Sales Process: Just as Important as Sales Skills

When most people think about the skills necessary for success in sales, they usually think about the interpersonal skills used to successfully close sales and generate business. After all, selling is all about how you deal with people, right? Well... it's not always that simple.

Sometimes the fault for poor or less than expected sales results lies not in the people skills of the sales or customer care reps in your company but rather the sales process that has been set up. Our processes can trip us up and make it harder for people to say "yes" to us. For instance:


Recently I received a call for a phone company, asking me to change my service. Now I'm always in favor of saving money so I definitely gave a listen. I gave my email address and promised to look over the information. I had a hard time listening to the rep as she appeared to be calling from a very noisy call center.


About an hour later I got a call (again from the noisy call center) from the original rep's supervisor asking for my business. I politely told her I prefer to think about this type of decision first. She offered to call me back in 3 days. The next day, I received her follow up call. No reference to the fact she wasn't supposed to call me for two days. She asked for my order again. Now, at this point, I had realized that this offer wouldn't be a good fit for me. I didn't like the length of the contact. She immediately offered a contract of a much shorter duration. I declined the offer.


Here's why I declined the offer:

• Why can't the first person conduct the entire sales process? Unless you have a brand new person or a very complicated product, there's really no reason for a second person to get involved. It smacks of poor training.

• Why is a "supervisor" calling back? Wasn't born yesterday... I've worked in industries where all the sales reps had business cards that said "vice president". Come on, we know you're the closer. There are smoother ways to handle that. (see my first point above)

• Inconsistency. If you're going to call back sooner, reference that to me. For instance "I know I'm supposed to call you back in 2 days, but I wanted to make sure you were aware of ....."

• Offered concession to fast. If you come down in price too fast, or make any concessions too quickly, it makes people feel uneasy. "What else can they compromise on? Would I have been taken advantage of if I hadn't brought that up?"

And oh yes, get a noise canceling headset...

Obviously, these techniques get sales, but how many sales are you losing? Sometimes, we forget there are human beings on the line with human reactions. We need to be able to walk the line between passive and aggressive in order to achieve our goals. Overly aggressive sales techniques increase the odds that buyers will cancel after the "aura" of the sales environment you're created goes away. For more sales and solid customer relationships, use assertive techniques that focus on your customer's needs.m

Poor sales processes can cost you just as many sales as poor interpersonal skills. Make sure yours are designed to help not hinder.

Sales or Service Success: Listening is Key

I spend a lot of time with inside sales and customer service personnel helping them improve their interpersonal skills in areas such as questioning techniques, reaching decision makers, dealing with difficult people, closing sales and so on. The key to all of it, however, is the ability to listen well.

Studies have shown that we spend about 9% of our time writing, 13% of our time reading, 23% of our time speaking and 55% of our time listening. What's staggering about that is not only do we spend most of our time listening but that we spend double the time listening as we do speaking.


Here are some things to keep in mind:
You cannot not communicate. Even when you are not verbally saying anything, you transmit messages through your non-verbal's. How you dress, your body language, we count on so many visuals to communicate.

Up to 80% of our communication skills are non-verbal. So, when you speak to someone on the telephone, in effect, you're only using about 20% of your skills.


In my work in inside sales and customer service training, I've used the phrase "Communicating Blindfolded". It's a good analogy. Think of phone work as being given a blindfold. You can hear - but you can't see. You don't have a choice, you must listen.

I consider listening to be one of the three legs of the communication stool we sit on when we communicate over the telephone. The other two are words and voice. When I began in inside sales, I only considered these last two - but the more time I spent in these activities the more I came to realize that I can never truly be effective - never really reach my potential - unless I acknowledge the need for, improved and used my listening skills.


One of the greatest obstacles to good listening, particularly over the phone is that meanings cannot be transferred from one mind to another - only words can be transferred. The challenge here is that you, as the receiver of the message, attach your own meaning to the words I sent you. This is why I'm a huge fan of using clarifying questions when I speak with someone. Just because I attach a particular meaning to certain words or phrases, doesn't mean that someone else does. Regardless of the stage I'm in the sales or service process, I need to make sure that I understand what you mean and that you understand what I mean. 

I do this by focusing only on the task at hand: listening.

Listening is affected by what's called "selective attention". This is almost as a survival technique because I can't' possibly listen to and process every sound I hear. have to use selective attention in order to listen actively - and that means I have to stay in the moment. I can't let my attention wander. If I'm on the telephone, I don't yield to the temptation of reading email, trolling the news sites online or reading that report on my desk, all while "listening" to you. Can't be done.

Remember my mantra: Multi-tasking is the enemy of good listening. 

