The Art Of A Sales Call: A Detailed Guide For Sealing That Deal

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Is there anything more powerful in our world than a phone call? We wait for it to ring when lonely, we choose to call others when sad, we smile when we hear good news from our close ones and… we HATE sales pitches and cold calls.

Does that mean that you, as a business owner, should exclude sales via phone from your toolbox? Hell no, you will miss a great opportunity if you do. You just need to refine the way you use a connection as intimate as a voice in one’s ear.

Great sales calls stand on three whales: the desire, the dominance, and the trust. Let’s have a closer look at all three, shall we?

The desire

People don’t like talking to strangers. What this means for you is that cramming a base of numbers into a tool with auto dial will probably suck as an experience both for you and for your clients.

If you wish to be successful, you need to call when people have the desire to talk to you. They may have ordered a callback from you or left their phone in your hands willingly. This is when you strike.

The dominance

You, as a salesperson should be in charge of the call. You are to lead people towards making the right decision ever so gently and you are to do so from the very beginning of the conversation.

Here is an example:

“Hi, my name is Alex and I am calling you from Best Company ABC. You ordered a callback on our site and we can have a quick chat right now. Is that correct?”

Notice how I never said if it is OK to talk, but I rather asked whether it is correct or not that the person has left a request earlier. That statement can only be correct, so you’ll get a “yes”.

What should your next line be?

“Awesome. As I said, this call will be quick, because I’ve got a different call scheduled in 10 minutes so let’s get straight to the point. I will ask you a couple of simple questions so we can find out how Best Company ABC can help you. Is that OK?”

Now we are on a clock. I have added a sense of importance to what I say and I have shown respect in two ways: first I value the time of the person on the other line and secondly, I specifically mentioned that the other client comes after the person I am talking to right now. I usually get a “Sure” after this line.

At this point, you have displayed dominance and you have shown who is leading this call and who is here to say “Ok”, “sure” and “yes, master”. Just in case – that last one was a joke.

The next step will build a bridge to our third whale – trust.

“Just in case, if we’ll come to an understanding that Best Company ABC is not a great fit for you after you answer the questions I will do my best to guide you in the right direction. Is that OK”

“Cool”, the person will reply as you clearly have your client’s best interest in mind. People are used to heavy pitches and this showcase of willingness to let the client free will make it stand out from the sales call crowd.

The trust

So now the time has come to ask the questions. Find out as much as you can about the prospect, his or her needs, business goals, objectives in life, etc. Show that you really care. Show that their case is unique to you. Show that they are not yet another run in the mill mark in your booking calendar.

Some examples of great questions to ask would be:

–          Who do you help? What problems can you solve as a business owner? How does your business work? (if you are selling a business service)

–          What do you need help with? What are your goals? Why did you choose to call me? (if you deliver your services outside the B2B niche)

–          Where are you right now?

–          Where do you WANT and where do you NEED to be?

Make sure to make notes during your conversation. They will come in handy during the follow-up call. And you’ll have a follow-up call after this conversation. That’s a promise!