B2B sales appointments discovery calls sales & Phone Scripts

Scott Channell

Phrases of B2B Prospecting and Appointment Setting Shame

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Phrases of shame used in sales prospecting.
How commonly used words self-sabotage your prospecting efforts and snatch defeat from the jaws of sales victory.

Why do people work so hard to call call call to get Ms. Top Decision Maker on the phone… only to do everything they can to chase them away?

Not purposely of course. They don’t know that the words they choose to use are the equivalent of chasing their prospects away while swinging a baseball bat. No wonder they get blown off and the suspects run away. By their own words they have caused that to happen.

Let me share some of the nutty, ridiculous, time wasting, say nothing, just lump me in with all the other knuckleheads that call you and waste your time things that people say that chase away qualified prospects they have worked very hard to get on the phone.

Can you believe that people actually say things like this on prospecting calls…

Your time is important

The reason I am calling today

About saving some money

How are you today

Contacting you on behalf of my manager Josephine Blank

Like to setup a brief meeting

Do you have 10-15 minutes

Get on your calendar for 10 minutes

We work with companies just like yours

The reason for my call today is

I know you were not expecting my call

I promise to be brief

I’m calling to follow-up on a letter, email, …

I know you are busy

Are you the person in charge of…

We won’t take much of your time

Do you have a minute

Giving you a quick call to…

How about I call you back in a month?

Can I call you back in 3 months?

Why are these phrases nuts? The first few seconds of the call are critical to them deciding you are worthwhile to talk to. If you are not perceived to be credible or touch some hot button you might help them with, you are toast. What does saying these things do to contribute to their knowledge of how you might help them or that you have enough credibility worth investing some time?

Nothing. They contribute nothing. So don’t say them.

Plus, and most importantly, they diminish trust in you. Your prospects have heard it all before, been sucked in by these phrases and burned badly. You seek to build trust, not diminish it. So why would you say the same often repeated phrases that prospects know from experience are almost always untrue, exaggerated, have no basis in fact or just flat out lies?

You can’t build trust by faking sincerity.

“How are you?” You don’t know them. They don’t know you. Could this be less sincere?

“Have you got a minute?” Again, if they don’t know you, what you might help them with or how credible you are, why should they have any time for you. Don’t ask them for time until you have laid the proper foundation.

“I’ll be brief.” That is not a benefit or something worthwhile. The fact that you will only waste a little bit of their time does not score points. Plus, dozens of callers have said the same thing to them before and then ramble on endlessly, so they don’t buy it.

But the biggest reason saying things like that are self-destructive is they communicate nothing about your value or what you do. If the person you are talking to has a need you can fulfill…. you are giving them absolutely no information that enables them to conclude that you are worth listening to.

Another blunder…

I’m just calling to follow-up on a letter sent to you.

Why is this nuts? What is the response you get 99.9% of the time? “I didn’t get it… I didn’t read it. Please send it again.” So now, by your own choice of words you have immolated yourself. The call is over. Why would anyone do that? If you have the decision-maker on the phone use words that will sell the meeting, don’t choose words that are guaranteed to throw the conversation off course.

“I’d like to stop by and see you and will only take 10 minutes.”

If you are only worth 10 minutes of their time you must not be worth much at all.

Very self-destructive statement for two reasons. A. If you have nothing worthwhile to offer them the fact you will only take 10 minutes is not a benefit. B. People buy from peers. What you are communicating with this statement is that their time is more valuable than yours. You should never project that. Don’t say things to lower your perceived value. If they have an issue with time, let them bring it up.

Saying things such as “I only need 10-15 minutes of your time” is the equivalent of being on your knees bowing while chanting “I am not worthy, I am not worthy” over and over again. Why would someone that has expertise and great value to offer diminish their credibility like that. Makes no sense to me.

“Can I call back and check with you in a month.”

This is a great example of doing all the work and getting no results. Don’t ever suggest a time to call them back. Always let them suggest a time. Enable them to tell you how you can sell them. You learn nothing from them if you ask them when to call.

A better approach… “No problem… don’t want to be on your back… but obviously we do a lot of this, can you suggest a better time to get back in touch with you?” Then be quiet. Let them tell you. When they do say something like this… “Happy to do that, may I ask why that is a good time?”