Listen well and all will be well. 

I Can't Buy if I Can't Understand You

MAJOR PET PEEVE AHEAD!

As many of you know, I specialize in consulting for and training inside sales and customer service personnel . Can anyone tell me why we keep hiring people who do not have clear speaking voices or whose voices are so heavily accented they cannot be understood? That's a rhetorical question, BTW - I do know the answer. Sometimes we are tasked with "filling seats" or our employment offer is so weak, we can't find qualified help.

Phone work requires a clear speaking voice. An accent is fine - it can actually set you apart and make you more memorable - but the average person you are calling must be able to understand you. A clear voice is a requirement for phone work. I'm not just talking accents, either. A soft voice or one that mumbles or even talks too fast is also inappropriate. 

Please, make sure you hear a person's phone voice before you hire them. Sometimes it can be different on the phone than face to face. That's often because the communication dynamics change when you are on the phone and don't have body language or facial expressions to accompany your voice. 

When we haven't hired the correct help, it doesn't save us any money. We lose money through lost sales. Plus it costs us with a poor or even negative brand image.

Hiring managers need to make sure that they've hired appropriate voices. They will have more sales in less time. After all, if I can't easily understand you, how can I make a purchasing decision?

Overcoming False Objections (part 1)

Overcoming objections is a way of life for a sales person. Many companies will provide their people with scripted responses to common objections... and that can be a good thing. When starting at a new firm, it's neither in yours or the company's best interests for you to re-invent the wheel. If someone else has already come up with a great way to handle objections, you should use it.


Recently I found myself being recruited for an MLM opportunity and listening to the manager try to sell me on the opportunity reminded me of selling skills theory. Remember, we must take all objections seriously but keep in mind that not all of them have any real value. Here are some examples:

My assistant is set in her ways. It would be just too much of a fight to get her to ______ (fill in your product/solution).

My husband won't let me do it.

I need to talk to my boss about it.


In all of these we need to make sure that these are 1) real objections and 2) we don't belittle a decision making process (1st two examples). Often people come up what with handy all-purpose responses designed to get the sales person to back off. The response may have nothing to do with why they are really objecting.

Success "Calls" to You

Yes, it does. Here's a short list of tips for telephone sales and service that can help you succeed


Recognize differences between face to face and telephone communications.
When you communicate over the telephone, you're communicating with a blindfold on. Words and voice become all important. In person, you're watching their body language. Make sure you adjust your message accordingly.

Learn to Listen.
Oddly enough, although we hear everything, we need to make a conscious decision to actually listen to what we're told. Make sure you listen actively and objectively.

Create a telephone presence or image through your words and voice.
Be professional; don't use slang or sloppy grammar. Articulate your thoughts clearly.

Make a dynamic Plan of Action to improve your telephone presence.
Record yourself. Objectively listen to strengths and weaknesses. Create a plan of action base on this.

Concentrate on improving inflection, enthusiasm, rate of speech and volume.

A pleasant sounding voice makes it easier to reach your objectives.

Put your best voice forward and sound confident when you're not.
Sound confident even when you're unsure. A willingness to double-check increases respect of you and your organization. It's all in how you say it.

Prepare for all outcomes.
You can handle anything smoothly and with aplomb if you prepare beforehand.

Voice Mail is an opportunity to have a 30-second commercial for the price of a telephone call.

Take the time to craft your message beforehand.

Think before you speak.
A planned presentation needn't be stiff and sound canned. Be comfortable with your product and your message.

Silence can be powerful - Make it work for you!

10 Tips to Create an Effective Inside Sales Presentation

Remember that last really bad sales presentation you made? You remember it: you lost focus; you weren't prepared to overcome objections. When you asked for the business - if you asked for it at all - you sounded stilted and forced. And naturally, you didn't get the business.


There's an easier way. Prepare yourself for success. The easiest way to do that is to create a planned presentation. This process works well whether you make your presentations face to face or over the telephone. Many people leave the mechanics of getting sales up to chance. "Make a few calls", "ask for the business" we're told. But how should we ask? What should we ask? It often feels as though a sales call is a black hole.


Just as we write out our business plan we must take the same effort to create a sales presentation. Doing this is more than just outlining your conversation points beforehand and knowing your product's benefits. You must also script out the words you will use and how and when you will use them.


Many people balk at the idea of writing out a presentation. They equate it with bad telemarketing calls - and so they can be when not done correctly.


Here are some tips to creating an effective presentation that will help you get more clients.


First, begin with the end in mind. Stephen Covey, author of "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" is right about that. What is your goal for this call? What do you hope to accomplish? Write it down. You may find you have more than one goal. Rank them and recognize you may not accomplish all of this in one call.


