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Sales Call Best
Practices:
33 Sales Tips |
These sales tips are reprinted from the
sales training tip emails Mark Hunter sends out to thousands of subscribers
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here.
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1. Early Morning Voice Mail:
Leaving voice mail messages is not a very effective way to
develop new customers, but it is a great way to keep in contact
with those customers with whom you already have a relationship
but may not deal with on a frequent basis. The entire process
takes less than 5 minutes per day between 7 and 7:30 AM. During
this time the majority of people are not at work; calling them
almost ensures you'll reach their voice mail, which allows you
to make 3-5 calls in the span of only 5 minutes.
Your big objective here is to not let the person you're
contacting forget about you. The way you do this is by merely
stating that you haven't heard from them lately. You can
compliment them on their business or simply suggest that the two
of you should talk later. Should you reach someone at this time
of morning, all the better. The person you reach live will be
impressed that you're also at work before most people, and
chances are the person will talk for at least a minute.
Remember, the objective is not to sell anything--it's simply to
raise the other person's awareness of you, thereby opening the
door for future sales.
2. Learn the Customer:
Every time you're with a customer, make it a point to learn
something personal and professional about them. Don't allow your
time together to be so focused on the immediate business
opportunity that you don't gather some additional, long-term
information. It's the long- term information you gain that will
help you retain the customer, and the longer you have a customer
the more likely they are to refer others to you.
When you're gathering information about the person, look for
items that are of common interest to you-- these are the items
that will help you propel the business relationship to the next
level.
3. A Perception is Worth a Thousand Words:
Recently I stopped by a computer store to have my PC worked on
and the clerk proved to be anything but customer-friendly. When
she did finally speak to me she told me I would need to leave my
PC at the store for at least 3-5 days and that I should be
prepared to have everything wiped off the computer. Her comments
were not very reassuring, and as I left the store, I mulled over
my decision to leave the PC with them. Within an hour I returned
to the store, picked up the PC and took it to another store
where I received the personal service I was looking for.
It's ironic to think that the first computer store probably
would have done the same repair as the second store, yet the
second store got my business (and all my future business) based
strictly on the personal service of the clerk.
Have we stopped to think for a moment about the perception we
give people when we talk to them? Next time you enter into a
conversation with a potential or new customer, think about how
the other person sees you; do they see you as an expert--a
professional who can provide them with the confidence they need?
In today's business climate we all have numerous competitors who
can provide service or products similar to ours. The difference
lies in the confidence we provide the customer. Before you begin
the next conversation, think "confidence" not just in what you
plan and say, but in how the other person will perceive you.
4. Opening the Sales Call:
Always start off a sales call by covering three things: 1. Gain
a clear understanding of the amount of time the call will take.
2. Make sure the customer knows what the objective of the call
is. 3. Relate the reason for the current sales call to the
previous sales call you had with the person, or to information
you may have sent them.
Connecting the current sales call to something previous gives
the customer the comfort of knowing you remember fully
everything that may have already occurred. This also gives the
customer the comfort of knowing you respect their time and that
whatever is decided in this current meeting will be acted upon
by you.
5. “Your Price is Not High Enough”:
OK, so you've never heard that line, but wouldn't it be great to
hear it? A price can never be too high; it's only too high when
we haven't taken the time to find out what the true benefits are
of the item we're selling. Remember, there is no such thing as
"too expensive;" there is only the belief that the potential
gain from something is not worth the cost. This principle
explains why one person might be willing to pay only $10,000 for
a car while the car might be worth $100,000 to another person.
Both cars supply the same thing-transportation, yet the cars
vary dramatically in terms of price because they vary
dramatically in terms of perceived benefit.
Next time you're about to buy or sell something, think in terms
of the benefits the customer can gain from using it and not the
price you're asking. When it comes right down to it, there is
nothing that is too expensive-it only lacks sufficient benefits
to warrant the price.
