The Magazine for Sales Professionals and Entrepreneurs on the move
SALESL IFE www.saleslife.co.za
Building Customer Loyalty for repeat business
Issue #2 October 2016
BONUS! 7 Voicemail hacks!
Escape your Sales slump! 4 ways to get your mojo back.
10 Habits to break
To be more Successful!
iNFOGRAPHIC
Instagram User behaviour Cold Calling 5 Reasons we struggle
3 methods to fast track results!
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In this months issue.
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We rise by lifting others‌
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October issue | Contents 5 Editors note 6 Letter of the week 7 New Stuff 8 Escape your sales slump. 10 Cold Calling - Why we struggle with it. 12 The Psychology of Sales. 16 Building customer loyalty for repeat business. 21 Sales Skills - 7 Voicemail hacks 23 Infographic- Instagram User Behaviour 24 Sales Training - 3 Methods to fast track results
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Letter from the Editor
Social Media is a Superpower! So October has arrived and this month we’re intent on adding more value. I’m overwhelmed with all the support across the board as SalesLife Magazine grows from strength to strength. Its truly a privilege to share with you all my thoughts and inspirations in the coming issues of SalesLife Magazine and remember to keep sharing us with your friends on social networks.
Visit us at www.saleslife.co.za To subscribe to our magazine.
I’m sure there are at least 75% of you, whom have just checked their favourite social media page before deciding to digest some of the pages of our magazine! This is the power of social media! Facebook alone has over 1.55 billion users presently and needless to say, Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat along with Pinterest and Tumblr are hot on their heels as favourites. The crux of the matter is that social media is a superpower in today’s digital age and if you aren’t growing your personal or business brand right now…you’re going to need to inevitably whether you like it or not in the future. My take on it is that, I foresee a future, not so far from now where everyone will have an online presence of sorts. We will all be a “brand” or “commodity”. As the world gets smaller through digital interaction and the foundations for a new business world order are being implemented, we are seeing the infancy of social buying and selling connect with traditional B2B platforms and techniques and also digital e-commerce.
In a decade from now, many of us with an identity number or social security number will be perceived as a brand which we will or simply wont, do business with. Most of us will have an all-in one website of sorts which will consist of a social media profile, an online history, as well as online images and videos which we will portray to the business world who we are and what we stand for - A digital, interactive CV really. From your profile, consisting of videos posted along with pictures and ideas shared, a firm in Korea can decide to do business with a South African startup. Scary and exciting simultaneously. So don’t get left behind. The future looks bright and the role of SalesLife Magazine is to empower all sales professionals and startup entrepreneurs with the skills and tools to be ahead of the steep learning curve dominating sales and marketing going digital and social online. Direct your energy towards the future and enjoy the present moment for all its worth. We hope you enjoy this months October issue and it is our hope that we add value and benefit to your life and career always. Thank you for reading…
SalesLife Magazine Managing Editor youshaa@saleslife.co.za
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Feedback
letter of the
with us. Your chance to share your thoughts and ideas with other SalesLife Magazine readers. We would love to hear from you and share your stories with the world regarding your life in Sales, Marketing and Entrepreneurship. Remember to keep it concise and we will publish your winning letter covering your experiences in terms of successes and challenges in your sales life. Connect with us. Tell us what you think of our magazine and just how our articles have helped you in your sales life!
We love hearing from you online! Find us here. @saleslifemag facebook.com/saleslifemagazine saleslifemagazine
Remember that SalesLife Magazine fosters a “mind-body-spirit” combined with a “sales-marketing-entrepreneurship” approach to your sales life, so we would love to hear from you in that regard. 200 words max. We reserve the right to edit.
Good luck!
info@saleslife.co.za
Write & Win! T
In 2008, Paco Robanne first presented the masculine fragrance,1 Million that soon became extremely popular. It has since been worn by successful executives and entrepreneurs the world over. Smell like a million bucks with the perfume which was inspired by Paco Robanne's metallic fashion and created in cooperation with three famous noses for perfumes, Christophe Raynaud, Olivier Pescheux and Michel Girard, who mixed this year's edition from the notes of sparkling grapefruit, red orange, mint, rose, cinnamon, spices, blond leather, blond wood, patchouli and amber. Divine! The opinions expressed in these letters are not necessarily those of SalesLife Magazine. We reserve the right to edit letters. While we respect the wishes of writers who wish to remain anonymous, we will not publish any letter unless we have the full name, address and contact details of the writer.
