There’s no such thing as the perfect sales call. Often times they can be some of the most awkward situations we’ll ever be in. Also they can turn out to be some of the funniest stories you tell around the office for years to come.
When you make dozens of sales calls on a daily basis you run into a lot of different scenarios and situations. If you’re like me, you enjoy the awkwardness. I have thick skin, my prospects may not, so I embrace the awkwardness. Especially when I’m streaming it live on periscope (ryanstewman) it makes for good video.
Most of us have a story we tell every time a new guy shows up on the scene. Whether it’s about that one car you took on trade, the house you got the appraisal back on or the credit score you got from that one deadbeat, you got a go -to story you tell.
In that story I bet all 5 of these situations existed. Matter of fact, it’s hard to have a sales conversation where you ask for the business without going through these awkward moments. It’s just a part of what we do. The sooner you embrace the awkwardness, the better.
The silence after the offer – You know how it goes “He who speaks first loses the sale.” Your potential client knows this too. They know that when you make the offer and you shut up, their job is to torment you by shutting up too. It can be hilarious, especially if you’re selling your product to another salesman.
Here’s how you can avoid this situation more times than not. When you make the offer, simply finish with a question. That provokes an answer from them. Instead of saying “It’s 19.99” say “It’s 19.99 would you like to purchase it today?” It forces the silence out.
The accidental talk over – They simply took a breath and you thought they were done talking. Now you have to wonder if they think you’re a windbag salesman or not. No one likes an interrupting salesman. But you didn’t mean to. It doesn’t matter.
To avoid talking over someone on accident, simply count to 3 when they go silent. That gives them enough time to breath and you enough time to think of what to say. Slowing the sales conversation down is always a good thing anyway. We like to talk fast and fill dead air when we really don’t have to.
The “no, you go ahead“ – I hate it when we both go to talk at the same time. For obvious reasons involving manners you let the client speak first. When you have short term memory issues like I do, it’s hard to remember what to say when I let them go first. They say “What where you going to say” and I honestly don’t remember lol
Avoiding this situation is as simple as taking notes. When you get a good idea, write it down and then bring it up AFTER they are done with their part. Saves face, saves time and makes the selling process move smooth.
The explanation of how you got their info – If you call internet leads or make cold calls people always want to know how you got their info. Your leads may come from 20 different places, so how in the hell are you supposed to know how you got it? Explaining this can be weird and uncomfortable for both parties.
The moment when they hang up on you – When you call, introduce yourself and they hang up, what do you do? i usually call right back and say “sorry we got disconnected” if they do it again I call back and say “dang, my phone is messing up. Sorry about that” at this point I enjoy f#cking with them.
The best way to deal with them when they hang up on you is to send them a quick text asking if it was phone trouble or they are not interested. In that same text type why what you sell is awesome and end with letting them know if they change their mind, you’re always available.
If you’d like my help on closing more sales, check out my online sales training program at www.showupandclose.com It’s designed for you to listen to one audio per day, every day before you go to work, forever. Through repetition you’ll become an armed sales soldier.
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