6. Celebrate Your Customer’s Anniversary:
For sales people who have retained customers for a period of
years it's special to recognize them and their relationship with
you. It's also a great way for your customers to realize how
much you think of them and a great way for you to take the
relationship to an even higher level through this personalized
type of communication.
7. Hand-Written Business Cards:
Next time you're about to give someone your business card take a
moment to personalize it. If you take a moment to jot on the
card your cell number, a home phone number, or some other piece
of information that is not already on the card, you will
suddenly make the person you're talking to feel very special.
Chances are the person will never call you on the hand-written
phone numbers, but simply writing them on the card gives the
person the feeling that you are placing them in high regard
compared with others that you meet.
8. Speak With Your Face:
I'm constantly amazed at the number of times I run across
salespeople who clearly don't believe what they're saying. It is
easy to spot in the person's face and body language-they take on
a whole host of non-verbals, ranging from non-expressive smiles
with tight lips to eyes that lack any sense of direction. When
we're selling to a customer in person or on the phone we have to
make sure our entire face reflects the enthusiasm and excitement
of our words. Why would we expect a person to buy from us if
we're not connected to and excited about what we're selling?
9. Umbrella Questions:
Don't forget to use "umbrella questions" on every sales call.
Umbrella questions are questions that work in any selling
situation and are designed to provide you with additional
information.
Examples of umbrella questions include: Why? Tell me more. Share
with me another example. Explain further. Are there some other
examples you could share with me? You get the idea, umbrella
questions are ones that get the customer talking more about what
they're looking for. On your next sales call challenge yourself
to ask at least 5 umbrella questions.
10. Customer’s Goals:
Do you know what goals your customers have? Just think how much
more effective you could be if you knew the goals of the person
you're selling to. Find out what their personal and business
goals are for 2004 by asking questions and listening to their
answers. In addition, let them know that you have set goals for
yourself. Explain your belief that it is essential for you to
help your customers achieve their goals in order for you to
achieve your own.
11. Prospecting Timeline:
With only a couple of months left in the year, most people are
working hard to make their numbers. Yet, at the same time, many
have no idea how long it takes to turn a prospect into a
profitable customer. Creating a "prospecting timeline" can help
benchmark past experiences and streamline future ones. Begin
this process by examining a few recent customers, and then break
down the key activities you went through. Your goal should be to
determine the specific activities that were the most time
consuming, and then figure out a way to shorten the time spent
on that particular step. Most people are amazed to find that a
couple of activities take the majority of time. By knowing this,
they can work to alter their selling process. Plan now and 2004
will be your best year ever!
12. Holiday Networking:
As we near the holidays, it's a great time to begin preparing
your schedule for making phone calls to people you rarely talk
to. There's no better opportunity than during the holidays to
call someone you haven't spoken to recently and wish them a
great Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. If you make 5 calls per day,
just think of how many people you can network with by the time
December 31 rolls around?
13. Holiday Selling:
Often the holiday period becomes a very difficult time to sell
when you're in a business-to-business environment. If this is
the case for you, use the holiday period to sell yourself and
your knowledge. Send your customers information about your
industry, the economy, or other points of interest. Although
they may not read the information, they will notice that you
took the time to send it to them. Use these months to deepen
your relationship with your customers. When business gets back
to normal after the first of the year, you'll have new things to
ask them about and, more importantly, you'll be viewed as a
salesperson who is interested in more than just money.
14. Know Your Customer’s Customer:
How much do you know about your customer's customer? It doesn't
matter if you sell B2B or B2C, the question still demands an
answer. I work with too many sales people who, when asked this
question, have only a shallow answer. Take the time to find out
all you can about what motivates your customer's customers.
Spend time with them, talk to them, and, most of all, get to
know what drives their decision making process. When you can
identify this information, you can then provide your customer
with even better service.
15. New Year’s Resolution:
Start the New Year off right by developing the habit of
recording the questions you ask on a sales call. Create a
complete list of all the questions you ask to open a
conversation, explore facts, close a sale, etc. Along with
recording the questions, make a note of the type of responses
you receive. Within a few months, you will not only have
documented your questioning skills, but also developed your own
personal list of questions you feel very comfortable asking.
