personal branding 3: conquering the client call

*ring ring ring* your phone buzzes and you look down to see “Spam Risk” flashing across your screen. Already skeptical, you pick up the phone to hear, “Hi there I’m calling to reach you about your car’s extended warra...” Before they could finish the sentence, you hit the red button at the bottom of your screen and slam down the phone, irritated by the ignorant person on the other end of the line who waisted your time trying to talk to you about something you don’t need.

For the last three years I have made cold calls for a living. Calling clients is one of the most intimidating parts of the world of sales, especially because we know first hand how annoying it can be to get a cold call at the wrong time. I’ve found there are three consistent outcomes with cold calls.

1. no answer

2. customer answers and hangs up

or

3. customer answers and you make a sale.

The first thing we want to do is eliminate option 2 and avoid the situation we saw in the beginning of this article.

The first way that we can combat answer number 2 is by establishing a decent level of confidence that comes from within, or learning how to mask our nerves and insecurity. To establish a sense of confidence, you should know the same statistics that I had to come to terms with. In my time doing calls, I learned that about 1/10 people will answer a cold call. Only 1/100 will be willing to set an appointment in person. If you accept those odds and start counting calls, it makes getting a “no” so much more bearable.

I’ve also learned that call scripts are not set in stone. When a sales person talks too much or too quickly, they start to sound like a robot, but to give as much information as you can as quickly as possible seems to be what the call scripts of the 80s and 90s most enforce. When you are calling, take mental notes of how you sound, and how the words you are using come across. Try to imitate the mood of the person on the other end of the phone. If they are very calm and relaxed, they won’t want to talk to someone who is overly excited, just the same as if someone excited wouldn’t want to have a monotone conversation.

Using key nicknames is also a way to establish a sense of friendliness with a customer. I’ve heard an array of these such as buddy, pal, bro, friend, dude, ma’am, Miss, and more. Finding the words your clientele responds the best to can make or break your sales calls. If a man was on the phone with me and called me “honey” or “sugar”, I would immediately hang up, but if a woman were to say the same thing, I would be much more willing to conversate. You need to make your call script your own and work with it until it sounds natural in conversation without deviating from the general structure.

When I received my first call script I spent months reading off the paper, but once I started to add my personality into it, I received a much better response. People expect the random numbers to be the robotic cold call, so be sure to put some personality into the conversation. My favorite way to do this is to speak first when they answer the phone offering a sweet, “Hey Mr/Mrs ___!” Everyone loves to hear their own name and everyone loves to hear that someone is excited to talk to them, so use that to your benefit.

When a customer answers and is clearly irritated or not in the mood to talk, be aware of this and be willing to call back later. Know your customer and when the best time to contact them is. For example: I’ve found that most working men are willing to hold a conversation on the phone during the afternoon, meanwhile women are more likely to hold a conversation in the earlier morning. If the woman is a mother, she does not want to talk to you after 3pm because she is busy picking up her children and bringing them to their clubs and practices, or trying to get through their homework with them. It’s better to lose a phone call and get a call back then to irritate a customer and lose their business forever.

Finally, it’s most important to keep your phone personality consistent with what your customer is getting in person. Don’t try to become a new person for the sake of setting an appointment. If I answered a phone call to a sweet southern lady, but in person they were an uptight person with a strict schedule, I would be highly disappointed. 70% of the sale is how well your clients can trust you so develop your personality and your brand and make it consistent.