becoming a master communicator when using the telephone to access sales prospects. Never, never has mastering phone use skills been more important than right now. Today, at $4.50 per gallon, I’m going to make it easier for you to quickly and effectively make your point when using the phone to communicate with new sales prospects.
In December 1985, I conducted a seminar titled, “User-Friendly Telephone Use Skills” in Troy, MI. The audience was comprised of 83 retail computer store managers and members of their sales teams. Variations of the content of this seminar have since been repeated thousands of times to sales professionals and small business owner audiences throughout North America.
The 3 key concepts of this first seminar in 1985, and every one I have delivered since, are these:
It sounds like a no-brainer, doesn’t it? You would think every selling professional would conduct some form of advanced preparation before dialing. Yet, fewer than 3% of the surveyed selling professionals, who have attended my seminars since 1983, admitted to completing 1 of these 3 key concepts. In round numbers, that’s 2,800 people out of 93, 500.
Is it because 97% of the selling professionals who responded to my pre-seminar survey form just didn’t care about their phone-use skills? No, I believe the answer is because the telephone is such a common everyday household and office appliance that people presume to know how to use it. They do: know how to operate it.
There is a very wide chasm between use VERSUS skilled-use. The telephone is one of our most universal intuitive appliances. When I stepped off the plane in Stockholm, Sweden in 1966, my first action was to call my parents in Miami to advise them of my safe arrival. No one had to explain to me how to operate one of the banks of telephones in the baggage claim area. It was second-nature, even though the operating instructions were in Swedish.
Call Purpose is basic. Is this your first contact? Follow up on a recent mailing? Follow up on a recent meeting? Very specifically, what outcome do you anticipate as a result of initiating this call?
Decide, in advance of dialing, your specific goal or expected call outcome. I’ll presume most of you who are reading this blog will use the phone to follow up on a timely snail mailing. In this case, I urge you to prepare a complete script of what you plan to say during this 8-10 minute call. Even though you probably know everything about your products and services, it’s wise to script every word, for 7 reasons, namely:
A scripted presentation gives you the confidence of being completely prepared and thus achieving your call purpose, which is thoroughly qualifying each prospect as to decision-making authority; an urgent need for what you sell; and, a concise understanding of your services.
Lets face it, when you are thoroughly prepared, you project more confidence in your voice which is crucial when using the phone to greet and meet a new prospect. You sound more professional because you are more professional.
Using the phone, in this manner, will dramatically eliminate wasted in-person, face-time appointments and thus reduce your number of trips to the one-armed bandit at your gas station. Imagine, conducting all of your prospect qualification calls from the convenience of your office! You will be equipped to qualify many more prospects since this method is exponentially more time-efficient than just showing up, unannounced, like a peddler.
Script every word of your telephone presentation. Go to an office supply store and purchase a pack of white, lined 5″ x 8″ index cards and a red and blue felt-tipped pen. You will only need 8 of these white index cards. Think of these 8 cards as your ‘Cue Cards’. Each has a specific purpose:
In succeeding blog posts, I’ll provide you script composing techniques that will turn you into a master telephone communicator. I will take each Cue Card, in succession, and explain how you can master this simple but proven effective 30 year old tool to achieve your call purpose - everytime you dial.
Practice your scripted presentation until it’s second nature. After composing each of your Cue Cards, I will introduce you to a script practicing methodology that will fine-tune your Cue Card use skills.
If you are in a hurry to learn this Cue Carding Process, the entire snail mailing and telephone follow up Formula is documented in my PowerProspecting eBook which is for sale. Click on Purchase eBook Now in the right margin. Click on View Sample Chapters. The Introduction and Chapter 3 are FREE for your viewing. If you purchase my $40 ebook, you have 1 year to keep it or get a refund. Enough said!
Next week, I’ll begin the Cue Carding Process with Scripting Cue Card # 1.