Next, think about the calls you've made in the past. Write down what worked for you and what didn't. Then roughly write out a potential conversation with a prospective client. Try to write it in a conversational style. Forget what your English teachers taught you about writing in complete sentences, write this the way you speak.


Creating a good presentation means including the following points: opening, exploring, offer, close, objection rebuttal. During your opening, you have a limited time to introduce yourself and catch someone's attention. You want them to continue listening to you. Exploring gives us the opportunity to ask questions, to find out more about the person we're speaking with and what their concerns are.


Give your prospective client plenty of chances to talk. It helps them become more vested in your conversation, which in turn makes it easier to come to agreement and allows you to learn what's important to them. You can then tailor your offer to these concerns.


Always state your offer to answer the prospect's unspoken question: "what's in it for me".


Ask for agreement. This is your close. Although some sales novices associate "closing" with high pressure sales, a close is simply asking for agreement, in this case agreement to use your services or products.


Remember: the people you speak with may have initial concerns to using your services. Before your presentation, think of as many potential concerns or objections a prospective client might have about using your products or services. This requires being able to step outside of ourselves and put yourself in another's place.


Prepare to ask your prospect more about their thoughts.Then, based on the information you have been given, gently show then how your service or product can help them. This should also be written out. If you spend more of your selling time on the phone, it is very simple to use a planned presentation as you can keep it in front of you as you speak. Do not read it.


Practice until you are comfortable with the words and can speak it conversationally. Think of yourself as an actor learning a script.


Finally, test your presentation. Begin using the presentation you have created. Take note of what works and doesn't work. Make changes until you are confident you've found a winning presentation.


By writing out your presentation beforehand, you will find yourself prepared to successfully handle any situation that arises.

Who Will Make the Best Telephone Sales Rep?

What makes a great telephone sale representative? Is it personality or skill, luck of the territory or the ability to keep grinding out those dials? The answer lies in a careful analysis of what the sales assignment requires. It is not uncommon for a telephone sales person who has been very successful in one position to be mediocre or even fail in another.


Creating a great telephone or inside sales rep starts before the hiring process begins. Management must have a clear sense of what the position will entail. This is accomplished by considering the objective of the position and what behaviors are needed to achieve this. Ask yourselves what the person will need to do to in order to achieve their goals.


Prospecting and customer sales positions have very different emphasis. Although certain traits are shared, it can be very difficult for a customer sales person, who regularly handles repeat business, to emotionally deal with the frustrations of the prospecting process, particularly if it is a long closing cycle. Customer reps like the positive affirmations that come regularly with their job. These affirmations come from either customers who purchase with relative frequency or from the satisfaction of keeping a customer happy with their attention and service. At the same time, a rep who has spent a lot of time prospecting, may find it difficult to maintain the service orientated relationship that customer sales entails. They may look for a quick result and move on.


In addition to a higher tolerance for rejection, a prospecting project will require an emphasis on a high amount of dials. The more one is shot down, the more calls one must make.

However, it is important to note that a customer sales assignment may still require a high amount of dials. In order to increase productivity, often the easiest way to do so is to increase the number of dials each day. This means that the customer sales rep must be able to stay focused enough to achieve their sales goals. It is easy for customer sales reps to make "busy work" and hand holding fill their days while convincing themselves they are being productive. This can lull management into a false sense of security. Without sales results, however, the customer sales rep is not being effective. Remember, whether a customer sales rep or prospecting sales rep, in the end they must be accountable for measurable results.


Take stock of the selling techniques that your inside sales assignment requires. Tangibles are different from intangibles. For some, it will be simpler to sell a physical product, like a pen or a machine or a car. Although purchasing over the telephone, buyers in many cases can sample the product: see, touch, use their own senses to compliment what the sales person has been saying. In selling a service, the inside rep must be able to create the experience solely with their words over the telephone. Again, these are two different skill sets.


Another difference between prospecting and customer sales can often be found in the compensation structure. Sales management must be vigilant that they are rewarding correct behaviors.
High producing sales reps are motivated by money. They will carry out activities on the job that directly affect their income. If they don't see a process or procedure as contributing to that, a manager will inevitably have problems with sales reps complying. Many customer sales reps are less motivated by money per se, but will want to see rewards and recognition for their work.


If you are a small company, don't fall in love with the idea of hiring from large "name" companies. Often, these reps have been used to a level of support that you will be unable to provide. During the interview process make sure the candidate sales rep understands what working for your organization will be like. Although someone from a larger concern can bring with them ideas and a different viewpoint, if they are not willing to make changes to their office lifestyle, you may just find yourself with a disgruntled rep who will look for the first opportunity to get back to a larger firm.


