Need help with my script and CLOSING..fedup

So how many days have you been practicing this? Are you doing this in English or another language?

I suspect you sound very unconfident. That's a factor. Don't worry, keep at it. Don't put your whole personality on the line every time you make a call.

Your line about "a more professional image" isn't a good hook. It's obvious that you don't have an order of steps to your calls and you're stumbling around. I'm not saying this to beat you up. But you do need a consistent sales process.

Your job is to qualify FIRST, find people who already believe their site is outdated or not doing what they want.

THEN sell. "My solutions are customized for each market. What I did for someone else would have no relevance to you; just as what I do for you won't work for anyone else. Your customers are your customers, and what they'll respond to isn't what somebody else's customers will. Make sense?"


Imagine receiving a car without knowing how to drive one. You get in. After fumbling around for 10 minutes, you finally figure out how the ignition key works. Then it takes you another 5 minutes to realize you have to remove the parking break. Suddenly the car is in gear and moving forward! You get excited and put your right foot down. The car is now zooming forward violently! Wait, why did that happen?--CRASH You run into another vehicle!

That's exactly what it's like, selling without a process.

Use investment instead of pay.

How many calls have you made? Just wondering. One call closing takes a while to learn, and a while longer to really master... I switched to appointments myself for now just because I need the capital faster than I had been able to learn with the limits I had on my call numbers.

That's about to change, and I feel more comfortable on the phone all the time... but it's a process.

I would ask for the owner first, and then if they ask who you are go into the unsure bit, which is classic. However , if you ask for the owner first then you will get past alot more without having to go into the other... You will surprised how many will say "sure, hang on let me get him" "IF" you give them the chance to say it.

If they say , what is this about?

Then I would say, well Im not sure who I need to be speaking with about this but we are a web design company and...go for the pitch...If there has been any buzz in the office about web design she will say "sure, let me put you through to...".

Thats one way, there are many. The unsure thing works too.

Here's the truth, different things work on different folks and the method you use will only get you through the ones that THAT method works on...So, in agreement with Jason, just dont give any one call that much energy, and be polite, keep going and the person who responds to YOU will show up somewhere along the line.

The numbers are too large for you not to be able to relate to at least one out of 100 people.

Check out this thread
http://www.warriorforum.com/offline-...t-website.html

Hey Unisons. I think I can help you out here. Or at least give you some food for thought.

I've done ALOT of what you're doing here and the frustration of it all made me throw my hands up in surrender many times! But, as it is not in me to surrender, I kept at it and sought out some help like you are now.

Here are the challenges you face:

1. Business owners are busy. Crazy busy. The chances that you are going to randomly catch them at a time when they are not intently focused on something completely unrelated to what you're calling about are slim to none. If you are married to the idea of one call closing, be prepared to melt your phone.

2. They get that same phone call 16 times every week. The gatekeepers are good at what they do. Gatekeepers love to waste your time by pretending that they have decision making powers and can keep you on the phone for as long as you are willing to pitch to them before they exercise their vast power with "Leave your information and we'll call you if we're interested."

3. Most business owners have no idea what their website is supposed to do besides exist. They don't know that they can and should be using their website in a very specific way to accomplish very specific goals much less how to do that.

While we see a component of their marketing mix that can be significantly improved and add a great deal to their bottom line, that point is nowhere on their radar. They don't usually perceive any problem with their website nor do they understand the potential gain that can result from improving their website. It is difficult to sell a solution to a problem that your best prospect doesn't perceive as a problem.

You will probably find life to be easier and more profitable if you target businesses who ARE making the attempt to put their site to work for them. The sites you find that need the most help are the prospects LEAST likely to hire you.

I could go on and on about this (yes, even more than I already have), but I'll just leave you with a couple tips that have helped me turn the corner.

1. Focus on the things that your prospects perceive as a problem and what they perceive as the solution. Sometimes their wrong (most of the time, actually), but that is the only way to start a dialogue with them.

2. Focus on the prospects who show interest in actually using their website as a part of their marketing or sales process. You can get a good idea from looking at their site whether they give a crap about their website or not.

3. Use a multi-step process. Start a dialogue to generate a lead and follow up with them systematically 1) exacerbating the problem (that they perceive), 2) selling the IDEA of the solution, 3) building desire for the result, 4) presenting your service as the solution that will get them that result, 5) illustrating your difference from every other web designer that called them this week as well as the crappy ones who they hired in the past, 6) building trust and establishing credibility by using your portfolio, testimonials, professionalism and a display of expertise, 7) showing them how easy you are to work with and that you will be there for them after the sale, 8) build the value of what you do with hypothetical (but realistic) before and after scenarios, comparisons to a service they already pay for that has a lower impact on their business, etc, 9) Close by summarizing everything they have agreed with you on thus far, i.e. "So, let's sum this up and see where we're at. You obviously understand the impact your website can have on your business (yes). I am understanding that it's important to you from seeing the efforts you have already made (yes). So, the main things I could help you with, if I understand correctly, is to provide just a little extra guidance in how to make your website accomplish it's task as efficiently as possible with as little babysitting as possible and to redesign it to whatever extent necessary in a way that best achieves your goals. Am I understanding your needs correctly? (Yes) Maybe you could expand on those things a little more so that I'm sure I haven't over looked anything."

Get what I'm saying about the close? You want them to reiterate their agreement about their needs and then get them to tell you how they want you to help them. At that point they, unbeknownst to them, have all but agreed to hire you.

Targeting the right prospects and delivering the right message to them at the right time is the key. That will actually have a much more significant impact than which ever closing script or formula you use. (However, the close I illustrated seals the deal around 30 - 40% of the time. It is dependent on your message,though, which is dependent on your targeting.)

One more tip: Consider sending a direct mail piece or doing a free webinar or live workshop educating potential prospects on the many uses of their website that will have a positive impact on their business. I started with a free webinar which I promoted (at no cost to me) through several chambers of commerce. I offered a free download which was a companion to the webinar and contained the main ideas as well as a check list for setting their website up to perform specific tasks for them (generating leads, educating customers, delivering sales messages, etc.) I them followed up with them through a well structured email sequence. Once a prospect has shown a certain level of engagement I send a postcard inviting them to have a free 15 minute consultation at which I intermingle my suggestions with my pitch.

So there are a few bones to chew on. I'd be happy to elaborate if you'd like. Just post a reply. Hope that helps in some way.

Thomas

JD's forum is back up, so I can direct you here.

You never really answered how many calls you have done.