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Escape your sales slump 4 steps to get your mojo back
Recognize the slump and take responsibility.”
Step 1-Become aware.
J U S T A L K IN G
You were selling well, making deals, and all was right in the world. Then, without warning, your sales took a diving, stomach turning plummet, and you find yourself in the dreaded sales slump. Your results suck. You feel terrible. Worse still, you feel powerless to change anything…Ouch! But you aren’t powerless. You can turn the sales slump around with this plan.
By SalesLife Magazine
Acknowledge the slump. Recognize the slump and take responsibility. You’re probably making one big mistake that keeps you locked in a sales slump. Unless and until you stop making this mistake, nothing you do will put you back on the path to good results. That mistake is in believing that someone else, or something else, is responsible for your results. The first step to breaking free is to take 100 percent responsibility for your results. It’s easy to blame your poor performance on a cause outside yourself—the economy, the president, Congress, your sales manager, your territory, your prospective customers or your commission structure. The problem with that mindset is that it disempowers you. Rationalizing poor results may help you feel better by absolving you of responsibility, but if you aren’t to blame for the poor results, then you are also powerless to do anything about them. You need to be powerful! By stepping up and owning your results, you take back the power to improve them. Pen and paper time. Start evaluating your sales presentation from your attire to your tone, your pace, your rapport building, your confidence levels. On a scale of 1-10 rate how highly they need work and they can improve. 1 being the lowest level of attention and 10 dire needing of adjustment and attention. Be honest here. You will only fool yourself if you lie.
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Step 2-Recover your mojo. At one time, your mojo was working. You were succeeding wildly. You were making calls, seeing clients and making deals. You were unstoppable. Do you remember what it felt like to have The Big Mo? Well, it’s time to get it back. Failing doesn’t make you a failure. It’s an event, not an identity. A sales slump is also an event. To recover your mojo, remind yourself who you really are and of your past successes. Think back to the time when you made your first sale or won your first customer. You knew far less then than you know now. But you succeeded anyway. Remember when you called on that tough-as-nails customer who threw every objection imaginable at you? You stood tough and fired back all the right answers. It was exhilarating, wasn’t it? Your life, including your work life, is full of successes. You have won dozens or hundreds or thousands of customers. You’ve helped your customers, and some of them wouldn’t dream of buying from anyone other than you. Make a list of all your past victories. Title it “My Mojo.” Carry your list with you and review it first thing every day to remind yourself of who you are and what you have already accomplished. Remember what it felt like to achieve the things on that list.
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Step 3-Take Action! Getting back in the right mindset lays the foundation for breaking free from your slump and getting back to producing stellar results. But the positive, empowered, mojo-seeking mindset isn’t enough by itself. It has to be coupled with action. Sales is an activity-based endeavor. You can’t wait for customers to beat a path to your door. To break out of the slump, you have to start taking massive action. Now. Start by calling on all of your existing customers to see how else you can help them. Don’t make these calls about you, your slump or a pity order. Make this call about creating the tremendous value that your customer needs from you right now. Your existing customers know you, they’ve already bought from you and they usually are receptive to meeting with you and working with you again. Your existing customers are the warm-up round. Once you’ve called on them, move on to your prospective customers. These prospects need what you sell. If you’ve been in a slump for a long time, they don’t know that you can help them because you haven’t been pursuing their business. Part of the reason you could be in a slump is because you haven’t really been prospecting at all; you’ve been calling on the same stale list of prospects for years with no success. It’s time do the real prospecting work of building a new list or of seriously changing your approach to the prospects you are pursuing. Nothing breaks you out of a slump faster than calling on prospective customers.
Remember The greater your sales-producing activities, the faster you’ll make a turnaround. Action will build your confidence.
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Step 4-Accumulate small wins. When you’re in a slump, you probably feel you must land one huge new customer to turn things around. This isn’t true. There isn’t one giant win that breaks the cycle and makes everything all right. Instead it’s the consistent activity and the resulting consistent wins that allow you to make a 180-degree turnaround. Every win boosts your confidence. You score a confidence boosting win when a dream client you’ve pursued for years says yes to a meeting. You also build confidence by obtaining a small first order after an awesome sales call on a prospect. Regaining your mojo means stringing together small confidenceboosting wins on your way to bigger and better results.
Conclusion By following these four steps, you will break out of your sales slump. This recipe also will prevent the next sales slump by helping you maintain your mojo.
