Finding Leads, Making Cold Calls, Closing Business
Posted by Celia Couture on Tue, Feb 01, 2011 @ 10:52 AM
I've discovered that in this still sluggish economy I need to turn toward making cold calls! Ask any sales person if they really LIKE making cold calls and the truthful ones will probably tell you...no...not their favorite thing to do. It wasn't my favorite thing to do either, but I forced myself to reach out to prospects because I can't afford to take for granted that business is just going to come to me.
Recently, I was speaking with a sales trainer and he asked me how many cold calls I make a day. I told him...anywhere from 25-40 a day depending upon my schedule. He was flabbergasted by the amount and was also very proud of me. Most of the people he trains are petrified of the phone. Some feel they are above it! They are obviously in for a disappointing quarter of results. I can't say that every call I've made has delivered instantaneous results, but I can you that every time I make a call, I get better at it and more confident. At the very least, I've made a connection, had a conversation that could lead to a business opportunity. Your reputation, skills and products only carry you so far. Do you think the Apple IPAD just automatically sold in record numbers? Of course not, there was a well orchestrated marketing plan and strong sales people calling on customers!
As a business coach, I work with small to mid-size companies. In the last few months, I've asked business owners what they are doing to generate sales. Many tell me...they are mostly a referral business. Not necessarily a great sales strategy. Outboard marketing, a strong website and tenacity begin to set the foundation for a stronger funnel. Many owners find themselves too busy working ON their business rather than IN their business. The irony of not working on your unique sales proposition, prospecting, farming and hunting for clients is that one day you wake up and you are down to your last few clients.
A recent conversation with one of my clients, not in charge of the sales team, was one of complete frustration. "They (the sales team) are not making enough calls, they are not tracking their calls in our CMS system, and I’m not getting any feedback about what customers think of our product and services!" Obviously, it is not acceptable to me as a business coach and management consultant to hear these types of frustrations. Sales people like any other employee need to be held accountable. Sales is a process and many consultants have become very wealthy developing sales techniques that produce results. Most business’ falter if they don’t hold up their end of the bargain. You can’t expect a sales trainer or a consultant to do the work for you! Your job as a business owner is to take a vested interest in their success! If they succeed, YOU succeed. It also means making sure that your sales team understands that they will be held accountable.
A sale is a numbers game! The more connections you make, the more the probability of success!
Here are some tips to consider?
1. Need More Sales: The answer: A high performance sales force needs a scripted approach to their efforts. Their activity needs to be coordinated with the right CRM system. Sales people need to be measured and results need to be tied to their paycheck!
2. Want to Grow the Business: The answer: Aggressive, measureable marketing plans to increase leads, improve sales closing ratio and yields an increase in transactions your get per customer every year.
3. Always Getting Beat Up on Price: The answer: A unique selling proposition and a gurantee so that your ideal clients/customers feel compelled to do business with YOU instead of your competitor because you are different than all the rest.
I am a business coach. I help my clients make a profit. Isn't talking with me about your business worth your time? I CAN help you gorw your profits and help you build a team to help run the business for you so you can get some time back for yourself. Call me today...no...call me right now...I want to schedule a complimentary coaching session with you.
If you don't call...I may just need to make more cold calls and find you!