See the difference? The first approach gives you no information to separate the hot prospects from the time wasters. By your own choice of words you doom yourself to following up on multiples of people that will never buy. With the second approach, you enable them to tell you if they have a need and when it will be actionable.

Keep these two points in mind. You always want to communicate value and enable them to tell you how to sell them. Rip out any words that don’t directly contribute to those two objectives. Never say anything to diminish perceptions of your value.

Remember, if you say the things that knuckleheads and time-wasters say, they will perceive you to be a knucklehead or time-waster.

Phone Script Audit Checklist-15 Sales Script Factors to Boost Discovery Calls and B2B Appointment Setting

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Before I started sales coaching, I worked the phones to book more than 2,000+ C-Level appointments in diverse industries. That experience and working with sales teams over many years, has identified several problems with sales scripts that prevent them from being as effective as they could be. Thought it would be helpful to provide a list of major factors to review when seeking to punch up phone script effectiveness.

1. Absolute clarity about “what you do.”
If qualified prospects cannot instantly grasp “what you do” they can’t decide if you can help them. Miss this point and they don’t pay attention to whatever else you say.

2. Why are you a better option than a google search?
People who are going to write a check to you or one of your competitors have options. They can easily find and pick those they deem worthy of their time. If you are not perceived to be “top tier” and better than an option they could find themselves, you will not get a meeting.

3. Do you include hype words?
Cold prospects do not know you. When you throw around words like “best,” “superior,” “#1” or make exaggerated promises, they don’t have enough information to agree or disagree with you, so they drastically discount what you say.

4. Do you use specifics and facts?
Numbers, client names, truthful representative results. Specifics, which you can later back up, paint a picture for a prospect as to your credibility.

5. Does the script refer to “bottom line benefits” delivered?
Does your script appeal to benefits that matter? Productivity, margin, profits, client retention, net new clients and other bottom line type benefits speak to core needs.

6. Are the benefits you offer better use of resources than the other 20 “good ideas” competing for their time and money?
It is not enough to be “better.” Top decision makers have many competing interests for their time. You must be a better investment of time than all the other options on their plate.

7. Do you sound like all the rest?
Do you make it easy for them to lump you in with the idiots? If you say what so many others that have wasted their time say, guess what? You are done. Approach prospects in a fresh way.

8. Are you a peer?
You don’t have to be a CEO to be a valuable resource to a CEO. Neither do you need the same depth of knowledge of those you speak to? As to the issue of whether it is a reasonable use of time for a CEO, VP or check writer to meet with you or a representative of your company, as to that issue, you should speak as a peer.

9. Are you worth their time even if they don’t do business with you?
Do you convey a value which will be delivered at the first meeting or during the discovery call, that is worth their time, even if they do not do business with you?

10. Do your script paths identify those that won’t meet now, but will write a check to a competitor within 15 months?
Very very important. If you are setting discovery calls, you are probably offering something that companies do not buy or change vendors for very often. Even if you are doing everything right, with long sales cycle sales, the odds of you bumping into someone at exactly the right time is minimal. When prospects say “no,” do you have a plan to identify those that will write checks to competitors shortly?

11. Do your scripts try to sell the meeting or your service?
Your scripts can attempt to sell a meeting or your service. But not both. Stay focused on selling meetings, and you get more chances to sell your service. Move beyond that to try to sell your service, and you will sell fewer meetings.

12. Do your scripts appeal to those who already recognize a need?Appointment setting and prospecting are not about appointment setting and prospecting. It’s all about net new clients and closing deals. Don’t offer a scratch to those that don’t feel an itch. You won’t get far.

13. Are your scripts based upon a “pile of words?”
Many hard working companies and reps will invest hundreds if not thousands of hours using scripts which inadequately communicate their value, credibility and benefits delivered. Insanity. Have your brainstormed the best verbiage to use to communicate your message? Is each component part of your scripts as impactful as can be?

14. Do your scripts give qualified prospects sufficient reason to listen to just a little bit more?
Qualified prospects don’t know you. They have been burned too many times. They are primed to knee-jerk reject you. Even if they have a need, you can solve, and you would be the vendor offering the most value, they are primed to knee-jerk reject you, as they don’t know that yet. Do your scripts in the first crucial 7 seconds make them choke on “we are all set” and keep them listening? In the end, do they feel meeting with you would be worth their time, even if they don’t do business with you?