16. Have you Learned Something New? :
There is always something new you can learn about your
customers, whether they are newly acquired or long-term
accounts. Use each sales call as an opportunity to be teachable.
It's amazing how customers change! Unless you keep up-to-date
knowledge about them, you will soon find they've changed and you
haven't. After each sales call, ask yourself what you learned
about the customer and, of course, make sure you record it in
your customer profile.
17. Benchmark Your Sales Goal:
At the end of each day and each week, compare your
accomplishments to your overall sales goal. If you achieved the
volume you needed to hit your goal, congratulate yourself! If
you didn't, identify at least one thing that did go right and
might help you achieve your goal in time. Always find something
positive to end the day with. Before you leave, don't forget to
set up the next day or week! The last thing you want to do is
use those very productive first minutes of the day doing
anything but selling.
18. “Google” A Customer/Prospect:
Looking for a reason to contact a customer or a prospect? Search
their name on Google.com to see if there are any listings for
them. You'll be astonished at what you can find concerning your
customers/prospects or others with their same name. Regardless
of the outcome, the search should give you some interesting
antidotes you can use on the next contact. When that contact is
made, the customer/prospect will be amazed you took the time to
do the search, and if you do find something in reference to
them, you'll have the perfect subject to talk about.
19. Agree on Something:
Never end a sales call without having agreed with your customer
on something, even if it's not the close of a sale. The
objective of coming to an agreement, no matter how small it
might be, is to demonstrate to the customer that you're able to
move the sale forward. If possible, gain agreement on one
particular aspect of the sale and use this as a building block
for the next time you meet. However, if you can't see eye to eye
on a particular aspect, you may at least be able to concur on
the items you intend to follow up on or a time to get together
again. The important thing is that you agree on something and
use whatever it is as a "next step" towards a future sales call.
20. Reduce Your Selling Time:
In each day, make time to not do any type of selling. Rather,
use that time to reflect upon recent sales contacts and identify
at least one thing you did well in each. Think of the questions
you asked, the body language you used, and the information you
shared. After you've pinpointed the best of the best, take the
time to plan how you can do that same activity in every other
sales call you have.
21. Don’t Present All Your Information:
Never plan to present all of your information on a sales call.
If you do, you'll have nothing left to show the customer should
you reach the end of your presentation without a sale. The keys
to a successful sales call are to know your information so well
and to be so prepared that you do not need to present everything
to gain the sale. "The best sales presentation is the one never
given." - The Sales Hunter
22. Add-On Sales:
Every time you make a sales presentation, always be thinking
about what the add- on sales may be. If you wait to think about
this until after you close (as is commonly done), you tend to be
too rushed and forget the whole add-on process. Thinking about
these sales during the presentation will enable you to be ready
when the time comes to ask for them. In addition, many times,
the suggestive sell of the add- ons can help close the sale of
the first item. By using this technique, you increase the
potential for the total sale, and decrease the amount of time
you would use if you were to sell each item independently.
23. Never Give 100%:
The customer should never hear your entire sales presentation!
If you have to deliver the whole thing to make a sale, you
either haven't developed a very good presentation or you
shouldn't be selling. The purpose of the sales presentation is
to assist you, the salesperson. It is not so you can assist the
fancy, glossy sales materials or the super-slick PowerPoint
presentation. Great sales people never have to deliver their
entire presentation because they've taken the time to
over-prepare. They've built sales materials around any type of
concern they may face and are ready to deal with an objection
should it arise.
24. Expertise in 30 Minutes a Day:
No one has the time to read everything they need to in either
their professional or personal lives. This general shortcoming
creates a magnificent opportunity for us as salespeople to
become experts in our industry. A universal lack of reading time
means that all it takes for a person to be viewed as an expert
in his field in less than a year is a commitment to read for 30
minutes a day about their trade (not counting medicine,
engineering, etc.) For the vast number of industries that sales
people are involved in, this simple one-year reading commitment
can quickly make you an authority.
