***After you read this post, be sure to visit me at my new home here.***
In this series, I share tips for making every call you make count. You can't not make calls, and your excuses aren't cutting it because they simply aren't adding cash to your bottom line.
Here are the final six tips you must use to make every call count:
Ask for What You Want. Do not hang up the phone before you ask for what you want. Even if you think you will not get it, ask anyway (Go for No!). You may be pleasantly surprised with the answer. If you do this consistently and you are making enough calls, eventually you will be successful. As Wayne Gretzky says: "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." I say: "You have to a-s-k to g-e-t."
***After you read this post, be sure to visit me at my new home here.***
In this series, I share tips for making every call you make count. You can't not make calls, and your excuses aren't cutting it because they simply aren't adding cash to your bottom line.
Acknowledge the Person You are Calling. Personalize your conversation and develop rapport by taking a moment to acknowledge or appreciate something about the person you are speaking to. Say something like, "I appreciate you taking the time to speak with me." or "Thank you for being at the meeting last week." or "It was great to meet you the other week at the conference." Find something to say that is a genuine acknowledgment of the person you have called. This transforms a sales call into a conversation.
Read the Level of Rapport. You want to build rapport with the person you are speaking to as quickly as possible. Some people play "Relationship Geography," asking people questions to try and find a person they know in common. This is fine if the person is friendly, interested and has time to spare. Other people find this intrusive and frustrating because they are at work so they can be working. You have to be able to gauge the level of warmth, interest and enthusiasm of the person and match that level, plus just a bit more. If they seem stoic, be a bit warmer than stoic. If they are enthusiastic, be a bit more enthusiastic. If they are in a hurry, spit it out and get on your way quickly! You don't want your conversation to make anyone feel like this:
***After you read this post, be sure to visit me at my new home here.***
In this series, I share tips for making every call you make count. You can't not make calls, and your excuses aren't cutting it because they simply aren't adding cash to your bottom line.
There is one thing that stands out as an important differentiating factor between those who have average success and those who consistently soar. It is not enough to go on appointments, send out fancy packets, and pass your card around. You have to be willing to become masterful at using the phone.
Use these 17 "quick tips" for making every call count, and you will be more masterful the next time you dial. Here are the first 5:
Put Yourself in a Peak State! Do not simply locate the number and begin to dial. Visualize the person picking up the phone, saying how glad he or she is to hear from you. Expect the call to be excellent!
***After you read this post, be sure to visit me at my new home here.***
That's right, folks. You don't get what you don't ask for, but when polled, professionals rank "asking for business" right up there with getting a root canal or delivering a speech, naked, in Macy's window, at Noon time. In fact, most would rather do the latter. (How do I know? I just do.)
Rather than asking for the business, they make assumptions. They assume their friends, family, contacts and strategic partners somehow magically just know what they do, who they do it for, and that they'd gladly take on new business, especially the new business of their friends, family, contacts and strategic partners (and their contacts).
Umm, no. That's not at all how it works.
If you want new business, you've got to ask for it. If you want a referral, you need to make it known you are looking for a referral.
Would you go through P. Terry's Drive-Thru, skip the ordering part, and just show up at the window to pay? Of course not. You say, "I want a Number 1 with cheese, a chocolate shake and curly fries with extra ketchup." Otherwise, you're just a crazy person at the window.
Stop making assumptions and start asking for business. It's simple. You say, "I'm a CPA. I do tax returns for companies with revenues between $100K and $2M, and I would enjoy doing your returns for you."
You could even throw in, "No is an okay answer, but I just had to ask."
Will you get a "NO!"? Maybe. But so what. Find out why getting more "no's" can lead to more "yes'es".
Still not convinced you want to put yourself out there? Let's flip it around. Have you ever hired a friend to do work for you? After, perhaps, they went out on a limb and asked for your business? You were thrilled, right? To have someone you know, like and trust taking care of you, most likely way better than some stranger would have ...
Were you horrified when they asked for your business? Of course not. You were most likely grateful.
If you're going to make an assumption, make it a positive one: assume your new client will be grateful to have you in their corner.
That's how your friends and contacts are going to feel, because you're going to take great care of them after they hire you.
Remember:
Related Articles:
Find Your Limits and Push Past Them {Go for No!}
A Different Way to Ask for Referrals {Paul Castain}
It Doesn't Hurt to Ask {Seth Godin}
"A" is for Ask (Or Don't Ask) {Honorée}
How to Get Everything You Really Want {Honorée}
R is for Referrals, Parts 1-8 {Honorée}
Tall Order! is a book that gets to the point. It helps you pinpoint what is going to get you the results you want, starting right now. Jeffrey Gitomer says, "Don't let the size fool you -- this book is compact dynamite! Buy this book!"
Honorée Enterprises, LLC. turns service providers into rainmakers, average producers into rock-stars, and dreams into reality. For more information on how we can specifically help you or your organization, click here. You can read all about Honorée here.