15. Are your scripts 100% focused on “buyers?”
Some scripts seem to be more focused on having more comfortable conversations with non-buyers, than being focused on enabling “buyers,” those that recognize a need and will write a check to you or a competitor within 15 months, to conclude that you are worth a meeting. When a prospect says “Hello,” your scripts must assume they are buyers and say the things buyers need to hear to conclude that you are worth more time.
16. Bonus Tip. Good scripting is only 25% of the reason why your appointment setting or setting discovery calls program will be successful.

Contrary to popular opinion, good scripts alone cannot get you enough discovery calls. Your scripting is part of an overall effective system. List priorities, coding and segmentation, prospecting velocity, efficiency, call process, knowing when to let go and other factors determine whether you are working an overall process that will deliver more appointment setting or setting discovery call results. Your scripts are just one part of that process.

Good sales scripts will not save you if you are not working a system or your system stinks. Working a good system with mediocre scripts can consistently deliver you net new clients to meet your business goals.

Hope these thoughts helped.
if you need scripting or call process help, contact us.

Scott Channell
ScottChannell.com

Good Sales Scripts Can’t Fix Bad Math

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If you throw a coat of paint on a clunker of a car, you still have the problems of a clunker. It will not run the way you want.

Throw new and improved sales scripts on top of a broken prospecting system and what do you have? A broken prospecting system. It will not perform the way you want.

The reason why is a four letter word. Math.

It took awhile for that clunker of a car to be a clunker. The tires wore out, the oil was neglected, noises ignored, repairs postponed or jerry-rigged. It did not happen overnight and a new paint job doesn’t change the fundamentals. The car is broken and incapable of working as intended.

Same with a sales script paint job.

Your shiny new phone scripts with fancy smancy gatekeeper and voicemail verbiage doesn’t fix the fundamental problems and the result will be the same.

Let’s peek under the hood of a prospecting system.

Fundamental truth: Math is a better predictor of sales prospecting success than great scripts.

The buyers are out there. They will buy from someone. When someone with credibility communicates with them and appears to be able to meet their needs they will take time to review that vendor. When someone interacts with them in a meaningful way and says things sufficient to warrant an investment of their time, they will do so.

Another way of looking at it…

The buyers are out there. If you bump into enough of them and don’t screw it up when you do, you will get your fair share of new opportunities.

You don’t create buyers or needs. You simply work an organized system whereby you bump into sufficient numbers of companies that are in buy mode or recognize they have certain needs. When you do bump into them you are prepared to say the things they need to hear to take a next step with you.

Sales prospecting math fact #1: The list you are calling dictates whether you even have a shot.

Typical situation. Fifty percent of buyers are lurking within 3% of your call list. Another 45% of buyers are to be found among 15% of your call list. The remaining 5% of buyers are scattered about the remaining 80% of your list.

Where are you more likely to set an appointment with a buyer? Among the 3%, the 15% or the 80%?

If you are calling that list equally, simple math dooms you to failure.
If you allocate your call time to the 3%, your office nickname will soon be “the machine.”
Because you are now so much smarter or more persuasive? No. Because you chose to call a higher probability pool and basic math greatly increased the odds of success.

BTW… getting this right has by far the greatest impact on lead generation results. It also takes the least amount of time and effort to get right.

Appointment setting math fact #2: Have more conversations, schedule more meetings.

Conversations with decision-makers are key. More conversations, more shots at next steps. Fewer conversations, fewer shots at a next step.

Logic and common sense tells us that if we work an organized call process plan consistently that we will get more decision-makers to pick up the phone. If we have no call process plan or call inconsistently or randomly, fewer decision-makers pick up the phone.

Very simple. Call one way get result X. Call another way get result Y.

Good scripts do not impact how many conversations you have. It is your call process that serves up the conversations that enables you to wow with your good scripts.

Basic math. Work the call process that has an increased likelihood of generating a conversation. Know the difference.

Lead generation math fact #3: Lifetime value or size of an average sale.

Here is a Channellism for you. If it doesn’t work on paper, it won’t work when you call.

There are some call initiatives that are doomed to fail. Magic scripts and more dials cannot save them. The culprit. Math.

