Been cold calling for 3 days now. Here are my 2 main problems.

12 years ago

Those aren't problems, those are normal working conditions.

Gatekeepers get paid to do that to you. You just have to outwork them.

I like Jason Kanigan's method. It's sound, but if not practiced it can sound gimmicky. That's why your Not Interested rate is high. (If it is high. I can't be certain without seeing a call sheet.) It doesn't matter because this will correct when you get more practice.

Keep at it, because you are doing very well so far and it will continue. Smile and dial.

Thanks

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6109248].message }}

iAmNameLess

12 years ago

Originally Posted by abbot

Until they gave me the chance to show how vital this is to their business, they were not interested either. Now they thank me for the call I made."

Honestly, if somebody told me that, I would laugh and move on with my day. Why? Because I've been in business without your help, and will likely stay in business and profit without your help.

Is it REALLY, vital? Or is it a nice extra for their marketing?

The rest of what you described, is just normal in my opinion. Nothing to worry about, just keep dialing.

Thanks

Signature

The Best Damn Marketing and Local SEO Blog

Ultimate Blueprint To Start Your Own Agency | Get Clients Without Cold Calling

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6109297].message }}

kenmichaels

12 years ago

Try this. Bet you a dollar it will work 8 out of 10 times.

Hi, this is Abott, is JIM in?

or skip the HI , sound rushed and go.

is JIM still available, this is Abbot.

if they do say "He/she is not in, can I take a message"

just say, this is Abott, tell him ill call back later, bye... pause for a second or two
then say, o hey, before i let you go, what do you think is the best time to call back today?

[ 1 ] Thanks
1 reply

Signature

Selling Ain't for Sissies!

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6109324].message }}

abbot

Banned 12 years ago

Originally Posted by iAmNameLess

Honestly, if somebody told me that, I would laugh and move on with my day. Why? Because I've been in business without your help, and will likely stay in business and profit without your help.

Is it REALLY, vital? Or is it a nice extra for their marketing?

The rest of what you described, is just normal in my opinion. Nothing to worry about, just keep dialing.

I understand what you mean. I was just trying to find a way to keep them on the phone. Usually once they say nope, not interested they hang up. If they don't hang up they still have some interest as to what your response is going to be. I won't end a conversation like "oh, not interested today? ok thanks for your time" I rather try to keep them on the line and get hung up on.

Originally Posted by kenmichaels

Try this. Bet you a dollar it will work 8 out of 10 times.

Hi, this is Abott, is JIM in?

or skip the HI , sound rushed and go.

is JIM still available, this is Abbot.

if they do say "He/she is not in, can I take a message"

just say, this is Abott, tell him ill call back later, bye... pause for a second or two
then say, o hey, before i let you go, what do you think is the best time to call back today?

I will give this a go. Thanks for the tip!

Thanks
1 reply

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6110960].message }}

sandalwood 12 years ago

abbot,

Here is what works for me. Not everytime but most of the time.

My script:

Me; My name is Tom Koziol and I own a local web design/marketing company here in Reno/Sparks. Are you the person I would speak to about your (website) (marketing) (whatever you are selling)?

Her: Either a yes or no. If yes, bingo, I start asking questions. If no, I ask who is and are they available. If not, when can I call back. If they say leave your name and number I always do and then add, if I don't hear from John by Tues (or whatever day) I'll call back. Will I get to speak with you again? Good, you have a nice phone manner. Thank you. Good bye.

Like I said it doesn't work everytime. Some people are rude, stupid or nasty or maybe all three. So what, doesn't change my life.

I make the next call and start all over.

Hope this has helped. I don't like being on the phone any longer than necessary that's why my speeck is so short. I will either get the biz or an appt or not using the above script.

Good luck and I hope you start seeing better results.

Tom
- [ 2 ] Thanks
Signature
Get 30% or More Retirement Income If you are serious about your retirement, you'll love this product.

The Money Ferret Finance Article Directory
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6111082].message }}

Michael Bucker

12 years ago

The problem with any person you’re talking to is the same as every sales person, phone sales, face to face, selling shoes, furniture, web sites, services etc. First and foremost don’t over dramatize, get nervous or worry about the fact that you are talking to a business owner. They are a consumer like everyone else.

The main question seems to be. How do you control the call where you are able to get to the actual pitch and providing and outline of your services.

First I would not start off pitching your services or with a pitch that claims how important your services are. That is what everyone does. You actually don’t know yet if you can even help them because you have no idea what their needs are. They may be one of “iamnamless” customer already. Point is you don’t know what you can do for them yet.

Now my field of selling I am sure is quite opposite of yours but I am going to share some basic truths with you.

First to gain the best rapport with any one potential client is to allow them to have control while you maintain direction. Having direction is much more powerful than control. I can explain later if you would like.