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Cold Calling. Why we struggle with it. Cold Calling calls on your resolve to master your fear of rejection and the mastery of what your purpose is…and that is to be of service and add value to someone else’s life on the other side of the line. Here are 5 reasons we battle with the concept… 13 www.saleslife.co.za October
Taking Control
1. Cold calling doesn’t work when you aren’t making enough calls. If you make between 6 and 10 calls a day, you aren’t really prospecting. That isn’t enough calls to give yourself a fair chance at success. To make cold calling work you need an already researched target list and 60 to 80 faster dials. That number will not only produce appointments, but it will also give you enough reps to get better faster.
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2. Your value proposition is weak. If your cold calls aren’t producing results, one of the primary reasons for the failure to obtain appointments is that your sales call value proposition isn’t compelling. How would you like someone to “stop by,” to introduce myself and my services?” The great benefit your dream client can expect is a chance to listen to you talk about yourself and your company? You can see why they might pass. To make cold calling work, you have to be bold and ask for a meeting where your dream client receives the value you offer. Make them believe it can change their lives!
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3. Asking for big commitments early on causes resistance. If your “ask” is open-ended when it comes to time, you frighten your dream client off. They believe you may wear out your welcome by sitting in front of them for 90 or 120 minutes. Even asking for an hour can be too much. A smaller commitment, like 20 or 30 minutes instead of an open-ended request, is more palatable and your dream client can say “yes,” confident that they can bail out if you aren’t creating value.
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4. Cold calling won’t call if you don’t ask for a meeting twice. You should expect a “no” to your request for a meeting on your first attempt. Your dream client says “no” to everyone who calls, not knowing how to tell who is worth meeting and who isn’t. The first attempt elicits an objection, a test to see if you might be worth meeting. You must ask twice. Persistance with pure intention and a determination to totally benefit the client must be instilled in your very own belief systems. A good fit for the client will mean a good fit for you!
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5. You can’t succeed at cold calling without resolving your prospect’s fears or concerns. You will hear “We are already working with someone.” You’ll hear, “We are happy with the people we work with now.” You will also hear “Just mail me information,” and “I don’t have time right now.” None of these objections to a meeting is likely true. In fact, some of your competitors are meeting with people who gave them these objections. Your prospect’s real concern is that you aren’t going to make a meeting worth their while, that you don’t have any real insight, that you can’t really help them, and that they are going to regret meeting with you. You have to promise that none of these things are true.
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Ask yourself honestly now… Are you making enough calls? Do you have a compelling value proposition for the meeting you are asking for? Is the commitment small enough that it is easy to say yes to? Are you always asking twice? Do you know how to resolve your prospects real concerns? If you are…Great job! If not…Start now! Well…Don’t just sit there….! Taking Control
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Of success Avoid these 5 pitfalls like the plague! Almost everyone aspires to be successful, but only a select few really reach that point where they are able to reach the upper echelons of legend. How do you avoid the pitfalls and detrimental behaviors most common among unsuccessful people?
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Being lazy and losing focus and motivation are common. To help you avoid making those mistakes, check out these 5 behaviors of unsuccessful people…and stay away from these bad habits because we’re better than that!
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“…then do them one at a time systematically.”
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1. Procrastinating-Yawn! Mmmmmm…Need we say more! The biggest challenges we face every day, especially as entrepreneurs, is the laziness to take the first step. This happens with everything from simple daily activities to projects that are part of a major goal. Fear of failure takes centre stage…or perhaps just downright laziness. A chief cause of procrastination is that one or more tasks can appear overwhelming. The single best way to overcome this is to break every project down into smaller chunks and into bites that are easier to digest and manage--then do them one at a time systematically. Use a mindmap app or program on your computer where you can map out your tasks. Mindly on my Galaxy Note Android device is one that I use religiously.
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Listen actively before you reply‌
2. Listening trumps talking Listening to someone before you blurt out a response is a sure way to win friends and many successes. It's rare for an entrepreneur to become successful by only following their own thoughts and feelings. Most successful companies rely on a team of advisors or board of directors, to learn the thoughts and opinions of others via surveys and the like for marketing purposes. The most unsuccessful people talk instead of listening. They believe they know it all and blab on uncontrollably and therefore have no need to absorb the knowledge and experience of others which is a major character flaw. Honest respect is actually listening to what another has to say." And it's not just about respecting them--it's about respecting yourself enough to listen, learn from, and allow yourself to grow from the experience.
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Envy is the green-eyed monster!
