Plan Your Calls Like You Do Your Weekend

What are you doing this weekend? Maybe you haven't thought about it yet, or maybe you could start rattling off a list of chores and activities you'll be doing. Today sales expert Art Sobczak points out the importance of planning - do you plan your calls like you plan your weekend?

Ask yourself these questions:

On the last telephone call you made to a prospect/ customer, what was your specific objective for the call?

Did you have the opening planned so you knew precisely what you were going to say?

Did you prepare a voice mail message you were ready to deliver, velvety smooth, without hesitation?

Were your questions in order?

How prepared were you with your responses to their answers to those questions?

What was your contingency plan in case things didn't go as well as you'd like?

If, without hesitation, you rattled off answers to these questions, I'd wager you do pretty well. When people have trouble answering these questions, chances are there are "umm's" and "uh's" in their calls.

I find it curious and interesting that many people put more planning into their weekend or what they'll have for lunch, than they do their telephone calls.

Quite simply, your sales success correlates directly to your preparation. It's also the key to sounding smooth. Being a superstar in sales, particularly on the phone, is not a matter of "smiling and dialing," plowing through the names, hoping that you'll stumble into someone ready to buy.

Don't believe any trash about this being a pure numbers game. It's a QUALITY game. As I always say, the worst possible time to think of what you're going to say is as it's already coming out of your mouth.

Go back, review those questions, and be certain you can answer them for your next call, and every one thereafter. Do so, and I'm sure you'll show pleasing sales results.

Art Sobczak, President of Business by Phone, Inc., specializes in one area only: working with business-to-business salespeople - both inside and outside - designing and delivering content-rich programs that begin showing results from the very next time participants get on the phone. Learn more at www.businessbyphone.com

Pick Up the Phone and Beat the Heat!

Have you been feeling the heat lately? I don't know about your neck of the woods, but San Diego has been unusually hot lately. We're spoiled by moderate temperatures year-round, so any extreme change in temperature makes me feel absolutely miserable.

With the heat on everyone's minds, I felt this article from sales trainer Renee Walkup, where she asks "Can you be more efficient by using the phone?" was very timely. Use these tips to close more business over the phone, and avoid venturing into the sweltering heat wearing pantyhose or a jacket and tie.

Here are Walkup's 5 tips for being more effective over the phone:

1. Convince yourself that customers LIKE the phone. They don't always want to see you. Some of the best sales calls and negotiations are conducted using the telephone as the communications vehicle.

2. Have your notes in front of you to guide the call. If you are checking your email and attempting to organize and deliver a compelling presentation over the phone, you are about to be disappointed. Write out what you need to accomplish in advance and prepare before picking up the receiver.

3. Be quiet and listen. What wisdom or irritation is your customer going through? Are you focused on what he/she is saying that is between the lines?

4. Take notes during your call. You not only will have a record of what transpired, you may also discover what tactics you'll need to use in your next interaction with the customer.

5. Don't forget to ask for the sale! Your call should always end with a close that takes you to the next steps in your sales relationship.

So, shed your jacket, tie, pantyhose, and whatever else is making you sweat, plop down on your comfortable office chair, sit back, and pick up the phone. With these tips from Walkup, you may just close a deal!

Renee Walkup is president of SalesPEAK, a national sales performance company, as well as a well-recognized keynote speaker, sales coach, and author, with a 25-year background in sales, sales team management and training. Learn more at www.salespeak.com

"I'm just calling to follow up"

There's nothing more annoying than a sales rep who's "just calling to follow up." What a time waster. Follow the expert tip below from telesales guru Art Sobczak to avoid this call killer and give your client something of value.

"Have a primary objective for every call," says Sobczak. Before each call plan out "What do I want them to DO as a result of this call, and what do I want to do?"

If you do this, you'll be giving your client something of value, and they'll be much more likely to give you the response you're looking for. If not, at least you'll know to stop wasting your time and move on to better prospects.

Telesales expert Art Sobczak is president of Business By Phone. Visit his site at www.BusinessByPhone.com.