Do you hunker down behind your Voice Mail?
A while back I was visiting the President of a company who is
a long time client of mine. His
secretary interrupted us announcing a phone call.
CLIENT: “Put it in Voice Mail,” was his response. “Damn Sales People! I just hate those kinds of calls. Sales People are always calling here wanting
me to buy something.”
ME: “Was that one of your vendors’ sales staff
calling you, “I asked?
CLIENT: “Hell no!
I don’t even know what he sells or what he wants. They just keep calling
here. Damn Sales People!”
ME: “What
if every time one of your sales staff made a call into a prospect, they
received the same treatment I asked? How
much business do you think you’d have?”
CLIENT: “Yeah but other businesses [NEED] the services we offer!”
ME: “But how did they find out about you if they
didn’t give one of your sales staff a few minutes to LISTEN?”
CLIENT: “YOU damn
Sales People are all alike, he said with a half hearted laugh.”
Sadly ladies and gentlemen, this scenario is a daily
occurrence throughout the business world.
And for a guy (me) who makes or takes at least 40 phone calls a day, I
can truly understand the frustration.
HOWEVER, with that said, my question is, how do you know you
don’t need what the sales person is selling?
How do you know it’s not an opportunity to get involved in
the newest gadget?
How do you know this person isn’t representing a client who
NEEDS your services?
If you believe in the Golden Rule, then this whole message
applies to you. The next time a business
sales call comes in, take two minutes to listen to the spiel. Ascertain quickly if you might have a need
and set a more convenient time to talk.
Please don’t tell me how busy and important you are, because that’s a
lame excuse. How about the person who
trying to make an honest living through a legitimate business? Is his or her time not important as
well? We need to respect each other and
give credence where credence is due.
I had a salesman contact me last week and his opening line
was, “I have services that will double your business!” I stopped him and asked, “Before we go on,
tell me what you know about my business.”
He stumbled and fell because he really didn’t know anything about my
business and the conversation was over rather quickly. But I have a plan in place that I do take the
calls and I give them 2 to 3 minutes to
make an impact and if I have an interest, either allow them to continue or set
a better time for them to call me back.
The other great rule
is, return all your calls before you go home.
If someone thought you were important enough to leave you a message,
respond and deal with it today. It will
save you many more dollars because your staff won’t have to handle additional
incoming calls over and over again from the same people you could have put to
bed several calls ago. Stop hiding
behind your voice mail America. Let’s talk
to each other, trade fairly with each other and grow ourselves, our companies
and our great country! As American
business people, we are in control.
Demonstrate it!
Please enjoy a prosperous week.
Regards,
George F. Mancuso, CPC, CEO
Client Growth Consultants, Inc.
Grinnell, Iowa
