recruitment business development
Selling using the phone is different from the face to face sale in two distinct ways namely the seller as a much shorter time to get their initial pitch across to the prospect and you only have one means of communication to deliver your message, your voice. These factors should be given serious consideration when selling over the phone.
It is also worth noting that it is much easier for a prospect to object early in the communication so there is strong need to grab attention and involve the prospect very quickly.
Remember if you are not happy to be calling, the prospect won’t be happy that you called so get yourself in the right frame on mind and make sure that you sound enthusiastic. First impressions will happen extremely quickly over the phone so the tone and emotion of your voice will have a big influence on the prospect in those initial seconds.
Phone introductions need to be quick and contain only relevant information, your name, company info, some well known customers, a piece of information to demonstrate that you have done some research on the prospect and something to grab the prospects attention, a reason why they should continue the call.
After your intro you need to ensure that the conversation is flowing both ways and the easiest way to achieve this is ask lots of open questions, you need to gather as much relevant information about the prospect as possible so that you can establish any existing needs and tailor you sales pitch for the person at the end of the line.
When you have gathered all the relevant info you are now in a position to sell. Communicate to the prospect where you feel your product will benefit him or her and how it can positively affect his or her organisation. If you have done a thorough fact-find you will know the pain-points or benefits that you should emphasize with this particular person. Try to make the pitch as personal as possible and refer back to the earlier answers to your questions.
Deal with any objections ensuring that you emphasize and qualify each objection before reselling the corresponding benefits, ensuring that you cover additional extras such as quality of customer service and reputation etc.
We know that it can be difficult to get decision makers over the phone so when you do and you have got this far, ensure that you close. It amazes me how good some sales people can be at getting the sale to this stage but freeze when it comes to closing. Asking prospects to buy products is the definition of what we do so make sure that you close.
Other factors to consider when selling over the phone are people can be rude so prospects can be rude, it’s not personal so don’t take it personally. The minority of calls made will lead to sales but it’s this minority that count as regards to target, commissions, promotions etc etc.
As a rule of thumb if the conversation is going one way, that’s not good, if it’s flowing both ways that’s good. As with all selling, good questioning technique is the best way at achieving this conversation flow. Try to stay away from selling until you have gathered enough information to make the pitch uniquely personal to the prospect.
In my opinion sticking word for word to a scripted intro rarely is a good idea, where scripts can be useful is as a guideline to what to say as part of your initial intro but unless you are Colin Farrell or Jodie Foster, use your own words to convey your message. Where the prospect is busy try to secure an agreed time and date where you will call back and ensure that you do.
Selling over the phone can seem difficult at first but for those who become experts are highly sought after and quickly progress up the ranks within organisations.
Read more articles like this at http://www.btbtraining.com
Beyond the Boardroom
Beyond the Boardroom is a leading business development consultancy and training provider based in Ireland. Working in the areas of recruitment, training and sales & marketing
About the Author
Niall Devitt is a training consultant, business mentor and facilitator. With over a decade of experience working as senior sales manager and trainer for some of Ireland’s top companies his expertise lies in creating and implementing performance driven sales programmes. Niall is regularly asked to contribute business articles and his advice has been published through the National Press and broadcast on Radio.
BTB Training Courses
http://www.btbtraining.com/sales-training
Business Development for Recruiters from Warren Kemp/Recruitment Matters International
|
|
How to REALLY use LinkedIn
$19.95 It is vital in any economic situation to have a network to be able to fall back on, or build upon. The most valuable website giving you this on a professional level is LinkedIn. Over 57 million people now have a profile on LinkedIn and also a few Connections. The question that most people ask is: what does this website have that I can use to my advantage? And also: how can I use it in a way tha... |
|
|
The Volunteer Recruitment (and Membership Development) Book
$15.85 Susan Ellis has literally crammed this book with every suggestion and recommendation on the subject of recruitment developed over her 20-plus years in the volunteer management field. She first shows how to design the best assignments for volunteers as the initial step to finding the most qualified people. What follows is a wealth of information on topics ranging from how your organization's image ... |
|
|
People Management in the 21st Century: Understanding the Basics
$20.91 About the Book: It is one of the burning questions of all time! Is it possible to have a relaxed and happy working environment while being able to meet with the ever-increasing demands of productivity and efficiency being placed upon us by our bosses? "People Management in the 21st Century" not alone answers that question but allows the reader to modify and use the various tools-for-th... |