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July 3, 2001
Q: I have followed your column for a long time now and enjoy it very much. In my business we do a lot of cold calls which I understand you frown upon. I would appreciate your comments about cold calling and how to maximize the strategy if I'm actually going to use it.
A: First off, I need to clarify I don't have anything against pre-qualified telephone calling —- the kind where you have reason to believe the person you're calling may be interested in what you have to offer. Where you have done your homework and have a personal referral or some specific legitimate reason to talk to the person at the other end. Where you are able to say, "I'm doing something with some of your associates that I thought you might be interested in. May I take just a moment to tell you about it?"
The cold calls I love to hate are ones that go something like this: The caller starts out referring to me by my first name as if we are long-lost friend, notwithstanding that he/she sounds prepubescent. The spiel gets launched without the caller ever asking the most basic questions, including "Is this a good time to talk —- are you in a meeting right now?" or "Do you have an interest in hearing about my product/service?"
By the time the time caller gets into the monologue, it's clear the person doesn't have the remotest idea what I do for a living, what size my business is, how many employees -—-if any -—I have, or if the product is appropriate for my needs. About the only thing he/she knows for sure is I have a phone that works.
Finally, the thing that makes an already-awful cold call a total disaster is having it made by an intermediary. For example, I just received such a call. It went something like this, "Hello Lynda?" (Another old friend, I assumed). My name is Becky and I'm calling for Fred X from XX insurance company." My first thoughts, of course, were "Who's Fred?" "Have I met him before?" "Why isn't Fred calling me himself?" "I wonder if Fred is mad at me that he has to have someone else call me? If personal relationships have anything to do with getting business these days, it occurs to me Fred is doing everything he can to avoid establishing one with me.
Cold calling doesn't have to fall into the fiasco category I just described. It's just that most do. If you are using cold calls and you are serious about your business, plan to do homework about the person or company you're calling before you ever pick up the phone. Most of all, figure out in advance how you are going to begin establishing a relationship—that is, how you are going to connect to the person at the other end of the phone. That connection has to be more than a technological process. Cold calls that work connect people, not just plastic machines and micro-chips.
Q: We are a young consulting firm made up of former managers from one of the region's biggest (or formerly biggest) high tech companies. Collectively, we have years of experience and information that should be very attractive to potential clients. We are all responsible and will work to the limit to satisfy our clients. Unfortunately we don't seem to be all that convincing, however, in selling our services and we are getting frustrated. We are especially frustrated when it comes to "closing the deal" as you put it. For some reason, we talk with a lot more people than sign on. Any thoughts you have on the matter will be greatly appreciated. Thanks very much!
A: And thank you for such an important question. Since I don't have details concerning your business, I can only surmise about the issues. Following are some things for you to think about, or put another way, if the shoe fits...
First, it's important to remember that it is up to you not the customer to close the deal. After learning about the prospective client and providing all appropriate information about your services, it's up to you to ask:: "Does this seem like an approach or program that would meet your needs?" or "What kind of time-frame are you looking at for getting started?" or "Getting started is very simple; my professional fee or retainer is $xx."
The second and extremely important thing for you to watch out for is a mistake "young" firms make all too often; that is, conveying an attitude of being too hungry -- almost desperate -- for clients. Nothing will kill a deal faster than having a client feel you need them to get by. Think about it. If you have a big problem, you aren't likely to pick up the phone and look for someone you perceive as marginally getting by. You want to know that whoever works with you has a track record and is likely to be around long after your issue is resolved.
What this means is that you must feel very confident about your own background and real credentials. Forget the idea of "young." You obviously have years of important and valuable experiences to share with your clients. When an organization or company is shopping for someone to help them, they want to know that the person at the other end is fully confident in his/her own abilities. If that is the case, you will demonstrate a sense of personal power and full awareness of what you stand for. Most of all, you will be straightforward about what your fees are and what the terms are for using your services. You set the rules for selling your services. Not your clients.
Perhaps the most important message I can share with you who think of yourself as "young" is also a message that is most difficult for many in your shoes to accept. It is this: If you truly want customers -- especially the "right ones" -- to buy your services, any discussion of fees must convey unequivocaly that you are prepared to walk if the terms don't fit your requirements. That's right. Walk.
If, your prospective client feels your carefully thought-out fees and terms aren't what he/she can live with, you simply smile and thank the person for having considered you. Perhaps another time when they're ready.
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