3. Envy and competing Multitudes of unsuccessful people tend to remain unhappy and unsuccessful because they spend too much time jealously and competitively focusing on the accomplishments and successes and dare we say happiness of others. They sadly self-sabotage their own happiness because they refuse to take responsibility for their own lack of achievements. They enviously obsess about those who actually put the work in and dig deep and believe in going for their dreams. They watch from the sidelines as haters and ‘frenemies’ to those who wish to reach their goals. Do not be one of these twisted souls. Exhale and let go of these people. Your future self will thank you.
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Slay your fear like a gargoyle of Negativity!
4. Fearing Risk-taking Too afraid to take risks? Always opt to stay in the safe zone? You will get what you always have and nothing new and adventurous. You will forever remain unsuccessful and remain remorseful that you didn’t try. You cannot grow personally or professionally when you mitigate risks by sticking only with the things you know were effective in the past and wont work in the future. Fear is the darkroom where negative thoughts are developed and grow into the story of your life. Fear will repel success and attract negative outcomes and failure. Our advice is risk it all and if you fail‌try again and again and again. You get the picture!
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5. The bane of quitting Quite simply and sadly so…unsuccessful people quit. They decide and make up their minds that the goals they set are too difficult to complete and they are too lazy to get moving on them, so they just don’t get moving. They don’t take action and some never get started. They talk about it…but never do. Is this you? Its a smashing shame that unsuccessful people suddenly find other priorities to focus on and then get caught in a vicious loop of not seeing through those other priorities. It's a furiously vicious cycle, and the only way to break out of it is to take action and stop bull-dusting that you’re going to get there. Start now…Quitting is for the unsuccessful and you’re quite the opposite. Come on…show us what you’re made of!
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Customer loyalty
Your client doesn’t just buy your products and services; they actually buy a whole set of experiences. They buy emotions and memories of the contact. Will you offer good or bad memories?
Building Client Loyalty
For repeat business By SalesLife Magazine 26
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According to the U.S. Small Business Administration and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, these are the main reasons why customers leave. 68% Because of poor customer service and the indifferent treatment by staff. 14% Are dissatisfied with products or services. 9% Start doing business with the competitor. 5% Seek alternatives or develop business relationships with friends and family. 3% Move away 1% Kick the bucket! fact.
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Superpower smiles! If customers are satisfied, they will return and buy from you again and again. That being said they most likely will recommend you to their friends and family members to buy too. Repeat business results in more sales and profit for you and also leads to more satisfied and motivated employees also a benefit for you! Here are 5 ways to score repeat Business every time!
1. Provide excellent Customer Service Excellence in customer service is about going the extra mile. It means really listening to a customer, fulfilling their needs and making the extra effort. Good customer service is when the customer is completely satisfied with the service you have provided. Great customer service is not just one person’s responsibility, its the responsibility of everyone in your organization.
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Go Beyond the call of Duty… 2. Exceed their expectations If a customer orders a delivery for 1:00 pm, they expect it to be delivered at 1:00 pm. If a customer expects a certain standard of service, their expectation is that service will be to that standard. If a customer orders a product – then the product has to live up to what you said the product will do for them. The customer also expects that if you “don’t” live up to their expectation, you will make it up to them in some way. It’s also about getting help when they need it with no hassles or Delays. Dealing with competent staff who anticipate their needs and wants and dealing with staff who are authorized to make decisions without passing the buck. Remember - Being treated with respect is king!
Being treated with respect is king!
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3. Taking Ownership Taking ownership means taking responsibility in helping your client. Absolutely no passing the buck or responsibility onto someone else. Its your task. Own it. Serve with pride and honour. If a customer needs to be served, it is the responsibility of everyone in your organization to In sunny South Africa, good customer service is lacking in deliver the highest level of service they can, even certain sectors as a standard, yet the levels have picked if it’s to say, sorry I don’t know, up over the last“I’m few years with training incentives fromlet me go find private companies and government. In a recent survey someone who can help.” more than 50% of the population said that they would take their business elsewhere if they experienced poor customer service from a service provider.
