Back when I was working in corporate I really disliked when suppliers used the phone to offer their services. "We work in technology, people, use the email!", I used to think. In fact, everyone in my department avoided answering suppliers calls for the same reason. We were busy people and a phone call was just a waste of time. Besides, there are some products or services that cannot be sold over the phone; you need some time to process what you are being offered and understand if it's something that you need. At least for me. So anyone who has ever tried to sell me something over the phone has failed. Surprisingly, telemarketing is still a thing no matter how many times I hang up on them.
We are in the last quarter of 2016, almost seventeen years into the XXI century, when thanks to technology we are more connected than ever and distances aren't meaningful anymore. Email, chat, webcams... all tools that transcend space and time. And yet, some people are still using the phone, a technology from the 19th century, to run their businesses. Which goes to prove that we are all different and that the selling techniques that don't work on me might work on others. Where I prefer emails because you have more time to process what you are reading and there is a written proof of everything that has been agreed upon, others prefer phone calls because they feel emails are too impersonal. There are no secret recipes to selling, where some fail others succeed. It's just a matter of understanding your target. Telemarketers who call me over the phone obviously don't know theirs.
The truth is that regardless of the method that you use to approach your prospect clients, the important thing is that you are consistent and that you always follow up. One call, one email, one online ad won't land you a deal. Consistence and perseverance will. There are no secret recipes, just these two secret ingredients.
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