fears, and wants.
2. Nobody likes to be sold to, and very few people really like to sell to others. So what's the answer? DON'T SELL TO PEOPLE ON THE PHONE. Instead have conversations with them about them.
To take control of any conversation or presentation, you must be the one asking the questions. And this means that you must use a prepared script. Don't try and "wing it", and don't ignore your notes until you have made at least 50 presentations using your script.
Remember, you are not going to sell to anyone. You are simply going to have a conversation to find out whether there is any benefit to them in hearing what you have to say. You are doing them a favor by making them aware of information that has the potential to deliver significant benefits to their business.
3. POSTURE IS EVERYTHING, so don't go into the call on your knees, hoping they'll give you just a few minutes of their precious time. Use what I call "posture words" when opening prospecting calls: "depending on," "might," "maybe," "perhaps," and "possibly."
These are non-threatening words that explain you might have something of value to them, but you really need to ask questions first.
For example, "Depending on what you`re now doing with your recruitment strategy, I might have something that could potentially increase the speed of filtering your candidates, while possibly decreasing your overall recruitment costs. I`d like to ask you a few questions to see if this is something you`d like more information on."
Pre-call planning and preparation
4. Have a primary objective for each call you make. Ask yourself, and then write down the answer to the question: "What do I want them to DO as a result of this call, and what do I want to do?"
Prepare questions for your telesales call based on identifying what it is about your kind of service or product that they don't currently receive, or what kinds of results and outcomes they would ideally like to experience.
Remember, people believe more of their own words and ideas than yours, so let them verbalise the inefficiencies and frustrations they are experiencing, and let them tell you about their wants and hot buttons.
Getting through the gate-keeper
5. Treat the receptionist or assistant as you would the customer - this person determines whether or not you`ll even have a chance to speak with the prospect or buyer.
Gather as much information as you can from the person answering the phone, prior to speaking with your prospect. Busy decision makers get bored when they have to answer your basic qualifying questions. Use the "please help me" technique: "I hope you can help me. So I`m better prepared when I speak with Mr Smith, there`s probably some information you could provide me..."
Before making calls, prepare a good reason for needing to speak with the decision maker, and be prepared to sell this to the gate keeper. Remember, they`re only doing their job, and thinking to themselves: "Does this person have anything of interest, or of value for the boss?" You must answer, "What`s in it for me?" for the listener, or they will immediately begin the process of ending the call.
Get your phone calls off to a positive start
6. Here`s a three-step formula:
i) Introduce yourself and organisation.
ii) Most importantly, state an interesting, stimulating benefit that appeals to their curiosity and their desire to gain, or avoid loss, then ...
iii) Get them involved in a conversation. Remember, you want to do at least twice as much listening as talking. Explain that in order to deliver the potential benefit you alluded to, you need to ask some quick questions. Here is an example:
"Im Jim Smith from Excel IT. We specialise in working with manufacturers in lowering overall production costs while generating more accurate reporting and monitoring. I`ve got a few ideas I`d like to discuss to see if this would be of any value to you and your company..."
The real test to be sure you have a winning opening statement is to put yourself in the position of the person hearing it. Ask yourself if you would want to hear more if you were the buyer. Would you set aside whatever you were doing and willingly participate in the call? If not, go back to the drawing board before you take a rejection from a real prospect.
And, be sure your opener says as much as possible, with as few words as possible. ONLY by appealing to their desire for gain, or fear of losing something, will you cause them to spend productive time with you, and eventually buy from you.