Taking ownership means all staff are personally responsible playing a part customer Quite similarly,for we find in the U.S.A that 44 in percent of consumers confess that they’ll take their business service even if dealing directly with the customer elsewhere when faced with poor service. is not their role. A holistically sincere approach to being of Theover minute The growth of social media has transformed customer Service with an air of honest reciprocity, going andaabove the service from a one-on-one interaction to a public Rothschild or callconversation. of duty Competition will create a client for life. is healthy and companies will compete for customer reviews and endorsements. “He said-she said,” will accept a whole new meaning. With customer service becoming open and transparent and broadcasted to billions in the blink of an eye, businesses realize that bad business cannot be kept from people anymore. The minute a Rothschild or Rockefeller sells off oil shares, we know and we have an opinion about it. Each and every business will have a global and online footprint of their successes and glaring failures for the world to see. Consequently, companies will have to start to compete to offer the best customer service—with social media reviews and recommendations being the ultimate prize and their holy grail.
The Sky is the limit
Rockefeller sells off oil shares, we know and we have an opinion about it.
How will your customers most likely get in contact with you? Well via email, live chat, social media, or in a voice call of course, however customers will use apps on their mobile phone second only to social media widgets as their primary method of communicating. Instant gratification society will take on a new meaning as people take to their phones to communicate. Instant results from an app on their smartphone or wearable smartphone device.
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Honesty rulles ok!
4. Small promises count Most people often dismiss small promises as unimportant, but that is just not true. You don’t call back when you say you will, you don’t repay a loan that’s outstanding, or maybe it just doesn’t seem important to keep a promise with confidence. If you fail to take the minor promises seriously, you destroy trust and damage your reputation. Failing to keep these small promises gives the appearance of being disorganized and irresponsible and of no value to a client. In fact a risk to the clients interests. You make the other person feel dismissed and unimportant. Conversely, you can build trust by demonstrating that you keep your word even on seemingly inconsequential things. Perhaps even more important, when people realize that you consistently keep smaller promises, they will reasonably believe that you can keep your word on important things. This will actually help build your reputation as a trustworthy person. “How does it go again? Honesty is the best policy!”
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5. Smile! A smile alone doesn’t guarantee excellent customer service, but excellent customer service almost always starts with a smile. Many businesses are stepping up their focus on customer service. They spend millions of dollars developing customer-service practices that include employee training and corporate engagement because they understand customer service is not a seasonal exercise. It is both art and science. Best practices help us design, execute and deliver. How we go about it is completely art. It depends heavily on the human element since not all components of design come with hard-and-fast rules that we can rely on as we regularly promote in design thinking. The smile is a key element of customer service and business. Take-away: Whether the transaction is business-to-business (B2B) or business-to-consumer (B2C), a smile is one of the easiest components to get right. Omitting smiles from the equation leaves out the crucial ingredient in any business interaction. 32
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Sales Skills We all want to be able to close more sales and do it faster. Too many salespeople wind up spending all of their time chasing sales that simply take way too long to close. Optimization of time and energy is the future. Let’s look at 3 things you can do now that will help you close more sales faster…in 3 simple steps. Step 1- Focus energy on those people who can buy. Too many times the salesperson finds out too late that the person that they are dealing with is not honestly in a position to buy or even afford your product or service. This is a waste of time. Test Close early by asking clearly and sincerely : “What is the benefit for you to have this now?” Focus on clients that respond positively. Step 2- Introduce the element of time into the sales process very early. When we’re talking time, we’re looking at it from both your end as the salesperson and the customer’s end. The easiest manner is again by asking questions to get the customer thinking that buying now or earlier than they initially expected is going to help them. Once they provide you with a fact, run with it by asking a follow-up question — with the idea to begin magnifying the importance of buying soon. A few sample questions you can ask early might include: ● “What is the value for you to have this now & how will it benefit you?” ● “If we can get this early, how would it help you with everything else you have going on right now?” Be still, listen actively. Express the urgency of their decision with calmness, sincerity and clarity. Step 3-Ask for the order now-Test close early. Make it simple and easy. Offer the customer the means to step into the buying process in a way that requires minimum risk on their part. Your goal here is to gain the initial sale, which you can then leverage into the next sale. It is always far easier to gain a second sale from a customer who has already bought once from you than it is to find a totally new customer. With that being said, the easier you make the first sale, the easier and even faster it will be for you to secure the next sale. 1-2-3…Sold!
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…In 7 easy steps!
The first two are voicemails for prospects you haven’t spoken with yet, the next three are for when you’re calling a prospect or client back, and the last two are for situations when your prospect or client isn’t calling you back: Lets go! By SalesLife Magazine 35 www.saleslife.co.za October
Smarter Not harder
If ever there was a situation that begged to be scripted, it’s your voicemail message. Isn’t this the time you want to sound your best, be perceived as a professional, and prepare the most polished message you can? Of course it is. Here are seven sample voice mail messages you can start using today to separate yourself from the other 95% of voice mails that get ignored, deleted and never returned.
