When you get a fresh lead in your email, nothing is worse than not being able to make contact with it. It’s like, ok, you put your information in wanting to know more, then when I call you, you disappear like a witness to a mob crime. You leave voicemail after voicemail and they never call you back.
I hate that sh*t!!!
I’ve been in the online lead generation game since 2008. I’ve left a lot of unreturned voicemails in my day. The single biggest complaint I hear from salespeople is that they can’t make contact with their leads. They call and email several times and never hear from them.
Who are these people? What kind of savage fills out a online lead form and leaves a hardworking salesman hanging? That’s some serious a$$hole stuff right there. Why fill out the information if you have no interest in speaking with someone who can help you? It makes no sense to me.
The thing is though, I’ve been able to get more people on the phone than the average person. Whether I was selling mortgages, cars or sales training, I’ve always had a knack for getting people to call me back. It’s all about how you position yourself. Instead of telling you what to do, I’m gonna share with you what NOT to do. Chances are you’re making one or more of these mistakes and simply making this correction will change your contact ratio.
You Sound Like A Moron – Let’s be real here. If you get on the voicemail and say a lot of “ughs” and “ums” you start to sound incompetent and no one wants to do business with a bafoon. If you repeat the same phrases and words you begin to sound stupid as well. If you struggle to leave voicemails freestyle, you need to write and read a script each time. Nothing wrong with using a script. Everyone who works for me uses one.
People want to do business with people that know what they are doing. If you sound insecure, idiotic, or braindead no one will want to trust their hard earned money in your hands. Let’s get real here, the client is probably a moron, they rely on you to be smart. Even a moron can recognize another moron. You gotta sound sharp, like you know what you’re doing and you are enthusiastic to help the prospect.
You’re Too Long Winded – We live in the age of ADD. People’s attention spans are shorter than ever. We are addicted to our phones and we are all short on time. That being said, most prospects have been in a situation where the sales process took forever to complete. Especially at car dealerships. Prospects don’t have the time or attention span to go through a long sales process.
If you sound like you’re gonna talk their ear off and take forever to do your job, they’d rather not even deal with you on the phone, because they are scared they might not ever get you off the phone. Keep voicemails urgent, short and to the point. People barely check voicemails, let alone listen to the entire message from some windbag salesman.
You Sound Too Salesy – If your sales swagger is through the roof, you might want to turn it down. If you sound too aggressive, to pushy or if you’re one of those silver tongued devils their parents warned them about, you will not get a call back. If your voicemails sound like Frank Rizzo from the Jerky Boys, there’s no way they are gonna take the risk getting on the phone with you.
Wait until you get them face to face or live on the phone to turn the sales swag up. People are scared shitless to make commitments and decisions. If you sound like you can get them to sign their life away with ease, they will fear contacting you. Keep it smooth, keep it short.
You Sound Desperate – No one wants to give money to someone who sounds like they need it. Desperate people make desperate moves and the public knows it. If you sound desperate, there’s a high probability that they will not call you back and they will contact someone who sounds confident not costly.
If you sound like Gil the sales guy from The Simpsons, no one will trust you with their money. People like doing business with people who are so busy they don’t need their business. Sounding desperate or begging for a call back will get you absolutely nowhere with prospects.
You Need To Send A Text – I recently read that 93% of all phone calls go unanswered. Usually the only people to leave voicemails are companies, bill collectors and other professional establishments with landlines that can’t text mobile phones. The public knows this and if they see voicemails they automatically discredit the source.
The best way to contact a prospect is by text message. If 93% of all calls go unanswered, and 95% of texts get seen, which one do you think has a better chance of getting the prospect to contact you? Don’t be afraid to send texts. Friends text each other so you automatically start out on a friendly communication platform. Send a text first, then call.
Leads will do you absolutely no good if you don’t properly call and follow up with them. Breaking any of these 5 rules will result in lower sales, annoyed prospects and a bad reputation. Avoid making these 5 mistakes at all costs. You work hard and pay good money to get your hands on a lead, make sure you maximize your potential to close it.
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