Kindle Notes & Highlights
After all, if you are making the sale about you and are concerned about your performance, then how are you ever going to capture their interest when all of your energy, concentration, and attention is being directed on to you rather than focused on the prospect?
Make the selling process about the prospect and the value you can deliver rather than what you can gain if you sell. Once you do so, the sale then becomes the natural byproduct of your selfless efforts and good intentions.
How do you determine if there’s a fit worth pursuing? Typically, you would conduct a process of inquiry or an investigation. Woven into the fabric of any investigation are questions. (We will explore how to craft the right questions during a needs analysis and weave them into a cold calling conversation in the chapters that follow.) Instead of the prospect interviewing or qualifying you, this brings new meaning to the phrase, “Qualify your prospects!” Now, you’re the one doing the qualifying.
When your intention is no longer about making the sale, it takes the pressure of having to sell off your shoulders. Therefore, prospect initially to see if there’s a match between what you have to offer and the unique needs of each prospect. Ask more questions to determine if you want them as a customer and whether or not you can truly help them. Otherwise you’re adding to the pressure of booking an appointment with someone who may not be ready or may not be the best prospect for you to invest all of your time in. This becomes a great way to prioritize and qualify your prospects.
If you are focused solely on making a pitch or are pushing for the appointment or the sale rather than conducting a process of inquiry, then consider whom you’re making the sales process about. And that would be you!
To eliminate your resistance to generating new business via cold calling, the next time you prospect complete this exercise beforehand. Determine the top five or ten things that you would need to know about this prospect that would enable you to determine whether or not there’s a fit worth pursuing. Once you’ve created this list, create a question around each determining factor. This will assist you in crafting the right questions that need to be asked when speaking with the prospect. (If you find this exercise to be a bit of a challenge, that’s okay. We will be discussing how to craft the
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I then suggested to him, instead of being hooked on the expectation of having to generate the result he was seeking during every cold call, what if it was only a possibility that he would generate the desired result? I saw the confusion in his face. I then shared with John the distinction between a possibility and an expectation.
When you are open to possibility, you are inspired to innovate and create something new while being present in a conversation or with the activity you are engaged in. You feel a sense of choice in the pursuit of your goal. In other words, you can either be gripped
with a certain expectation about something, in this case having to sell, or you can simply enjoy the possibility of creating a relationship with that prospect, determining whether there’s a fit and providing value to them, without being attached to whether or not you will sell.
Most salespeople are more inclined to generate the desired result they seek during a cold call when they aren’t concerned about whether or not they will sell. And this feeling, according to them, usually surfaces right after they had a successful cold call or reached their monthly sales quota. In other words, these salespeople weren’t attached to the expectation of having to sell the client because it was no longer a “have to” for them. Because they already reached their daily or monthly goal, in their mind the rest was gravy. The pressure to produce was lifted
from their shoulders and they had nothing left to lose.
What was and what will be never take precedent over what is.
Once you open up your thinking and detach yourself from the outcome during your cold calling efforts or a conversation with a prospect … • You will notice your energy level will naturally increase. • You will experience less stress. • You will uncover new and greater possibilities, solutions, and selling opportunities naturally that you would otherwise miss without having to push for them.
• You want the prospect to say “Yes” to taking the next step in your sales process but you have to qualify them first to see if there’s even a fit worth pursuing. • You want the prospect to buy from you but must learn to give value unconditionally, whether or not they buy or meet with you. • You want to deliver and push through your presentation but you must get the prospect’s permission even before you present. • You need to keep your eye on your objective, set your goals, and plan your strategy for the future to determine the path to travel on but you must bring yourself back into the
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Let’s face it. You and I both know that the ultimate objective of your prospecting efforts is to sell more and boost your income. However, to achieve this goal, it’s just not where you are going to focus your energy and thoughts.
Cold Calling Conundrum When your car doesn’t start, you may need to lift the hood to identify the problem and see what’s going on. To become someone who is incredibly successful at cold calling, it’s essential that you analyze your internal operating system or the attitude you currently have toward cold calling.
Realize that you can change what you do and how you do it all day long. However, if you don’t upgrade your attitude, then all of the sales tools in the world are not going to help.
Remember, your life and the successes you’ve experienced thus far are the result of your attitude and the choices you have made in the past. Your life and your successes tomorrow will be the result of your attitude and the choices you make today.
The Least You Need to Know • Challenge your current limiting perceptions regarding cold calling and replace them with a healthier belief system. • Make the selling process about the
prospect and the value you can deliver rather than what you can gain if you sell. • The initial intention of prospecting is to determine if there’s a fit worth pursuing. • Detach from the outcome to respond effectively to each prospect and eliminate the chance of unfulfilled expectations. • Put the power in your court by asking yourself, “Do I even want this prospect as a customer?” • Be present, because the creation of new possibilities only occurs in the moment and not in the past or in the future.