The way to gain direction of the call is by asking questions almost immediately. I would set up a series of 5-10 questions to ask. When you ask questions the natural response is to answer. A person cannot help it. You may even say I have 5 quick questions to ask (having more than 5 if all goes well), or say I have gathered what I think are the top 5 questions to ask a business owner that will let us both know if you could use my help or not. Etc etc.

This is something I can help you with, there is an art to it. IM me and I will give you my number and walk you through via phone.

As far as the gate keeper goes. If you want the owners name and it’s a place that you can talk to anyone outside of the person who answers the phone, ask for another person. Example if the place of business has sales reps. I ask for a sales person. They usually will give what info you need. I am in a hurry at the moment or Id go into more detail. But will be glad to help if you want more details.

[ 3 ] Thanks
1 reply

Signature

How to book a Seminar

All my secrets

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6113172].message }}

abbot

Banned 12 years ago

Originally Posted by Michael Bucker

The problem with any person you're talking to is the same as every sales person, phone sales, face to face, selling shoes, furniture, web sites, services etc. First and foremost don't over dramatize, get nervous or worry about the fact that you are talking to a business owner. They are a consumer like everyone else.

The main question seems to be. How do you control the call where you are able to get to the actual pitch and providing and outline of your services.

First I would not start off pitching your services or with a pitch that claims how important your services are. That is what everyone does. You actually don't know yet if you can even help them because you have no idea what their needs are. They may be one of "iamnamless" customer already. Point is you don't know what you can do for them yet.

Now my field of selling I am sure is quite opposite of yours but I am going to share some basic truths with you.

First to gain the best rapport with any one potential client is to allow them to have control while you maintain direction. Have direction is much more powerful than control. I can explain later if you would like.

The way to gain direction of the call is by asking questions almost immediately. I would set up a series of 5-10 questions to ask. When you ask questions the natural response is to answer. A person cannot help it. You may even say I have 5 quick questions to ask (having more than 5 if all goes well), or say I have gathered what I think are the top 5 questions to ask a business owner that will let us both know if you could use my help or not. Etc etc.

This is something I can help you with, there is an art to it. IM me and I will give you my number and walk you through via phone.

As far as the gate keeper goes. If you want to owners name and it's a place that you can talk to anyone outside of the person who answers the phone, than ask for another person. Example if the place of business has sales reps. I ask for a sales person. They usually will give what info you need. I am in a hurry at the moment or Id go into more detail. But will be glad to help if you want more details.

Michael,

First of all I owe you a big thank you. I truly appreciate your advice.

I am unable to PM because of my post count. Could you possibly PM me your number and a good time to reach you tomorrow? I will definitely take you up on your offer as I'm eager to learn more about this trade.

Thanks,

Mitch

Thanks

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6113858].message }}

Michael Bucker

12 years ago

Will do or you can go to my training site conqueringthesale.com and and get that number as well.

Thanks

Signature

How to book a Seminar

All my secrets

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6118572].message }}

6figure101

12 years ago

Cold calling sux!

I use to be a sales rep... hated it!

Thanks
1 reply

Signature

I am currently looking to add 3 driven members to my new (FREE) Mastermind group - Are you interested?
- Join my MasterMind Group -

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6118722].message }}

kenmichaels 12 years ago

Originally Posted by 6figure101

Cold calling sux! I use to be a sales rep... hated it!

I am glad you think cold calling "sux".

That leaves more sales for us.

You da man, thnx
- [ 2 ] Thanks
Signature

Selling Ain't for Sissies!
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6118734].message }}

markjames72

12 years ago

Some great tips here. Thanks guys!

Thanks
1 reply

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6118885].message }}

abbot Banned 12 years ago

Big thanks to Michael Bucker. Spent some time on the phone with him. We chatted about some ideas and facts based on his experience. I can tell he has been in sales for a while, he gave me some great pointers.

I will definitely implement what we spoke about Michael.
- Thanks
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6119739].message }}

Michael Bucker

12 years ago

Thank you fellow warrior, I want to point out another idea for you and maybe one or two common mistakes made by most sales people.

First an idea, I would recommend recording your phone calls for your own training purposes only. There are several valued nuggets one can receive from recording your calls.

First it will show you the mistakes you're making that you don't realize while on the actual call.

Note: listen at the end of the day not after each call.

Second, listen to each call and write down the potential clients questions.

Third, listen to each call again and write down statements.

Fourth, listen one more time and write down all objections.

Now that you have all this info you can use it to handle each call in a proactive manner. Using both statements and questions you will be able to disarm most objections before they have a chance to come up.

You will gain rapport by bringing up statements or concerns that are already on the customers mind. Anytime one person talks about something another person is already thinking there is instant rapport.