Before you or your sales team calls you need to put pencil to paper. Consider size of average sale, margins, lifetime value, conversion rates, cost of sale and more. Determine the zone where it makes sense to call.

At times, given the average sale size, margins, costs of sale, competitive factors and rational conversion rates, it is obvious that a call program has no chance of success.

Better scripts and more dials will not breathe life into this corpse. Some projects are doomed from the start. Choked by basic math.

Even companies with successful programs have to be wary about drifting into low-probability zones where applying the same effort and skillset that works so well in some areas, is doomed to fail in others. Why? The laws of probability and basic math.

Prospecting success is largely determined by probabilities that come into play before a prospect says “Hello.” Understand the probabilities and you greatly increase the odds of prospecting success.

Smile when you dial.

Sales Leaders Don’t Let Sales Teams Call Crap

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Friends don’t let friends drive drunk.
Sales leaders don’t let sales teams call crap.

Leaders can pound the table as hard as they want. They can insist on more calls, more meetings, and more proposals all day long. Leaders can bang the drum for these things very loudly. Reports can measure them. But reality is, if the team is calling crap it is all for naught.

Sales leaders and salespeople that can control who they call on need to ask three questions.

1. Where do I want to end up?
2. What factors are within my control?
3. What impact do each of these factors have on my end result?

Not all sales tactics are created equal.

Some suck up large amounts of time or capital yet barely move the needle.
Others, require little time and no additional investment, yet have major impact on results.

Do you know the difference?

If you are an individual salesperson and don’t know the difference the odds are that you are working harder and harder and seeing little difference in sales.

If you are a sales leader and don’t know the difference, you may be at the head of the line but your sales team is walking off the cliff.

Let me share two common scenarios.

Fairly frequently I will receive a code blue call and be asked to rush to the side of a dying prospecting patient. Sad cases. Some can be saved. Some won’t be. To properly diagnose such cases you have to ask “What caused this?” and check the vitals.

In a high percentage of these cases the root cause of the emergency is that the sales team is calling crap.

High quotas were in place. Reports were measuring all sorts of things. People were screaming “More, more, more” all the time. Yet the patient ends up on life support.

Root cause?

The group of targets most likely to buy, buy in larger amounts, and buy again are not being called much. The group of targets that are less likely to buy, when they do buy, do so in smaller amounts and change vendors on whims, nickels and dimes…. too much activity is directed toward them.

You can’t make a silk hat out of a sow’s ear.

It is not at all unusual for the autopsy to determine that 80% or more of sales efforts were being directed toward crap. Not only that, but there were enough “good” targets to keep the sales team busy for at least six months. But the “good” group was barely being worked.

Sad cases. How many have to die before something is done?

Another common scenario. Sales leader calls me long after an operation has been conducted. Says something like “Scott, can you help again. The team just isn’t having enough conversations, they should be dialing more, have more meetings. They don’t seem to be using the crm right. And those scripts we wrote, I really don’t think they are sticking to them. I think we should be doing more.”

Hmmmm. yet the conversation continues…. “However the good news is that the quality is greatly improved and sales are up. We just ended the best quarter we ever had.”

How can this be? “Good” targets are being called upon rather than crap.

Reality is that some factors have a disproportionate impact on results.

Even in scenarios where a lot of things could be done better, if sales activities are directed to a higher quality pool of targets results will increase.

You can screw up or be mediocre on a lot of things, but if you want sales results you must make sure that your time and money is being allocated to the highest-probability highest-value targets. No exceptions. No rationalizations. No “but, but, but.” Allocate your sales resources to where you will get the best results.

So sales leaders, be a friend.
Don’t let your sales team call crap.

Sales Reminders Often More Help Than Sales Instruction

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Most sales teams are capable of far greater results without learning one new thing.

Most sales managers are sitting on strategies that would jump sales results.
Most salespeople are not doing half the things they know must be done to earn to potential.

Simply reminding teams, managers and salespeople of things they already know to do, often helps more than trying to pile on more good ideas or better sales techniques.

What good will learning new things do when so much that is already known goes unused.

Here is a contrarian tip for the fastest jump-start of new business in 2016.
Don’t seek to learn new things. Simply remind yourself of the important things you already know you must do, must use and must stop. Focus on those things first for fastest results.

What are sales team sitting on that are better than new ideas?

