The first 15-20 seconds of a prospecting phone call is oftentimes the most critical part. It's been said that we have one chance to make a good first impression. However, most salespeople begin their calls with a generic sales pitch or value proposition that makes them sound like everyone else in their industry. Here's the deal: nobody listens to traditional value propositions anymore.

In a recent webinar I conducted on The New Value Propositions, I talked about beginning a conversation by creating a Sticky Statement™. These are a brand new breed of value propositions that connect with the emotional reasons that people listen and take action.

You know you have a great solution that can help your prospect or client, and you know that they need it--urgently!  The only problem is that they don’t think it’s the right solution for them.  So how do you help them understand that it IS the right solution?

Here are 3 quick ways you can help prospects understand the value of your offering and create interest:

Sticky Statements are the next generation of value propositions. For most salespeople, the first 20 seconds of your call can be the most difficult part of the entire conversation. Traditional benefits statements and sales pitches don't work anymore. This recorded webinar will teach you a new way to create interest and influence executives to meet with you.

 

 

 

Do you ever feel like you're constantly prospecting but you aren't seeing any results? While this could be due to your skill level, territory or other factors, it's often because of the failurel to manage prospecting time effectively. If you're like most salespeople, you find yourself being distracted by dozens of other activities and never seem to have enough time to prospect.

After coaching nearly 5000 salespeople over the last decade, I've come to two conclusions:

1. Most of us don't like to prospect and so we avoid it
2. Most of us aren't naturally well-organized, and we love to wing it throughout the day

OK, so these observations aren't exactly a breakthrough. However, these problems still hold us back from getting more leads and appointments. The big question: What time management habits will have the greatest impact on our prospecting results? Here are 5 ideas you can implement immediately:

Throughout the years, I've come across certain websites that I have used to research companies, find key people's contact information, and prepare for my prospecting calls. Here is a list of links to some of the best sites I've discovered. I am not affiliated with any of these companies and offer this list only as a resource.

There’s an old saying: “There’s no such thing as a dumb question.” Unfortunately, this isn’t the case in sales. The wrong question can confuse a prospect, seem self-serving, or even be insulting.

Remember that the best way to demonstrate your knowledge and capabilities is by asking really great questions. Here are a few DOs and DON’Ts when it comes to asking questions:

We’ve all had those moments during our prospecting calls when our brain stops working and we say things we never thought would come out of our mouths. This is just human nature. However, there are bigger mistakes most of us make without knowing it. Here are the top 7 mistakes that salespeople make during their prospecting calls:

This is a power-packed, 30 minute workshop that shares several innovative prospecting tactics. You'll hear ideas for: gatekeepers, voice mail, e-mail, creative marketing, influence, value propositions and more.

 

What objections are you hearing most often? Here are common examples:

When most of us hear an objection, we immediately feel the need to respond with a rebuttal. However, this can seem argumentative to prospects. It also tends to cause the prospect to rehash the objection and stay focused on it.

 I stumbled across an article recently that talked about the history of the 4-minute mile--that is, the ability to run a one-mile race in under 4 minutes. For years, the 4-minute mile was considered not merely unreachable but, according to physiologists of the time, dangerous to the health of any athlete who attempted to reach it.

Then, in 1954, an underdog named Roger Bannister achieved the "impossible" when he logged 3 minutes 59.4 seconds. And suddenly, the world of professional running changed forever.  The perception of the unreachable 4-minute mark had vanished. By the end of 1957, 16 runners had surpassed the 4-minute mile. So what can we learn from this?

This article is featured on SalesPractice.com

The average salesperson spends more time trying to reach the right people than actually having conversations. Executives have created multiple barriers to protect their time. Here are 5 ways to gain access to people who seem impossible to reach:

Last week, I got a call from a salesperson I had in a recent workshop. He was telling me about a "hot" prospect he met with over a month ago who had suddenly turned cold. Here's the story:

He had a great first meeting with the prospect. His solution was well-received and the prospect even had the budget to pay for it. After the meeting, the prospect told him to follow up in a few days. Early the following week, he followed up and left a voice mail for the prospect. He called again the next day and left another message. And another. Then he tried sending an email or two, but still no response. Now a month has gone by and he has a better relationship with the prospect's voice mail system than he does with the prospect.

Every salesperson has had this happen countless times. You may have even learned to "beware of an easy prospect." But when a prospect stops responding to your follow-up efforts, what should you do? I recommend using an automated lead nurturing tool like BuzzBuilder Pro. Here are a few other tactics:

If you like to send a letter prior to calling a prospect, avoid sending generic sales letters and marketing materials. The right sales letter should intrigue the prospect and help you turn a cold call into a warm call. Here's a format that you can easily tailor to each prospect:

This article is featured on SalesPractice.com

Over the past several years, email has been one of the best prospecting tools I’ve used. However, the problem with the e-mails that most salespeople send is that they all tend to resemble SPAM. Do away with generic sales messages and never e-mail a brochure or marketing piece to a cold prospect.

While there are numerous times you can use e-mail, there are 4 key points in the sales process where I use it most:

If you're like most salespeople, you probably don't like getting beat up on price or treated like a commodity. However, if you don't differentiate your services from the competition, the prospect is forced to make a comparison based on price. Here are a few things you can do to escape the commodity trap and stand out from the competition: