USING THE TELEPHONE FOR CONTACTING POTENTIAL BUYERS
Only about 50% of sales opportunities are found in bookstores. In most cases, you’ll be more successful if you seek buyers in special-sales markets and sell to them. One effective way to contact many people in a short period of time is to contact them via the telephone. You can disqualify those who cannot meet your needs, and arrange a meeting with those who can.
You have only one chance to make a good first impression when you use the telephone, so you can’t afford to make any mistakes. Two of the best ways to maximize your results are to organize your calling area and create a script to guide you through your calls.
Be conscious of your surroundings.
A SCRIPT WILL IMPROVE YOUR PERFORMANCE
Actors and actresses use a script to make sure their performance is precise, and capable of being reproduced regularly. Professional speakers use scripts to make sure their speeches are presented smoothly and completely. You too should use a script to make your telephone prospecting more effective and efficient.
A script is not a detailed document you read word-for-word to your prospect, eliminating the spontaneity and charisma you must project on the telephone. Instead, it should be an outline providing consistency, security and momentum to your calling efforts.
* Consistency. Telephone calls are rarely identical to one another. Your presentation should be tailored to the specific needs of the prospect at hand. But the sequence in which you present your information should be consistent on every call. For example, you should begin with an attention-getting introduction and move on to a compelling and concise presentation, culminating in a request for an interview. Although the words you use on any one call may or may not be similar to another, a script makes sure that you move from step to step, methodically.
* Security. A script should contain the general questions you want to ask a person, as well as the major points you should communicate. It will keep your conversation proceeding in orderly fashion toward its proper conclusion. If you begin to lose track of your thoughts, your script will keep you moving ahead. You won’t have unwanted periods of awkward silence as you search for the proper words to use.
* Momentum. If you are having success with your telephone activities, a script will help you continue on a roll. On the other hand, you must bounce back quickly from a particularly negative discussion. A script will keep you on track and motivated to make the next call.
Your script should be an extension of your personality.
Your script should not be a crutch, but a tool. It should be an outline of key words and phrases to which you can refer at a glance. If you simply read from it, your presentation won’t come across as being extemporaneous. Use it to stay on track while you speak freely enough to release your real personality and build rapport.
Even the most well-organized script will not be successful if you can’t get through to your target. If you call and explain to the receptionist what you want, you will probably be told they are not interested. You do not want this to happen. You have to get through to the decision maker.
BEGINNING THE CONVERSATION
It’s up to you to keep the conversation moving ahead. Use your script and advance toward your objective methodically. You can do so by including several basic categories of information in it:
1) The prospect’s name. Leave room at the top of your script to pencil-in the name of each person as you call him or her. Write the correct spelling of the target’s name in your records, but write it phonetically on your script. It’s important to use the listener’s name regularly, and it could cause ill will if you mispronounce it.
2) A list of opening statements. Specify different ways to get the listener’s attention under a variety of conditions. That way you can choose the most appropriate one for each situation.
If you sense your prospect is busy:
“I wanted to talk to you about the ways in which I could help your company become more profitable quickly. But it sounds as if I’ve caught you at a bad time. Should I call back later this afternoon or would tomorrow morning be better?”
If you are calling based on a referral:
” Ms. Jones asked me to call you about the ways in which I could help your company increase its sales by 20% in the next six months.”
If you’re calling with a congratulatory remark:
“I read your article in today’s paper and thought it was excellent. Do you have a moment to listen to several ideas I have about your topic that could help your company?”
If you’re calling to follow up:
“I’m calling to follow up on the recent letter I sent you about…. Did you receive it? Do you have a moment now to discuss it or should I call back tomorrow morning?”
Follow these hints:
* Take control. When you initiate the call, the content and direction of the discussion is up to you. Be prepared with a list of questions that will keep your prospect involved in the discussion. Probe for areas of need and then let him know that you can satisfy these needs. This is how you create value for yourself.
* Be aware of the time of the day. If you say “good morning” when it’s afternoon where your prospect is located, you may come across as being unprepared. However, you can use this strategically. For example, it could be 7:30 pm where you are calling on the east coast, which makes it 4:30 pm on the west coast. You could say “good evening” and then correct yourself (to “good afternoon”) so the listener knows you’re calling from a later time zone. He may be impressed by how diligently you are working to seek employment with his company.
* Create a mnemonic. Try to give listeners something with which to remember you. For instance, if you have an unusual last name, you could spell it after saying it (I’m Brian Jud. J-U-D). They may comment on how unusual it is, and the conversation begins on a friendlier basis.
3) Your objective. Keep your objective in front of you. You may want to lead with it to get the prospect’s attention, and you’ll want to refer to it when you get to the action step.
4) Your skills/special talents. What skills and accomplishments do you have to get your contact’s attention and motivate him to invite you in for an interview?
5) Your prospect’s need? What is the one thing likely to get your prospect’s attention most quickly? Why will he be interested in talking with you further?
MAKING YOUR PRESENTATION
Once you have your prospect’s attention and permission to proceed, move immediately into your presentation. Follow up on your opening statement with a comment enticing the listener to invite you to come in for a personal meeting. Remember, that is your goal. You shouldn’t tell your entire story now, but only enough to whet your prospect’s appetite.
Offer a “hook” to get the listeners involved. This is either a statement or question that involves them in what you have to say. A statement should respond to their unspoken concern: “OK. Now you have my attention. Tell me what you have to say, and you had better make it worthwhile.” Begin by making a connection between their needs and what you can do for their companies.
If you begin with a question, it should elicit a positive response and immediately involve your prospect. Before you begin asking questions, seek the person’s permission to do so. A simple “May I ask you a question?” should eliminate his interpreting the exchange as an interrogation.
Be careful how you ask questions. Do not gamble by unwittingly prompting a negative response and thereby ending the conversation. For example, if you said, “Could you use a book like this?” he could simply say “No,” and you might be hard pressed to respond positively. Instead, ask your questions in a way that will start them talking, get them involved, and provide you with additional information.
Brian Jud is a book-marketing consultant and the author of Beyond the Bookstore (a Publishers Weekly book) and The Marketing Planning CD-ROM describing new ways to sell more books to special-sales buyers. Contact Brian at brianjud@bookmarketing.com, blog at http://blog.bookmarketing.com or www.bookmarketing.com or the Publisher’s Bookstore
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