Stories and impact verbiage: Sad but true fact. Most salespeople and teams I work with have great success stories to tell, yet are not telling them. Have great credibility in the marketplace yet say nothing to communicate this. Have significant benefits clients want yet fail to mention them to new prospects.

Remember all those great things your clients appreciate? How about the examples of value you have created or problems solved? And all those things you could say about how credible you are… the number of accounts, the companies that work with you, the results you get… are you working enough of those things into your prospecting process and initial meetings? Many are not.

Refining where prospecting and sales time goes: All prospects and potential clients are not created equal. Rather than dump more leads into your prospecting or sales funnel take inventory of what you already have and prioritize.

Sad but true fact in salesland. Most teams and salespeople are not selling to potential for lack of effort or sales skills. The major culprit of working way too hard for far too little is misallocation of time to lower-probability lower-worth accounts.

Sadder still is the fact with just a few hours of effort, a few hours, you could be reminded of those pockets which include a disproportionate volume of great clients and revenue. Here is an example and it is not unusual. Worked with a team where 50% of the best accounts were found within just 3% of the potential sales universe. Was that 3% defined and prioritized? No it wasn’t. So much of it was going uncalled and sitting dormant while the less worthy and unworthy were being showered with love and attention. Sometimes you just need to be reminded where your best sources of business are.

Before you start throwing more new ideas and strategies onto the log pile, utilize and solidify what you already know.

Sales results arise from solid sales foundations. For best results solidify your foundation before you seek to build upon it. Focus on what you already know you should be doing. Spend a little time to focus your efforts where it will do the most good. Start incorporating the great stories, result examples, credibility statements and major benefits you provide into your prospecting scripts and sales meetings.

Remind yourself of what you already know needs to be done and do those things first.
That will solidify your foundation and provide the best springboard for new initiatives and strategies at a later date.

Phone Script Audit Checklist-15 Sales Script Factors to Boost Discovery Calls and B2B Appointment Setting

By

Before I started sales coaching, I worked the phones to book more than 2,000+ C-Level appointments in diverse industries. That experience, and working with sales teams over many years, has identified several problems with sales scripts that prevent them from being as effective as they could be. Thought it would be helpful to provide a list of major factors to review when seeking to punch up phone script effectiveness.

1. Absolute clarity about “what you do.”
If qualified prospects cannot instantly grasp “what you do” they can’t decide if you can help them. Miss this point and they don’t pay attention to whatever else you say.

2. Why are you a better option than a google search?
People who are going to write a check to you or one of your competitors have options. They can easily find and pick those they deem worthy of their time. If you are not perceived to be “top tier” and better than an option they could find themselves, you will not get a meeting.

3. Do you include hype words?
Cold prospects do not know you. When you throw around words like “best,” “superior,” “#1” or make exaggerated promises, they don’t have enough information to agree or disagree with you, so they drastically discount what you say.

4. Do you use specifics, numbers and facts?
Numbers, client names, truthful representative results. Specifics, which you can later back up, paint a picture for a prospect as to your credibility.

5. Does the script refer to “bottom line benefits” delivered?
Does your script appeal to benefits that matter? Employee productivity, margin, profits, client retention, net new clients and other bottom line type benefits speak to core needs.

6. Are the benefits you offer better use of resources than the other 20 “good ideas” competing for their time and money?
It is not enough to be “better.” Top decision makers have many competing interests for their time. You must be a better investment of time than all the other options on their plate.

7. Do you sound like all the rest?
Do you make it easy for them to lump you in with the idiots? If you say what so many others that have wasted their time say, guess what? You are done. Approach prospects in a fresh way.

8. Are you a peer?
You don’t have to be a CEO to be a valuable resource to a CEO. Neither do you need the same depth of knowledge of those you speak to? As to the issue of whether it is a reasonable use of time for a CEO, VP or check writer to meet with you or a representative of your company, as to that issue, you should speak as a peer.

9. Are you worth their time, even if they don’t do business with you?
Do you convey a value which will be delivered at the first meeting or during the discovery call, that is worth their time, even if they do not do business with you?

10. Do your script paths identify those that won’t meet now, but will write a check to a competitor within 15 months?
Very very important. If you are setting discovery calls, you are probably offering something that companies do not buy or change vendors for very often. Even if you are doing everything right, with long sales cycle sales, the odds of you bumping into someone at exactly the right time is minimal. When prospects say “no,” do you have a plan to identify those that will write checks to competitors shortly?

