Cold calling to clients – do you make this “politeness” mistake?
This morning’s e-mail from the Manta Editorial Team brought an interesting article about telephone prospecting.
One of the points they made was that callers are often “too polite.”
They warned that when you say “May I please speak to Joe Jones” the answer is apt to be “No. Mr. Jones is too busy right now.”
They advise that instead of saying “May I please” you simply say “I’m calling to speak with Joe Jones. Please tell him I’m on the line.”
Hmmm… kind of reminds me of my days in real estate. We had an attorney whose secretary was a true “guard dog.” Getting through to Nick took hard work. One day he told me how to get around his secretary. I was simply to say “I’m returning Nick’s call.”
Now, that won’t work on a completely cold call. But if the person has responded in any way to your earlier messages, you could use it. If they’ve never called, you could say “I’m responding to Nick’s inquiry.”
Other points in the article point out the folly of beginning your sales call by talking about yourself or your product. Just as in a sales letter, you should avoid starting off with “I” or “We.”
Focus on the prospect – and their needs and concerns.
Posted: May 19th, 2012 under prospecting, self-promotion, telephone prospecting.
Tags: cold calling tips, prospecting, self-promotion, telephone manners, telephone prosopecting