You also are now able to "call the elephant out in the room" again there is an art to doing this so once you have done your homework above I'd be glad to help turn those questions statements and objections into proactive rapport building phone calls.

No not all phone calls but a lot more than most are getting now. Keep in mind that the law of averages still comes into effect. We are just changing the percentages.

COMMON MISTAKE: A lot of sales people don't realize the difference between a question a statement and an objection. Often I say 5 things to a room full of sales reps and then ask how many objections did I just make? Without fail most of them say 5 objections and the few super positive ones say no objections.

The answer is, I usually ask three questions and two objections. Most sales people are so defensive they see a lot of questions or statements as objections. But thinking there are no objections is just as damaging.

A question is a request or solicitation for information.

An objection is a reason not to move forward.

A statement is merely stating facts or opinions.

Make sure you realize that a question is just that a question a solicitation for information.

Understand that some people are just making statements they are not giving an objection. Some people are natural complainers. Often when a customer says something like, "wow that is a lot of money" they are merely making a statement. That is not an objection. I have clients who complain while they are writing me a check every month, but each month comes by and the still write them. They are natural complainers.

Agree with them and keep moving the sale along. DO NOT start discounting. They have not objected yet.

Thanks
1 reply

Signature

How to book a Seminar

All my secrets

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6122090].message }}

abbot

Banned 12 years ago

Originally Posted by Michael Bucker

Thank you fellow warrior, I want to point out another idea for you and maybe one or two common mistakes made by most sales people.

First an idea, I would recommend recording your phone calls for your own training purposes only. There are several valued nuggets one can receive from recording your calls.

First it will show you the mistakes you're making that you don't realize while on the actual call.

Note: listen at the end of the day not after each call.

Second, listen to each call and write down the potential clients questions.

Third, listen to each call again and write down statements.

Fourth, listen one more time and write down all objections.

Now that you have all this info you can use it to handle each call in a proactive manner. Using both statements and questions you will be able to disarm most objections before they have a chance to come up.

You will gain rapport by bringing up statements or concerns that are already on the customers mind. Anytime one person talks about something another person is already thinking there is instant rapport.

You also are now able to "call the elephant out in the room" again there is an art to doing this so once you have done your homework above I'd be glad to help turn those questions statements and objections into proactive rapport building phone calls.

No not all phone calls but a lot more than most are getting now. Keep in mind that the law of averages still comes into effect. We are just changing the percentages.

COMMON MISTAKE: A lot of sales people don't realize the difference between a question a statement and an objection. Often I say 5 things to a room full of sales reps and then ask how many objections did I just make? Without fail most of them say 5 objections and the few super positive ones say no objections.

The answer is, I usually ask three questions and two objections. Most sales people are so defensive they see a lot of questions or statements as objections. But thinking there are no objections is just as damaging.

A question is a request or solicitation for information.

An objection is a reason not to move forward.

A statement is merely stating facts or opinions.

Make sure you realize that a question is just that a question a solicitation for information.

Understand that some people are just making statements they are not giving an objection. Some people are natural complainers. Often when a customer says something like, "wow that is a lot of money" they are merely making a statement. That is not an objection. I have clients who complain while they are writing me a check every month, but each month comes by and the still write them. They are natural complainers.

Agree with them and keep moving the sale along. DO NOT start discounting. They have not objected yet.

Michael, I can't thank you enough for your support. I will definitely take in everything you said and apply it to my upcoming days of calling.

I would also like to make the point about something John said a long time ago about "conditioning" yourself. As the days go by I feel much more confident on the phone. Even though I'm not making sales left and right, I can definitely tell a difference in the customers response and HOW they respond to what I say.

I will keep pressing on until this works. As I said per our phone conversation. The first day I called I could NOT get past the gatekeepers for the life of me. Today I have a FULL sheet of paper of names and numbers to "call another time". Though It's not much, it's progress from the first day.

Again, thank you for your support. It is much appreciated!

[ 1 ] Thanks

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6122234].message }}

John Durham

12 years ago

@ Microwave

Im dyin for more "cowbell" = "White space" Bro!

Frickin excellent stuff man!

Thanks
1 reply

{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6122183].message }}

Michael Bucker 12 years ago

I am with you corrected the white space but still text size is stuck
- Thanks
- 1 reply
Signature

How to book a Seminar
All my secrets
{{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6122218].message }}
- John Durham 12 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by Michael Bucker
  
  I am with you corrected the white space but still text size is stuck
  
  Its okay. You are shining! Go on with your bad self...
  
  Thanks
  
  1 reply
  
  {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6122227].message }}
  
  Michael Bucker 12 years ago
  
  There we go. Its all fixed now. text finally right size.
  
  Thanks
  
  Signature
  
  How to book a Seminar
  All my secrets
  
  {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[6122235].message }}