A careful analysis of all these factors will help management create a profile of the experiences and traits a telephone sales person will need to succeed in your organization. So, will make the best telephone sales representative? The one who is best for your company.

Is Your Sales Process Costing You Sales?

We spend a lot of time talking about selling skills - the interpersonal skills needed to successfully close sales and generate business. However, sometimes the fault for poor or less than expected sales results lies not in the people skills of the sales rep but rather the sales process itself that has been set up. Our processes can trip us up and make it harder for people to say "yes" to us. For instance:


Recently I received a call for a phone company, asking me to change my service. Now I'm always in favor of saving money so I definitely gave a listen. I gave my fax number and promised to look over the information. I had a hard time listening to the rep as she appeared to be calling from a very noisy call center.

About an hour later I got a call (again from the noisy call center) from the original rep's supervisor asking for my business. I politely told her I prefer to think about this type of decision first. She offered to call me back in 3 days. The next day, I received her follow up call. No reference to the fact she wasn't supposed to call me for two days. She asked for my order again. Now, at this point, I had realized that this offer wouldn't be a good fit for me. I didn't like the length of the contact. She immediately offered a contract of a much shorter duration. I declined the offer.

Here's why:

• Why can't the first person conduct the entire sales process? Unless you have a brand new person or a very complicated product, there's really no reason for a second person to get involved. It smacks of poor training.
• Why is a "supervisor" calling back? Wasn't born yesterday... I've worked in industries where all the sales reps had business cards that said "vice president". Come on, we know you're the closer. There are smoother ways to handle that.
• Was inconsistent. If you're going to call back sooner, reference that to me. For instance "I know I'm supposed to call you back in 2 days, but I wanted to make sure you were aware of ....."
• Offered concessions to fast. If you come down in price too fast, or make any concessions too quickly, it makes people feel uneasy. "What else will they compromise on? Would I have been taken advantage of if I hadn't brought that up?"

And... oh yes, get a noise canceling headset...

Obviously, these techniques get sales, but how many sales are you losing? Sometimes, we forget there are human beings on the line with human reactions. We need to be able to walk the line between passive and aggressive in order to achieve our goals. Overly aggressive sales techniques increase the odds that buyers will cancel after the "aura" of the sales environment you're created goes away. For more sales and solid customer relationships, use assertive techniques that focus on your customer's needs.

Your Telephone: Better Than Email

The telephone is the most important piece of office equipment you have. Although it shares certain attributes with email, there are several areas where the telephone excels.


It's immediate. Although voice mail is the bane of our existence, once we are talking with someone, we can resolve situations immediately. There's no need to send a message and wait hours before you get a response. Time is a premium these days but too many people spend far too much time checking emails for responses. It's something that's just hanging out there as opposed to having a resolution. Between land lines and cell phones, it's never been easier for people to reach you immediately.


It's honest. Since the telephone is so immediate, people don't have the luxury of waiting and carefully composing the "correct" answer to your inquiries. You get the opportunity to hear spontaneity or hear that catch in the voice while an answer is calculated.


Opportunity for give and take. Although text messaging can give you the appearance of the give and take in a conversation, messaging cannot possibly convey the shadings and meanings that voices can.


It's easier to discern a person's meaning. The voice is a powerful communication tool. It's powerful for the speaker as well as the listener. The speaker uses inflections, pauses, tones and shading to help convey their meaning. The listener is able to use the speaker's voice to help discern what isn't being said. Our voices say our words and meanings but a good listener is able to figure out if there is a difference between the two.


Today, many people opt to take the easy way out by avoiding situations involving verbal communication. The problem with this is that communication skills must be used regularly in order to keep them sharp. It's the old "use it or lose it" syndrome. If we don't speak to each other regularly, we fall out of the habit of being good listeners; we fall out of the habit of using our voices and our words to their best advantage.


Using email instead of the telephone can be deadly for sales results, particularly telephone sales environments. Although many inside sales units would never identify themselves as "telemarketers", many of the principles remain the same. This means that actual telephone conversations should rule the day, not emails. It's one thing to follow up a call with an email confirming information; it's another when you find yourself spending more time with your emails than on the phone. It's easy to forget that inside sales should be not only about cost effectiveness, i.e. phone vs. car expenses, but about reaching as many people as possible. If a company wants to primarily send emails as a form of marketing, they don't need a staff of sales people to do so.


When you actually speak with people, you develop your ability to read more into the conversations. You become a more effective communicator and your sales success will grow. You spend more time connecting, conversing, and conveying your message. Don't let your skills grow rusty. Step away from the keyboard and make that call.

