Call Back to Add Value

I've posted many articles on this blog that talk about not calling to "follow up." It's something I think we're all pretty familiar with, and have heard about frequently. That being said, when I read this article from sales trainer Tim Rohrer I thought it gave great, concrete examples of what to do, rather than what not to do. Here's what Rohrer has to say:

When calling a client after a meeting, never call to "follow up." While you're losing that expression, lose all of these, too:

Check(ing) In
Touch Base(s)
Circling Back

Also, don't call to:

See if you had any questions
Make sure you received my e-mail
Ask if you had a chance to think about my presentation
Find out the result of the conversation with the decision maker or
Wonder about next steps

All of these reasons for calling are about you and they convert you from a solutions provider to a typical product pushing seller that wants to know if he is going to make a sale. "But", you might be saying, "don't we want to know if we are going to make the sale?"

Of course you want to know and you're going to get your chance to find out. But, before that you have to make sure the phone call has value for the prospect.

Therefore, call the prospect back to add value to the sales process. Now, you can't very well call someone back and say:

"Hi Jim, it's Mike. Hope all is well. The reason for the call is to add value to the sales process."

But, that is exactly what you will be doing without saying so. Adding value to the sales process is easy if you spend just a couple of minutes thinking about your presentation. What did the prospect say about the most important of their objectives? Identify one or two and then address those issues at the beginning of the call-back. For example, if the prospect indicated that speed of installation was important you might say,

"Hi, Jim, it's Mike (from company X). After our meeting, remembering that speed of installation was important to you, I checked with the warehouse. Do you have a minute to hear what I found out?"

Undoubtedly, Jim will have a minute to learn what you found out because this information has value to him. Now, if speed of installation wasn't important you wouldn't call back to discuss what you found out when you checked with the warehouse.

Instead, you might address the question of tax breaks, or color selection, or availability or trade-in value. Whatever the prospect identified as important!

"Hi, Jim, it's Mike (with Company X). After our meeting, I called the Regional Vice President of our company, who is the foremost authority on tax implications related to our products. Do you have a second to learn about the tax advantages of buying this month?"

"Yes!"

"Hi, Jim, it's Mike (with Company X). After our meeting, I scoured every single source to find the color you wanted and guess what?"

"What?"

Each of these call backs will be welcomed by the prospect - your call has added value to the sales process. Once you've begun a conversation with them about their issues, it's perfectly okay to ask for some information about your issues. To always call back with additional value think about the one or two most important issues revealed during the sales presentation and then call back:

1) With additional, relevant information
2) To offer an alternative solution (e.g. "I was thinking about the solution and I've come up with something that will work better. Do you have a minute to discuss why the alternative solution is better than the original?")
3) To confirm your solution was endorsed by an expert (e.g. "After our meeting, I ran into our Chief Technology Officer and ran my ideas past him. Do you have a second to hear why he thought our plan was a good one?")
4) To offer an incentive (e.g. "I just learned of an important rebate on the product we were discussing. Do you have a minute to learn about the effect on your price?")
5) To inform about deadlines (e.g. "The rebate we discussed is set to expire at the end of the month.")

Here's how a call-back with value might go:

"Hello, this is Jim."

"Hi Jim, it's Mike with Company X. After our meeting, I had a discussion with my sales manager about your most important concerns. Do you have a minute to hear what I found out?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Regarding point #1, she said that we could absolutely do it. On point #2, she said that under normal circumstances she wouldn't do it. However, if you can make a commitment by the end of the week she would make an exception."

"Good. Okay, well that's good news."

"Yes. In light of this new information, what are the next steps in the process. Do you think your team will be ready to move forward by the end of the week, or no?"

Call back to add value to the sales process and you will be able to move the process along much more smoothly than if you were calling simply to follow up!

Tim J.M. Rohrer is a recognized leader in sales and sales management. He writes about his experiences in advertising sales on his blog at http://www.salesandmarketingloudmouth.com. Currently employed as a Sales Manager at Radio One in Atlanta, he can be reached through e-mail at timrohrer@comcast.net.

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Build a Fortress

There's a battle brewing outside your office. Teams are planning their strategies and getting ready to execute long-prepared plans. But what exactly is worth all the trouble? Your biggest client. Sales trainer Tim Rohrer knows what it's like to defend oneself against attacking competitors. Heed his advice to keep those big clients strongly on your side.

"The vast majority of us have an account with whom we do more business than anyone else in our industry," says Rohrer. "Whether the reason is our better service, our better price, our better selection, our better location, our better relationship or any combination thereof, we are somebody's preferred provider. And, our competition knows it."

"Our dominance with this account is the subject of sales meetings, strategy sessions and after hours angst," Rohrer continues. "Our competitors seethe over their losses. It doesn't matter if they enjoy more wins than we do, they still want to win our best account and they will stop at nothing. Our only defense is to build a fortress."

Here's how:

1) Dig deep into the account to build trusting relationships. Just as the best fortresses have multiple defenses so, too, must you. When your attacker scales the outer wall, there must be another wall that may not have been visible from the outside. And, then maybe a moat or a dragon.

a. Of course, you already have a great relationship with the primary decision maker. Ask your ally to introduce you to the secondary decision makers and the support staff.
b. Get your boss involved with your decision maker's boss. Just as you want to be more involved, you want your client to be more involved with your company.

