Today more than ever it’s really tough getting through to the person you’re trying to reach on the phone. It used to be that the gatekeeper screened your call and kept you from accessing the very person you were trying to reach. Now there’s technology getting in your way as well. Cold calling is hard enough, but when you are confronted with voice messaging systems, it adds to the challenge. People tend to get nervous and confused leaving voice messages and as a result the message itself may sound like a jumble of unrelated phrases. More than once I’ve had voice messages from callers that sounded like really good Porky Pig imitators. Hence, it’s very important to leave voice messages that catch your listener’s attention, compel them to listen to the entire dialogue, and get them to actually return your call. The following seven tips should help you with this modern-day nightmare. 1. Curious George. Be sure to hit my hot buttons with your message so as to spur my curiosity. Specify clear benefits as to why I should return your call. Do a little research on me or my business before calling so you can relate your message to my needs and let me know that you might have something of interest to me. Try something like, “Mr. Lombardo, this is Brenda Johnson with XYZ Inc. I see that you have expanded your operations. I know from my other clients that have experienced similar growth that they encountered challenges with finding quality people to meet their expansion. We help companies find talented people so they don’t waste time and money on the wrong choices. I’d like to speak with you to learn more about your challenges to see if we might be able to help. You can reach me at…” If this is truly a concern of mine, you can be sure I’ll call you back. 2. Short & Sweet. Don’t leave long messages. I don’t have the time or patience to hear someone go on and on about what they do, how they do it or how they think they can help me without even knowing what my pains are. The example in tip #1 is short enough yet informative enough to get to the point without boring me. 3. Don’t Hang Up. Always leave a message. Some people say that if you get a voice message, hang up and try again later until someone live picks up. I don’t recommend this at all because I can see from the caller ID that you called. And if I keep seeing that you called, I will, a) get annoyed that you are not leaving a message, b) assume you’re a telemarketer, or c) fear you are stalking me. Busy business people frequently don’t answer their phones directly and let them go to voice mail so they can go through all their calls at a specific time or day. You have to respect that and not expect that you’ll actually get them live. 4. Complimentary Businesses. Try to find a topic that is complimentary to my business. Perhaps you have a product or service that works well with what I offer and we can work together. Possibly we have something in common like another client or colleague. Maybe you want to purchase my product. Make this clear in your message. Once I call you back, be sure to discuss this complimentary topic first, and then you can segue into how you might be able to help me with your offerings. 5. Make Me An Offer. Try offering me something for free such as a free consultation or site-survey. This could be something that you do anyway as part of finding new business. It will get my interest when I hear I could get something for free. For instance, if you would normally do a sales call where you’d ask questions about my business and then present your findings to me, then this can be offered as a Needs Analysis that you are giving me for free. It’s all about presenting value to me and getting me to want to return your call. 6. Be Prepared. Don’t even pick up the phone unless you are first prepared to, a) reach a live person, or b) leave a good voice message. Some sales people are good on the phone when they reach a live person, but as soon as the machine picks up, they fall apart (“Um, yeah, uh, Hi. Uh, this is George from uh…uh…I mean George Carlson from uh…”). Be prepared in advance with a script for handling any situation. The script should be used as a guideline for you to follow and stay on track, but under NO circumstance should you ever read from a script. 7. Don’t Give Up. On average, it takes up to six to seven times to get through to people these days, especially in business. The average sales person gives up after two or three tries – not even half-way there. So be persistent and patient. You can even mix it up by rotating emails between calls, if you have their email address of course. Be creative and persevere and do not give up too quickly. Use these tips to help avoid Voice Message Nightmares and to increase your chances of getting your prospects to return your calls. Good luck and good selling! Russ Lombardo The Sales Guru
Article Source: http://bizymoms.com/business
Russ Lombardo is President of PEAK Sales Consulting, LLC and an experienced Sales Consultant, Trainer, Author and Speaker. He works with businesses to develop sales processes and provide sales training & coaching. Russ is author of several books on sales and Customer Relationship Management (CRM). He can be reached at 919-491-2823 or visit www.PeakSalesConsulting.com