Quick Tips for Effective Telephone Communications

Here's a few quick tips for effective telephone communications.

Voice Mail

A voice mail message should follow this format:

Name, Company name, interest statement, close say number, repeat number

Remember:

Always use your first and last names

Use area codes

Message should be brief

Message should give reason to call back

Make message an opportunity for a 30 second commercial

Effectively Reach a Decision Maker

Getting Voice Mail

Give people a reason to call back

Screener

Develop a relationship with screener

Use screener to qualify prospect

Remember: Screener many have decision power

Time of Day

Always easiest to reach either early in morning or late in the day

Avoid Phone Spam

Don't leave constant voice mail messages that aren't returned

Don't call more than once a week (unless otherwise requested)

Do be respectful and polite, regardless of reception by decision makers or screeners

Listening

Learn to Listen

Be aware of listening patterns

Listen actively

Listen objectively

Don't be afraid of silence

Rely less on non-verbal cues

Over 1/2 of all communication skills are non-verbal

Asks Questions to Generate Information and Shift the Conversation

Generates Information

Open ended Questions 

Can be used for general information or specifics

Open ended Questions start with these words: Who, what, where, why, when, which, how

Close-ended Questions

Can be used to verify

Closed-ended Questions may start with: Is, Are, May, Can, Do, Would, Could, Should

Controls the conversation

Begin with the end in mind

Create a prepared sequence of questions

Have alternate questions ready

Conversations can go in many directions

Asking Questions Will:

Allow people to talk to you

Create engaged individuals

Give them the opportunity to "buy into" your conversation

Creating Interest in Your Product

In order to sell effectively, your prospects must find a need or a benefit to doing busines with you. You must make sure that you have grabbed their interest so that they will continuue to listen to you. Creating a statement that helps hold their attention is your first step.

What are you currently saying to create interest? 

In order to creat interest, you must see things from the point of view of the person who will be buying. What you think is the most important to them, may be diffferent from what they feel is important. What are the most important advantages and benefits of your products - as seen by your clients? To do this, you may need to survey your customers - or pay close attention to them when they call your office. Utilize your customer service/customer care personnel in this quest as well. Ask your customers what is most important to them. You may find yourself quite surprised.

Take the time to determine the top 3 things that are important to your customers. This will give you the information you need to create an interest generating statement.  Keep in  mind that you only have 15 - 30 seconds (if you are lucky) to grab their attention.  Write out your statement. Use it in your sales presentations. How to people react to it? Does it lead to further conversation and exploration of your buyer's needs and wants? If it does, great! You've got your interest gathering statement. If you are not happy with the results, tweak it until you've got it. Selling is a fluid activity. You must always be aware of changes in buyer needs and priority.

Starting with a strong interest gathering statement will catch their attention and help you to propell your conversation foward.

Create an Effective Telephone Presentation

Here are a few point to consider when creating a telephone presentation.

• Make it conversational.
• Keep in mind how people talk in real life. It's OK to start a sentence with "but" or "and" because that's how people talk. This helps keep the conversation from sounding stilted. A stilted presentation only leads to distrust and more objections on the part of the prospect or customer.

• Soft sell works best
• REMEMBER: soft sell doesn't mean "no sell". You know you need to close the sale but it doesn't have to be "hard". We all know how to sell. It's really nothing more than persauding someone to our point of view. If you can convince your friends to go the the out of the way restaurant you've found, you can convince your buyer. You wouldn't use hard sell tactics on your friends, don't use them in the workplace. 

• 60/40 Rule: You speak 40% of the time, your prospect/customer speaks 60% of the time
• This creates buy-in from your customers and prospects. The more involved they are in the conversation, the more invested they become in the result.  No involvement = No sale

• Involve the people who are actually making the sales calls
• `... if you are creating this for others. This is particularly important if your are revising or formalizing a current presentation. You will receive valuable insight when you get feedback from the people who are in the trenches, making or receiving these calls.  This will create buy-in at that level and ensures that the inside staff will actually use the presentation you have spent so much time creating. In fact, use a faciliated meeting and have them write the presentation. 

• Determine your call objectives
• What do you want to accomplish? Are you looking for a one-call close? Will you expect call-backs? Are you setting appointments? Determine what you want your outcomes to be. Make sure you have set both primary and secondary objections. 

• Keep it Simple.

Important Metrics for Inside Sales - Part 2

I think we can agree that dials per day/ dials per hour is the first number we should look at when looking at metrics for inside sales. However, that won't tell us the whole story. The next figure we should pay attention to is the "reach". Some people will also refer to this as the number of decision maker contacts.