2) Understand how you became and why you still are the preferred provider. Your fortress is worthless if you choose to defend against the wrong kind of attack. That can happen if you don't know exactly why your best client loves you so much. Sellers have a lot of pride and it is common for the successful seller to believe the account has reached its status because they love him so much. Maybe they do but is that the reason your company has become the preferred provider in your industry? Just to be on the safe side you need to ask and the best way to do this is to have someone other than the seller do the asking.

3) Do an honest assessment of your attacker's strengths. Your competition is almost always stronger than you give them credit for. And, if they aren't strong enough to mount a decent attack right now, you should count on them getting that way in the near future. Your fortress doesn't need to meet today's minimum requirements. Your fortress must be strong enough to deter your attackers even as they strengthen and become more sophisticated. The key to making sure you aren't vulnerable even as your competition gets better is to act as if you are still trying to win over the account. In other words, don't just service the account - continue to sell it!

4) Go on the offensive. Your fortress has weapons and you shouldn't be shy about using them. Make the enemy back off by launching an attack against their best account. By making them defend their turf you may get them to back off for a short while. Use the time to shore up your defenses!

Are you inspired? Get your shield and start protecting your accounts!

A recognized leader in sales, sales management and sales training, Tim Rohrer is available for speaking engagements and consulting. Contact him at timrohrer@comcast.net and check out his blog at http://salesandmarketingloudmouth.com

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Be Memorable

Do you watch American Idol? It's one of the most popular shows in America, so I'm guessing there's a good chance you do! Sales trainer and speaker Tim Rohrer watches the show, which has given him a few tips you can apply to your sales. Now you can say you're educating yourself while you watch TV - not a bad thing at all!

I am watching American Idol and I am bored. Now it is Simon's turn to critique another generic singer.

He says, "The problem is that you are completely forgettable."

Exactly. Although there are thirty-six finalists, maybe three of them are memorable. This is bad news for the other thirty-three and bad news for the show (but that is another story for another day).

Here is the deal - when you gain the stage you have to put on a show. The performance must be outstanding. You must be memorable!

Selling is all about memorable performances - especially in person. Unfortunately, just like American Idol, I would say that only about one in ten of us puts on a memorable performance when we have the opportunity.

Simon recently said to a contestant, "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I'm afraid that you've blown it."

If sellers heard this more often from either their sales managers or their clients we would see real improvement. Because, unlike American Idol we get "once in a lifetime" opportunities all the time.

Here is what you must do the next time you have a once in a lifetime opportunity in front of a very important prospect:

1) Spend less time on the content of your presentation
a) You can do the content in your sleep and
b) No one really needs a better set of power point slides
2) Pick out a really great outfit
a) Ask somebody with style to give you some advice on an accessory that adds flair but
b) Stay away from goofy stuff
3) Work on the dynamics of the presentation to make it different for the prospect. Here are some ideas:
a) Add some music to your show - recorded is good but live is better
b) Think about using an appropriate and memorable quote
c) Bring a surprise guest
d) Have a unique 'leave behind' that will spur memories of your performance
4) Do a complete dress rehearsal in front of an audience

Selling is a competition. To win more frequently, you must be more memorable.

A recognized leader in sales, sales management and sales training, Tim Rohrer is available for speaking engagements and consulting. Contact him at timrohrer@comcast.net and check out his blog at http://salesandmarketingloudmouth.com

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Busy, Busy, Busy

The best account managers are busy. Average account managers are busy and below-average account managers are busy. Who isn't busy?

That being said, it's easy to be busy doing things that do nothing for your business. Tim Rohrer recently discussed in his blog the difference between busy-productive and busy-unproductive.

Rohrer says there are only two right things to be busy doing:

1. The actions that get one closer to making a sale
2. The actions that ensure the success of a sale already made

That's it! Here's a story from Rohrer to help you make sure you're only doing these two things.

"The other day, an account manager pointed out to me that she had sent an email to a client with an interesting article attached. The article was relevant to the customer's business and sending it was a good idea," says Rohrer. "But does her action fall into Category #1?"

"Her action should have fallen into Category #1 as she was trying to get closer to making a sale. But, based on the content of her e-mail, I can promise you that she didn't get closer to making a sale because she didn't ask the customer to take any action. Her email said something like this:

"I saw this article and thought of you."

"Coincidentally, another account manager also copied me on an email he sent to a customer with an article attached. His email said something like this:

"Did you see this article (attached)? Let's get together and brainstorm ways to make this work for your business. We always come up with great ideas and I am sure that we can do it again!"

"Two busy account managers. One productive account manager," says Rohrer.

This outline from Rohrer should help you see the difference between busy and productive:

1. The actions that get one closer to making a sale

a. Prospecting
i. Research to identify prospects
ii. Research to identify industry trends
iii. Contacting prospects with valid business reasons to convince them to spend time with you.

b. Qualifying
i. Determining if the prospect has enough money to purchase your products through research
ii. Determining if the prospect has enough money by meeting with them

c. Presenting
i. Sending presentations that ask for an investment
ii. Delivering presentations face-to-face that ask for an investment

"Being busy is not the goal of any seller who counts on revenue production to earn commissions. Being productive is the goal," says Rohrer. "Let's examine our behaviors and get a little busier being productive."

Tim J.M. Rohrer is a recognized leader in sales and sales management. He writes about his experiences in advertising sales on his blog at http://www.salesandmarketingloudmouth.com. Currently employed as a Sales Manager at Radio One in Atlanta, he can be reached through e-mail at timrohrer@comcast.net.

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