…In 7 easy steps! Generic Voicemail Message #1: Note: The best voicemail message you can leave is one with a specific purpose that addresses the needs of your prospect or client, and offers them a solution that is worth them taking the time to call you back to learn more about. Here is the classic template – adjust and adapt it to fit your product or service. In this and all examples, leave your phone number SLOWLY with positive, friendly tone: "Hi __________, this is ___________ with (your company). I'm calling about your new office that's opening in Cape Town next month, and I wanted to provide you with some ideas that may help with your networking issues. We work with a lot of companies in the area, and I think you'll find it useful if we talk. You can reach me by calling area code (021)811-0568. That number again is area code (021) 811-0568, and ask for _________. I look forward speaking with you and thanks in advance for returning my call.”
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…In 7 easy steps! Generic Voicemail Message #2: “Hi _________, this is _______ _______ with (your company). You and I haven’t spoken yet, but I’ve been doing some research on your company and I think you’re a great fit for (our networking solutions – your products here). We can provide you with (briefly list of one or two benefits) and I know you’ll be happy if we spend just a couple of minutes discussing how this can help you. When you get this message, please call me back at (021) 811-0568. That number again is area code (021) 811-0568 and ask for _________. I look forward to speaking with you, and I guarantee you’ll be glad you returned this call.” Speak clearly, with an even pace and be enthusiastic and professional simultaneously.
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…In 7 easy steps! Generic Voicemail Message #3: “Hi _________, this is ________ ________ with (your company). Briefly _________, I need to speak with you about how you’re handling your sales tracking (Or your kind of product or fulfillment), because I have something that can (solve their unique problem). Our clients include (list some companies they are familiar with), and I know this would work for you as well. Believe me it’ll be worth a 5 minute phone call to find out why. Please do me a favor when you get this message and call me back at (021) 811-0568. That number again is area code (021) 811-0568 and ask for _________. I look forward speaking with you and I guarantee you’ll be glad you returned this call.”
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…In 7 easy steps! The next two examples are for voicemails left for prospects (or clients) you’re getting back to: Generic
Voicemail Message #1:
“Hi _________, this is ________ _________ getting back with you at (your company). I’m looking forward to speaking with you because we just (give an update here – you have a new special, new product update, added a new client they would know about), and I know that based on (their specific need you uncovered during the last call) this is going to make it even easier for you to (give the benefit you both discussed). I’m excited to share this with you. Do me a favor when you get this message and please give me call a back at (021) 811-0568, ext. 618. That number again is area code (021) 811-0568, and I’m at ext. 618. I look forward speaking with you!”
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…In 7 easy steps! Generic
Voicemail Message #2:
“Hi ________, this is _______ ________ getting back with you about (your demo, quote, etc.). Briefly, I’ve been doing some more research on how we may be able to save you even more (or make you even more – whatever your product or service can do for them), especially in regards to your (list a specific need they told you about during the initial call), and I’m excited to share that (or discuss that) with you. I’ll be in my office the rest of today, so do me a favor when you get this message and please give me call a back at (021) 811-0568, ext. 618. That number again is area code (021) 811-0568, and I’m at ext. 618. I look forward speaking with you. Have a great day further…”
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…In 7 easy steps! And for the prospects or clients that seem to be dodging you or just not calling you back: Decision Voicemail Message #1: “Hi _________, this is _______ ________ again with (your company). For some reason we haven’t been able to connect since I sent you (your demo, proposal, etc.), and believe me, I’ve been sales long enough to know what that probably means. I’m assuming you’ve either found another solution or this has been put on the back burner for now. Either way, that’s fine. Do me a favor though please. So I’m not bothering you anymore, could you please give me a quick call and just give me an update so I know what direction you’re moving in? If I’m not available, just leave me a voice mail. Again, either way, it will be good to know what’s going on. Thanks in advance for that, and I’ll look for your call. You can reach me at (021) 811-0568, ext. 618. That number again is area code (021) 811-0568, and I’m at ext. 618. Thanks again, ________.”
