I have always described myself as someone with a short attention span. When they designed the 140 character messages on Twitter- they had me in mind.. LOL. My mind wanders easily and whether I meet someone new face to face or receive a phone call from a salesperson generating business, they need to work fast to get me to truly listen to what they’re saying. For me, it’s tough to “cause the pause” which is the moment where your mind completely focuses and you are 100% engaged in the conversation.
If you are a salesperson or sales leader in this Twitter, Crackberry society- What are you doing to “cause the pause”?
Cold Calling in A Delete Culture
Jill Konrath, the CEO of Selling To Big Companies, recently wrote an article for Selling Power Magazine called “Cold calling in a delete culture”. Jill shared that in our current society, when decision makers receive emails or voicemails from people or businesses that they don’t know, their first reaction is to hit delete, NOT to listen to or read. You need to be very deliberate in your messaging, in order to cause someone to pause before the delete.
What can you do to elicit the pause? Jill recommends a three step approach; First- establish credibility by showing that you’ve done your homework about the customer’s unique needs. Second- pique the customer’s curiosity. Three- Close with confidence.
Selling Yourself At Networking Events
The number of networking events and networking groups continue to climb. Business people are looking for new ways to generate business in this challenging economic climate. Job seekers are relying on networking events to help gain new employment.
I have been to a number of different networking events over the past few months from college alumni, to women’s leadership meetings to post conference cocktails and “the song remains the same”. People tend to talk too much. When you want to hear an elevator speech, you get the “walking up the stairs” version.
If you are using networking events to meet new business clients, think less than more. When you meet a new business contact you want to generate curiosity not overwhelm them with information. And, avoid the jargon. You may know all about medical devices or investing in international funds, but I don’t- nor do many of the new contacts you’re meeting. Keep it simple and avoid the industry buzzwords.
Are Your Voicemails Ignored?
One of my favorite sales gurus, Art Sobczak, recently penned a blog post called “Why your voicemails are ignored and what to do instead”. Art presents a number of helpful ideas to “cause the pause”. Here are a few to consider…
10 seconds. This is the amount of time you have to capture your prospect’s attention in your voicemail. Are you using the 10 seconds wisely, or giving folks a reason to hang up instead? If your voicemail starts with “This is Marci Reynolds, from the Sales Operations Blog calling to check in” – your messages are likely ending up in the delete file.
Art also recommends using a multi-media approach. “Don’t rely on voice mail to carry the entire load. Back up your message with an email, a fax, a letter, or a message that you ask the screener to write on the pink message pad and give to the boss. And don’t overlook the lowest tech, but highest touch approach: handwritten letters.”
What do you do to Cause The Pause? Please add your ideas in the comments section.
