Below are some phone tips. Instead of dreading time on the phone, embrace the benefits of a phone call. The telephone gives you some tremendous advantages. Because no one can see you, you can glance at notes or work virtually anywhere that you’re comfortable. Take care to develop an upbeat and cheerful phone demeanor: most of all, get comfortable with the device!
Off Time. Many of your potential clients will be hard to reach during a typical nine-to-five day. Many, however, come in early or stay late. Their assistants aren’t there to block your calls at those times, so you have a better chance of getting through. I experienced the best results between 7:30 and 8:30 am and 5:30 to 7:00 pm.
No weather checks. Always call for a reason, not just to touch base.” Announce relevant new activities in your business, or ask whether your contact received your mailing. Having a purpose matters even more when you’ve met with a client and need to find out, without coming across as a pest, if she’s going to buy it.
Silence is golden. A common error is failure to tolerate silence during a phone call. Typically, the prospect wavers about whether to set up a meeting or commit to a sale, and in the meantime, you get tense about the silence at the other end of the line. Resist the urge to dispel the tension by sprouting something like, “Why don’t you think about it and let me know tomorrow?” You’d only be letting him off the hook.
Always go for the close.
Once you’ve made your initial contact, do whatever it takes to realize your goal, whether it be a meeting, referral, sale, or something else. You can soft sell or hard sell, depending on your personality or the situation, but even if your prospect isn’t quite ready to commit, use the call to prepare for the next one. Figure out what’s making her hesitate, do your best to fix or work around the hitch, and get back to her.
Image Courtesy of Flickr via parkcaptech.