This overall figure is also a raw number but measuring this will give us even more information. If I’m not reaching enough people with the responsibility and authority to make a decision, I’m not going to be able to sell. 

Look carefully at any barriers. The easiest one to look at first is skill level. Do people know how best to reach a decision maker? Solving this may take a combination of coaching and training. Being able to reach the right person requires the skill set to do so. Do the inside people know how to use a screener to get additional information? Can they talk to others in an organization in order to find to best person to speak with? Can they create an effective voice mail message?

If you decide that the employee's skill level is fine, you'll next want to look at your lead sources. Are you asking your inside reps to call the right people? If you are prospecting you might want to take a look at the titles and departments of your current customers to make sure you are focusing your efforts in the right place. Having better names upfront will help make the most of your phone time.

Another similar metric is reach per dial. Once I've decided what an acceptable overall reach for the hour/day is, I'll want to drill this down even further. I've found that it usually is a 3 to 1 ratio between dials and reaching a decision maker. In other words, you've got to call someone an average of 3 times before you might get to speak with them. Now keep in mind that this is an average, some people you’ll reach right away, others may take you 5, 6, 8 dials. 

To determine the cause of a higher than usual number, go through the same process as you would for the overall reach. Some units will prefer to measure reach per dial alone. In the end an inside rep making slightly less dials but has a higher reach will be the more successful sales person. The challenge for management is to learn what the parameters for success should be.

Important Metrics for Inside Sales – Part 1

Sales is a numbers games. Now some people will agree, but some people will also disagree. The ones who disagree will spend a lot of time talking about quality of calls and doing appropriate research and I agree with them... to an extent. Skills are all very important. Without a good skill set, without arming yourself beforehand with necessary information about your contact and their organization, you will find it difficult to be successful in sales.

However, neglecting metrics can keep you in a holding pattern. It’s true… if you don’t speak with enough people, you simply can’t get enough sales. The techniques and the research help you make the most of your opportunity, but if you don’t speak with enough people, you won’t get the sales.

Let’s take a look at the basic metrics for an inside sales professional:

First, we want the broadest, rawest data: how many dials are you making within a specified time frame. In any calling assignment you must take the time to carve a specified amount of time to put aside specifically for making phone calls. It’s very easy to put off a calling assignment or put it aside for another time that may not come.

 When managers come to me and want to get skill training for their reps, the first thing I ask is how many dials per hour do the inside sales people make. Often, management cannot give a number – it’s never been measured.  But this is the essential , first number that we need.  Everything else flow from this. 

We must make enough dials to reach enough people.  This can be tough if it is not a primary job responsibility. You may not realize how few calls are made until you begin to measure them. Also, by asking them to keep track, you are raising awareness and accountability of the function – which may raise the number all by itself.

A low dial per hour count is an activity that is fixed through coaching not skills training.  What barriers have you put in the way of making calls? If people are making calls as part of their responsibilities and not their entire job, it is not unusual for people to put off making calls. By keeping tabs on this, you are able to measure how much they are actually performing this activity. 

Often people like to research before making a call. That’s good. What’s not good is when research seems to be the overwhelming activity your inside rep is performing. Did you hire a researcher or a sales person? Remember, although it’s important to be prepared, sometimes people do too much - and sometimes the information is not accurate. Remember your customers’ websites are marketing tools for your customers.  Although it will certainly give you insight into the organization as will other sites giving news about a company, sometimes the information is misleading or just plain wrong. This is why it’s always best to simply pick up the phone. The phrase analysis by paralysis was coined for a reason. 

Increasing your dials is the easier way to increase production.  It does not require any selling behavioral skills training but it may require your inside people to look at the job in a new way. 

Being Prepared = Control

Here in New Jersey we are recovering from Superstorm Sandy with a Nor'easter bearing down on us on Wednesday. It feels as though we've been we've spent a week in suspended animation.  There are lots of things we can't control in this world. The weather is certainly one of them.  However, we can control how we react to events. For example, I made sure I had flashlights, batteries, candles, water, fire wood for the fireplace, a full tank of gas in the car and electronics fully charged with car chargers for backup.

I was lucky. I didn't have to use my preparations. However, I was prepared as much as I could be for the storm. It makes me a lot less stressed.

It's a good philosophy for life in general. It's definitely a good philosophy when you work in sales. We can't always control our situations but we can control how we react to them We strategize and  prepare our approach. We create an atmosphere in which we make it easy to say yes. We're calling our targeted customers, not just any name in a listing.

