Getting appointments from phone calls is a key ingredient to being successful in sales. For many a salesperson that phone is the “necessary evil” in the game. The evil mainly comes from the rejection that is faced, which is only alleviated by the moments of glory when someone agrees to an appointment.
The key to having more success (and fun) in sales is to ensure that you have more moments of glory and face rejection. Focusing on four simple steps on each call will make your calls easier and will have more appointments coming to meet with you every day.
Control the call
Too many times sales professionals start selling on the phone because that is the training they received. When you start selling your future customer turns off their ears because they are conditioned to ignore sales people. They have one thousand other things to do on their plate and you aren’t helping get that stuff done when you start telling them about your product or service. You need to control the call quickly with questions, but they need to be the right questions.
Ask Yes and No Questions
It is important to build some rapport with your prospect in the first 1-2 minutes of the phone call. This does not mean asking about their family or trying to find something in common. Leave those techniques for when you meet with them in person, your goal is to get your foot in the door or get them to come to your office.
Your first two questions need to be slam dunk questions where you get a “Yes” and your third question needs to receive a “No” answer so you can transition them into seeing how you can help. The questions don’t need to be complicated, in fact the simpler the better.
Acknowledge what they say
This is essential to building quick rapport. Don’t just blitz through three questions and figure you are going to get the appointment. Take the time to acknowledge what they say when they are answering your questions and use it to transition into your next question.
An easy example comes from the field of real estate:
Your Question: “Is this going to be your first purchase?”
Prospect: “Yes my wife and I want to buy a home”
You: “That’s great that you and your wife are looking to purchase a home. Had you had a chance to learn about first time buyer programs?”
This small acknowledgement of what they said makes it easy for you to get in your next question, getting closer to the close.
Don’t use the word “appointment”
Avoiding the word “appointment” is one of the top ways to actually start booking more “appointments”. The word appointment conjures up too many bad thoughts like the Dentist or your Accountant at tax time. Make your offer to meet easy and you will get them to agree.
Instead of asking for an appointment, ask them “I would be happy to take some time to learn more about your goals and at the same time see how we can help with those”.
Skipping steps is not an option. Each one is essential to building rapport and getting closer to getting them to say…
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Jamey Bridges is one of the coaches and founders of the Online Real Estate Success program. The Online Real Estate Success systems allow real estate professionals to learn what they need to succeed with their online marketing efforts. All aspects of marketing online and conversion are covered from Search Engine Optimization and Pay Per Click to Social Networking. Training programs are designed to help agents learn quickly, apply the learning, and see results each and every month. Get the training and coaching you need http://www.OnlineRealEstateSuccess.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jamey_Bridges |
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