It is 9:27 AM EST and your phone rings. The number is private but you’re in a good mood because your day isn’t as hectic as every other, so you answer, “Hello?”
The person speaks. It’s someone named ‘Nick’ calling from ListenToThisSolution.com. His voice is haggard and sounds more like he was hoping for your voicemail. Out of habit you bring up your Outlook calendar for the day, its wide open.
Nick makes sure you handle the area of business he’s inquiring about and then starts anxiously dropping some jargon about what his company provides. “Someone give this man a sip of water!” you think. You didn’t even listen to what he was offering, it could have earned you a promotion or been a cure for cancer but it was so disengaging that you had to step in and stop him. “Hey Nick, I can’t talk I actually have a meeting I’m heading to.” No you’re not.
The sad part: he sends you an email with some information since he must have caught you at a “bad time” and due to your subsequent sense of humility you check out the company website and discover it’s actually something you would have been interested in talking about. Some time-critical tasks get dropped on your desk and suddenly your slow day is not slow at all. Attention is refocused and Nick’s email is buried in the shuffle and he’s never to be heard from again.
When a person in sales, who’s actively hitting the phones, comes to me in frustration concerning their scripting and messaging I tell them to put the emphasis on what they should be saying or asking within the first 1-2 minutes of the conversation. The introduction is the most crucial part – the part where you have to engage your prospect enough so you can get additional minutes for a more healthy and relevant discussion.
In the prospects’ minds, they’re always asking themselves, “Who is this and what do they want from me?”
A Salesperson relies on people listening to them, so the first step is ensuring you have a genuine tone when you explain why you wanted to touch base with your prospect. Make it sound personable, not like it’s some line you’ve been using on a consistent basis. Did you get a referral or are they on the company website, or LinkedIn?
Try telling them that you thought it was worth connecting with him/her because you saw their profile on the company web page and thought perhaps these issues you solve were ones that could be affecting them. At least you sound more thoughtful and have the presence of mind to somewhat convince them that you’re not like the other 35 people that have called them throughout the week.
Develop 3 good questions around 3 specific pain points your technology solves and if they respond back with “What do you mean by that?” then take that as a sign that they’re almost engaged and that it’s a chance to elaborate in more detail so you can get them to participate in a quality conversation.
The introduction is vital during a telequalification call with prospects to getting them engaged and into a meaningful conversation. Take some time to listen to your teleprospecting reps introductions or have a colleague listen to offer some helpful feedback. Once the introduction portion has been addressed, you’ll find that there are more qualified sales opportunities out there that fit your solution.