How to Make Prospects Forget that You’re Trying to Sell Them Something
“Hi Sir, we have looked at your website and want to know if you are interested in buying our $200 monthly SEO package.”
I maintain websites for clients of mine and have received this call at least 20 times within the past 6 months. Needless, to say, these “SEO providers” have not gotten a single call back from me.
When you are trying to sell a product or service you may get in the frame of mind that just because your business can help a potential client, they will automatically be receptive to you. Maybe if you call 500 prospects a few of them will be “smart” enough to request additional information from you.
Doing it the Right Way
The key to setting up meetings with prospects you’ve never met before is to learn as much about them as possible so that you can customize your sales presentation for each prospect. Before any sales call, learn as much as you can about the personal aspects of your prospect (their name, how to pronounce their name, their interests, etc.) and what professional connections they have. Also, do a background check on their company so that you know about the prospect’s customers, policies regarding salespeople, associations, hierarchy, current problems, issues with suppliers, the culture of the organization, and what they sell. You are not limited to the aforementioned variables and the more you know about the person, whom you are calling, and his or her corresponding organization, the greater your chances of securing an appointment.
For the specific person you may find a LinkedIn Profile, Facebook profile, and/or blog. For the organization you may find their website and social media pages including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Learn about the prospect’s industry. For example, if your potential customer sells CNC machine tools, learn more about the industry by reading associated magazines, such as Modern Machine Shop. You may also talk to people within the prospect’s organization, customers of the organization, and business people who have dealt with the organization.
Knowledge is Power
The more you know about them the more you can figure out how their needs fit with your product or service. Any of their potential objections can be answered with a fact or statistic you found relating to their business. More importantly, you will come across as a consultant and not a salesman.
Now, trying to learn all of the aforementioned details may be completely possible. At the very least, make sure you know if the prospect, who you are calling upon, has a personal interest in using your products or services and has the power to potentially buy something from you.
Calling on prospects can be mentally challenging because there will be rejections along the way. Before calling on each prospect, have a specific plan of what you want to achieve. Don’t expect success with each and every one of your prospects and set realistic expectations.
Nickolay Lamm is an internet marketing specialist at InventHelp who protects those looking to sell their invention ideas at InventHelp Scam Watch.