25. Using Time to Sell:
Frequently, sales people think the way to control the amount of
time needed for a sale with their customers is by offering them
a special deal if they buy now. When this is done, the
salesperson is usually only giving away profit, while thinking
he's speeding up a sale. We leverage time best by selling to the
customer's time parameters, not our own. When we sell to their
parameters, we are selling at a higher value and a higher
profit.
26. Know the Influencer:
With many sales, it appears there is only one person involved in
the decision making process. Yet, more times than not, another
person is behind the scenes influencing the decision. When you
make your sales call, always assume there is an influencer and
expect to deal with him or her. To find out who that influencer
is, using probing questions with the customer such as: "Who else
in your organization is typically involved in decisions such as
this?" "When decisions like this have been made in the past,
what are some of the things others have said?" "Where does a
decision like this rank in terms of other decisions you
typically make?"
27. Price Discussion:
When faced with resistance to price, offer the customer an
example of where they spend considerably more money on something
else. By doing so, the customer will begin to put into context
the amount you're asking them to spend with you.
28. Universal Questions:
There are six universal questions you can ask almost anytime and
anywhere in a sales presentation. They are: "Who?", "What?",
"When?", "Where?", "Why?", and "How?". A perfect place to ask
one of these is when you're not sure where to go with the
discussion and/or are afraid of losing control.
29. Sales Advocates:
The best way to make a sale is to have someone else make it for
you. You do this by creating sales advocates. These are people
who are so impressed with what you offer and/or the way you sell
that they tell others about you even without you asking. If you
haven't obtained any sales like this, then you don't have any
sales advocates and, more importantly, your sales process and/or
service may not measure up to what people expect.
30. Uncover New Benefits:
After people have had time to experience the product or service
you're selling, they often begin to realize benefits they
weren't expecting. Talk to your long-term customers and find out
what additional benefits they're experiencing. You may find it
advantageous to use these in your future sales presentations.
31. Quiet Time:
Block out 30 minutes a day (or 2 hours a week) to move to a
quiet location with nothing but a blank piece of paper. During
this time, ask yourself how you can secure more sales from your
existing customers and make notes of your thoughts. Your best
ideas will always come when you step back from the business long
enough to examine how you can take your customer relationships
to a higher level.
32. Is It Your Product or You?:
It's important to understand why people do business with you.
Have you ever asked your customers why they chose you? Have you
ever asked those who chose your competitors why they did not
decide to do business with you? Find out if there's anything
about your sales process that needs to be modified. The
information is free, and it may wind up being the best feedback
you've ever received.
33. Your Head:
Tilting your head slightly when you are listening to someone
speak communicates that you are giving them your undivided
attention. It's amazing how this simple type of body language
can convey a powerful message!
Mark Hunter, “The
Sales Hunter”, is a motivational sales speaker and industry
expert who addresses thousands each year on how to increase
their sales profitability.
For more information on his sales training or to receive
a free weekly sales tip via email, contact “The Sales Hunter” at
www.TheSalesHunter.com.
Reprinting of this
article is welcomed as long as the following is included:
Mark Hunter, "The Sales Hunter",
www.TheSalesHunter.com,
© 2007
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Other articles regarding Sales
Call Best Practices by "The Sales Hunter" that
you might find interesting include:
Negotiating the Do's to Win
Negotiating the Don'ts Unless You Want to Lose
Selling with Your Personality
Your Customer is Lying . . .Did You Catch It?
11 Rules for Small Business Success
Learn, Teach, Sell Yourself to More Sales
10 Tips to Improve Your
Negotiations
Quit Being a Salesperson
Disruptive Selling
Ten Tips to Drive Your Business Using Your
"Drivers"
Negotiating Checklist to Ensure a Successful
Outcome
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