 Last Monday, as "Sandy" bore down on us, I received a sales call on my office line. It was a 3rd party calling on behalf of a well-known telecommunications company (that I do not use). They wanted to offer me an opportunity to switch to their company. Needless to say, I was speechless. I was in my office firing off last minute emails and finishing up reports in anticipation of losing power. All over New Jersey people were hunkering down for the coming storm. Yet, a major company is trying to sell me something unrelated to my current situation. My response? "Do you know where you are calling?" A reluctant, sighing "yes" was my answer. Poor inside rep, having to listen to people like me.Tell me, did this company prepare adequately? Would it not have served a national calling campaign better to target areas of the country where people would be disposed to listen? Instead, they waste the time and talent of their workforce, calling people who certainly wouldn't be listening to them. I can't control a Frankenstorm bearing down on the East Coast, but I can control who I will contact.  I can put my resources to their best use. I can be prepared and help control my outcomes.

Make Your Telephone Calls Count

Have you taken the time to think about your telephone presentations lately? Many people tell me that possibly the hardest thing to do these days is reach the decision maker. But what happens when you do reach them? Have you created an opening that makes people want to listen to you and become active participants in the conversation?

All too often when I look at prepared scripts, I notice sentences that might look well in a direct mail piece but will either get you shot down quickly or simply won’t engage your prospective customer.

For example, openings that tout money savings or a saving of time and effort. It may very well be the case, but everyone says their product either 1) saves you money, 2) saves you time or 3) makes your efforts more efficient thereby alsogiving you savings from 1 and 2 as well. Seriously, everyone says it. Doing this actually makes it easier for a decision maker to tune you out – because you’re not different from anyone else who calls – and try to get off the phone as quickly as possible.

Let’s think about a better way. Why not simply introduce yourself and your company name, make
a quick one sentence statement about what your product is, and then ask some questions? Take the opportunity to learn more about your potential customers.

One of the things you might find is that this decision maker is not a potential customer. Isn’t better to find that out up front? Isn’t it better to learn who you should be talking to or know that currently your products/services are not a good match for a particular organization? Give yourself the opportunity to learn more about a customer's needs and wants. You might not be the solution now, but you may be several months from now. But you won't know that if the decision maker tunes you out, waits for you to take a breath, says "No Thanks." and hangs up the phone. You've not had the chance the offer any solution or plant any seeds of thought for future business.

Make your telephone time count. Sit down and review your opening. Make it natural sounding. Avoid tired and hackneyed phrases. Take the time, instead, to become genuinely interested in your prospect. You’ll be far happier with the results.

Questions Make an Easier Sale

It goes by many names: exploring, probing, questioning. The ability to ask questions in an appropriate manner is an important interpersonal skill. It can help speed up both a sales process as well as help resolve conflict in a customer service situation. However, although it is a much-taught skill, it remains a least-used skill.

Used correctly, questioning techniques yield additional facts that can be utilized to move the conversation forward. It can allow the conversation to be controlled and a well thought out questioning sequence, can allow the questioner to lead the other party in a specific direction.

Comfort questioning: Making it easy
Questioning sequences are an invaluable part of any sales process. So why are so many people reluctant to question? Why after training and role playing sessions to people continue to omit questions or ask poor ones?

For many people asking questions is full of risks: risks that they won’t like the answers given, risks that people will answer evasively or not at all. What we must remember however, is that not asking a question can result in poor or incomplete information. So, how can we make it easier for ourselves?

Types of Questions
Qualifying
-The Decision Maker
-The Prospect's/Customer's Readiness to buy
-Ability to purchase
Researching
-What is important to decision maker
-What else is decision maker considering
-How will the organization’s goals will factor into the decision making process
Rapport Building
-Creates conversation
-Promotes understanding

Generating Information
Open-ended questions
-Can be used for general information or specifics
-Who, what, where, why, when, which, how
Closed-ended questions
-Can be used to verify
-Is, can, may, do, have

Controls the conversation
Begin with the end in mind (Stephen Covey)
-Create a prepared sequence of questions
-Have alternate questions ready

Conversations can go in many directions
Create a “decision tree”

Asking Questions
-Allows people to talk to you (60/40)
-Creates engaged individuals
-Gives them the opportunity to “buy into” your conversation


Asking the right questions at the right time will get you the information you need in order to close more sales, more quickly!

Teleclass is November 17th - Here's the info!

Researching information to update the KRG website.
www.krgcommunications.com is still up and most of the information is still valid. However, product info like teleclasses and behavior style assessments is woefully out of date. Looking forward to some new solutions shortly.


In the meantime, my November teleclass for the "So... You Need to Sell" series is set for Tuesday, November 17th at 7PM. This month's class is "Introduction to Basic Telephone Skills" and is only $25 for the one hour class.