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…In 7 easy steps! Decision Voicemail Message #2: “Hi _________ this is _______ ________ again with (your company). I’m sorry we haven’t been able to get back together on this – if you’re like me I’m sure you’re being pulled in many different directions and are real busy. Do me a favor, though, and when you get this message, just call me back and leave me a voice mail with what you’ve decided to do about (your proposal or demo or quote). If you’re still interested in it, great, but even if you’ve decided not to move forward with it, that’s fine as well. Either way it will be nice for me to know so we can move forward from there. Thanks in advance for that, and I’ll look for your call. You can reach me at (021) 811-0568, ext. 618. That number again is area code (021) 811-0568, and I’m at ext. 618. Thanks again, ________.”
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Always remember when calling your clients to treat each one with the utmost respect, whether they buy from you or not. For every one you miss out on…there are more to replace the prospect. It’s the law of averages. Good luck!
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…In 7 easy steps!
Voila! – voicemail messages for most of the situations you’ll find yourself in. Once again, by using these scripted, proven messages you’ll be giving yourself the best chance to hear back from your prospects and clients. And remember, even if their answer is no that’s a lot better than chasing unqualified prospects who are never going to buy.
Sales Training
3 methods to fast-track success
Smarter Not harder
Sales training
3 methods to fast-track results
3 step Plan! Over 48% of inside sales companies surveyed reported that they missed their monthly revenues goals more times in a 12-month cycle than they reached them. Other sales indicators like time on the phone, closing ratios, percentage to monthly goal, etc, pipeline accuracy inevitably suffered as well as sales teams struggled to make quota and reach revenue.
While you would expect an under trained sales team to lead to under performance, what is rarely considered is the toll this takes on other factors that contribute to sales decline. Getting rejected daily and repeatedly missing sales lead to a lack of confidence which in turn leads to call reluctance. Getting beaten up for missing quotas leads to poor attitudes and these attitudes spread rapidly throughout a sales organization creating an environment that becomes toxic and self perpetuating. By SalesLife Magazine
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All companies have some form of sales training, even if it just consists of new reps shadowing senior reps for a few days before they “hit the phones.” While sales training can be graded from inefficient to very effective, there are some important points you should consider when designing your own sales training: Here they are…
1.
Make your overall training not only specific to your product or service, but break your training down to the various parts of your sales cycle and teach best practices for each part. For example, if your first call is simply to set an appointment or send information to a prospect, what are the five benchmarks your reps need to cover for you to consider this a qualified lead? Having this kind of clarity all the way through your sales cycle will help not only your reps but will help your manager coach them all the way through the sale.
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2.
Give your reps specific, scripted responses to the sales situations they run into every day. This is the best way to empower your reps and it helps them successfully navigate the sale from beginning (getting through the gatekeeper) through to the end (getting the deal in the door). An example would be to script out and teach them how to overcome the smokescreen objection of, “I have to show this to my boss” objection. Most sales reps don’t know how to deal with this objection so their usual response is something along the lines of, “OK, when should I get back with you?” This simply leads to non-qualified leads that clog up pipelines. A specific, scripted approach to this objection will teach your reps to isolate this objection to see if it’s a smokescreen or a real objection. Have them use something like this: “I understand and I think you should speak to _________. Just out of curiosity, if they say to do whatever you think is best, where are you leaning in regards to using this?” Again, giving your reps specific tools to navigate through the sale is what is going to help them become successful.
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3.
Make sales training a daily event.
To learn a new skill of any kind you need to reinforce it daily. We recommend running a brief sales meeting every morning to reinforce the skills and techniques that your top 20% are using successfully. Playing recordings, use affirmations of positive mindsets with repetition as everyone says the mantras together with belief, role playing, passing out updated scripts are all things that will help your team improve on a daily, weekly and monthly basis, accelerating morale and team target smashing. Get the feedback of each team member. Take their heartfelt suggestions into account and implement them within the team to show them that their feedback is appreciated and matters!
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In alignment with the suggestions before, here are three specific sales solutions that you can adapt and implement to immediately make your inside sales team more effective. These are proven skills that will help your team navigate past some of the common objections, brush offs and situations they encounter on a daily basis. You can use these techniques as sales meeting topics and have your team help to customize them to fit their selling situations.
Qualifying Techniques #1 - Question the Red Flags One of the best ways to determine who actually does make it into your sales pipeline is to make sure you avoid one of the biggest mistakes 80% of salespeople make when qualifying. And that is to overlook or not react to obvious Red Flags prospects give during the initial qualifying call. In their haste or desperation to “generate a lead" or to “fill their pipeline," many sales reps will hope that any possible objection they hear on the front end will miraculously go away once the prospect sees their information or product or service, etc. But you all know from experience -- it never does.
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Leads Never Get Better! You must! What appears to be an objection or sales-killer on the front end, always is… You can’t ignore these Red Flags! Do what the Top 20% do: As soon as you hear something that triggers your intuition or that gives you that sick feeling in your gut, stop and ask the tough qualifying questions! Here are some examples you can begin using today: If someone says that they usually buy from ________, but would like to see your information, ask: “Why would you switch vendors?" Or “How many other companies have you looked at in the last six months?" And then: "And how many did you go with?" If someone says that they will pass your information on to ________, say: “Thanks. So that I make sure I'm not wasting her time it's best that I speak with her for just a few minutes. Can you please tell her that (your name) is holding please?" (If you're then told they are not available, make sure and get their direct line or that person's extension and keep calling until she picks up. If someone says that they'd be glad to look it over, ask: “Great, after you do, and if you think that it can help you (or your business, etc.), what would the next steps be?" And so on. October www.saleslife.co.za 52
#2 Teach your reps how to avoid getting brushed off So many times prospects aren't really interested, but they either don't know how or won't come out and tell us. Instead they will say things like, “Go ahead and send me the (information, brochure, demo) and I’ll take a look." Or, “Put that quote in writing and send it to me." When a top closer hears this, his/her first thought is, “I don't have the time to do that, and I especially don't have the time to follow up with an unqualified lead." Here's how they handle it and how your reps should, too: Put off #1: “Go ahead and send me your information." Your response: "I’d be happy to, and if you like what you see is this something you would move on in the next couple of weeks?" OR, “Before I do, I want to make sure you'd be ready to act on it if you like it. Let me ask you...(qualifying questions on budget, decisionmaking process, etc should be asked next)" OR, “Sure, and after you review it, how soon would you make a decision on it?" October www.saleslife.co.za 53
Or you could use: “And what would you need to see to say yes to it?" Put off No. 2: “Put that quote in writing and send it to me." Your response: “I’d be happy to, and from what we've just discussed, does it sound like you'd go with it?" OR, “Absolutely. How does this compare with the other quotes you’ve received so far?" OR, “Great. Based on the quote/price I just gave you does this sound like it fits within your budget?" Then employ your “Closing Technique…”
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#3 Five Ways to Stop Talking Past the Close Have you ever caught your reps doing this? They deliver a great presentation, think that your prospect is with them, but then they just keep on pitching? Or, they get an objection, answer it, but then again, they just keep pitching -- or worse -- they go to the next rebuttal and start reading that pitch. Talking past the close is much more common than repeatedly asking for the sale (which is what they should be doing). And why is that? It's because it’s scary to ask for the deal and be told no. It's much easier to keep pitching, “Maybe they'll just cave and finally hear something they want and buy." Sound familiar? It should. hat's how 80% of your sales reps are pitching.They are rambling, talking past the close, and even introducing new objections. What a mess!
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Here are five ways to stop talking past the close, so your reps can spend more time closing, and earning the income the Top 20% do:
1. Record yourself. Before you can stop talking past the close, you first must begin hearing and catching yourself doing it. One day of recording your reps and you'll become immediately aware of when and how they do it.
2.
Use a script. One of the best parts of a well-crafted script is that it ends with your reps asking for the deal! Listen to their recordings and then craft a good response to the common objections they are getting. Then, make sure they adhere to the script.
3.
Ask for the deal five times. If you give your reps a close quota of asking for the deal at least five times, then they are going to be much quicker in asking for it. Have them keep track of this on a piece of paper using stick figures. If 20 minutes has gone by and they don't have any marks on the paper, then you
4.
Welcome getting a no!. So many sales reps are afraid of “no’s”, but you don't have to be. With most sales you’ve made, you've probably heard some “no’s” along the way, so break the paradigms of the way your team thinks about them and realize the truth -- each NO gets you closer to a YES. So welcome getting a no. It usually means you're that much closer to getting the sale.
5.
Who talks first loses. Teach your team to be quiet after they ask for the sale. Use your mute button or cover the mouthpiece and count to five – 1/1000, 2/2000, etc. By forcing your reps to remain silent for five seconds after asking for the sale, they'll actually have something to concentrate on rather than fear!
Conclusion If your sales team is in the 50% of teams that aren’t making their monthly sales quotas regularly, then daily, specific sales training is your fastest way of changing that. There are other factors as well, including having a Defined Sales Process, an organized sales training program that reinforces your best practices, etc. But using and reinforcing the three techniques above will bring you and your team immediate results. October www.saleslife.co.za 57
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