Topics to be covered include:

• The Manager of 1st Impressions - Adjusting your message to the medium
• Put you best voice forward - intonation, diction and articulation
• Words that pack power and words that don't
• Create a "telephone" presence through your words and voice
• Telephone etiquette
• Empathy and Sympathy
• Voice Mail: Make it work for you
• Make it easy for yourself - and your listener

To register for the class call 973.709.1252

NOTE: This is a teleclass, not a webinar. I do this on purpose as it's important to become comfortable absorbing information solely over the telephone. After all, that's the skill set we want to improve, right?

I look forward to you joining my class!

Scripting for Inside Sales

A lot of people are turned off by the idea of a scripted call. They are concerned that it won't sound natural, that it will sound forced and artificial. They are convinced it will will render Inside Sales Reps incapable of thinking for themselves or on their feet. They are right! There is nothing worse than a badly trained agent, reading a badly written script.

I'm currently preparing to faciliate a sales training program at a local university. One of the areas we will be discussing is the differences between inside and outside sales. On the handouts that were given to me (I'm following their lesson plans), "scripted" is one of the differences atributed to inside sales.

But hold on a minute, the best outside sales people I know prepare their calls thoroughly, down to the words they will use. Isn't that scripted? The difference would be that the inside person gets to write it down and refer to it during the conversation, while the outside rep must memorize it.

The very best inside scripts are carefully written to allow for conversation, not just a one-sided announcement (and then management wonders why sales aren't better). Inside reps are trained to use them, trained to help make someone else's words or thoughts their own. Giving someone a desk, a chair, a phone and a computer and telling them to "just read the script and you'll be fine" is the type of situation that leads to those awful calls to people who can't get off the phone fast enough. The potential buyer stopped listening and is only waiting for a pause to break in and say a hurried "thank you but we're not interested at this time" and swiftly hang the phone up. No, there's no sales to be made that way.

What if, instead, inside sales reps were trained properly? What if they role-played extensively through many situations before beginning to make any calls? You'd be surprised at how much more effective, how many more sales would be closed and how much more motiviated to succeed your inside sales reps would be.

Your Inside Sales Supervisor is your best Retention Weapon

Some Random Thoughts on the Subject....

People don’t leave jobs. They don’t leave companies. They leave their bosses. This is particularly true for inside sales or telemarketing positions that are closely supervised. Inside Sales is a difficult job and generally requires much closer supervision than a field sales position. This means that reps will spend that much more time with their bosses. A boss’s influence on the success of the telephone sales effort can be tremendous; not just in terms of putting together lists, making sure calls are made and sales are closed, but in how the sales reps regard the experience of working for your organization.

An inside sales department, on paper, can appear to be a big, strong oak tree. Until the storm knocks it down and everyone sees the rot on the inside.

All too often, we spend our time focusing on the interpersonal skills of our sales reps but spend far too little time on the skill sets of the people supervising the sales group. Do your supervisors have excellent interpersonal skills? Do they know how to motivate, to make the workplace not just productive but a pleasant environment? Do they know how to help their subordinates defuse the stress and tension that comes with all those telephone calls?

Ask yourself these questions:

Do you hear raised voices coming from the unit on a regular basis?
Do people come in late regularly?
Is absenteeism a problem?
Does the “drama” level in the unit seem high?
Do you seem to have difficulty keeping your best sales reps?


If you can answer “yes” to these questions, your problems probably start with your supervisory staff. Often, when filling a supervisory position, particularly in a small company, the supervisor is promoted from within. It’s not unusual for a company to reward a high performer with a supervisor’s job. It’s also not unusual for management not to give this person the appropriate training to supervise.


A great supervisor is able to bring out the best in their subordinates. They are able to discover what motivates the people working for them and use that information to create a job environment that people want to succeed in. They understand at all people need to be treated with respect and dignity in the workplace. They don’t create onerous policies and procedures that make people feel as though they can’t be trusted. Remember, with a few exceptions, people want to work hard and be successful in their jobs.

Being a great sales person and being a great supervisor require different skill sets. A supervisor must be able to empathize with their staff yet still be able to hold people accountable for results. They need to be able to help their staff succeed and not just play "gotcha" when people fail.

Ask yourselves these questions:
Are people surprised by the information on their performance reviews?
Do terminations for “cause” surprise the people being terminated?
Can employees accurately tell where they stand with management in regards to their skills and worth to the organization?

It's important to avoid being that supervisor who may clock in but check out when it comes to being actively involved in motivating your staff, training for improved performance or outwardly caring about the success of the individual inside reps.

Want to see the cause of high turnover? Make sure you look in the mirror first.