11. Do your scripts try to sell the meeting, your service or both?
Your scripts can attempt to sell a meeting or your service. But not both. Stay focused on selling meetings, and you get more chances to sell your service. Move beyond that to try to sell your service, and you will sell fewer meetings.

12. Do your scripts appeal to those who already recognize a need?
Appointment setting and prospecting are not about appointment setting and prospecting. It’s all about net new clients and closing deals. Don’t offer a scratch to those that don’t feel an itch. You won’t get far.

13. Are your scripts based upon a “pile of words?”
Many hard working companies and reps will invest hundreds if not thousands of hours using scripts which inadequately communicate their value, credibility and benefits delivered. Insanity. Have your brainstormed the best verbiage to use to communicate your message? Is each component part of your scripts as impactful as can be?

14. Do your scripts give qualified prospects sufficient reason to listen to just a little bit more?
Qualified prospects don’t know you. They have been burned too many times. They are primed to knee-jerk reject you. Even if they have a need, you can solve, and you would be the vendor offering the most value, they are primed to knee-jerk reject you, as they don’t know that yet. Do your scripts in the first crucial 7 seconds make them choke on “we are all set” and keep them listening? In the end, do they feel meeting with you would be worth their time, even if they don’t do business with you?

15. Are your scripts 100% focused on “buyers?”
Some scripts seem to be more focused on having more comfortable conversations with non-buyers, than being focused on enabling “buyers,” those that recognize a need and will write a check to you or a competitor within 15 months, to conclude that you are worth a meeting. When a prospect says “Hello,” your scripts must assume they are buyers and say the things buyers need to hear to conclude that you are worth more time.

16. Bonus Tip. Good scripting is only 25% of the reason why your appointment setting or setting discovery calls program will be successful.
Contrary to popular opinion, good scripts alone cannot get you enough discovery calls. Your scripting is part of an overall effective system. List priorities, coding and segmentation, prospecting velocity, efficiency, call process, knowing when to let go and other factors determine whether you are working an overall process that will deliver more appointment setting or setting discovery call results. Your scripts are just one part of that process.

Good sales scripts will not save you if you are not working a system or your system stinks.

6 Keys to Sales Script Cold Call Opening Line

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SALES SCRIPT EXAMPLE USED BY COLD CALL DOOR TO DOOR CANVASSERS IS INSTRUCTIVE… as to what NOT to do.

Hi, I’m Mike, this is Frank from didn’tgetthename company, we have an alternative to UPS that saves money….

A bad, bad opening cold call line THAT CREATES THE VERY RESPONSE THEY WISH TO AVOID.

Read a much better opening line below with the 6 keys to an effective cold call opening line.

Two office to office canvassers walked into my office unannounced. Two young men all spiffed up in suits and playing the role. I was at my desk focusing on a project and they approached with big fake smiles looking like the shrink wrap had just been taken off them.

They started with the line above and I shut them down. They left. If that opening was part of a prepared sales script, it’s doubtful they had much cold call success.

Let’s evaluate what sales script structure they could have used on this cold call that would have given them a much greater chance of success.

First, the scenario. They walk into an office unannounced and approach someone that is busy. That should be a normal scenario for them. Anybody worth talking to is busy. That is reality. So what.

As they walked through the outer office towards me (my assistant was out) their appearance put me on guard and predisposed me to getting rid of them firmly. Their polished appearance and insincere wide smiles telegraphed to me “hard sell” and “waste of time.” I was ready for them before they even started talking.

The words they spoke cemented my desire to get rid of them. A desire they created and strengthened.

They said “… we have an alternative to UPS…” My immediate thought? Great. This one is easy. We don’t use UPS. I don’t need them. Bye bye.

What sales script structure and door to door sales techniques might have given them a much greater chance of success?

Here is what I would have recommended.

1. Only one person should have approached me initially. My resolve to reject them was strengthened by being cold call ambushed by two. Plus, the 2nd person seemed to be a trainee, with I assume, little to offer. Don’t put those thoughts in my head.

2. The one person who approached me should have toned it down a bit. If the jacket was off, the pace was slower, if the face seemed a little more sincere or real, I would have been more relaxed and not predisposed to battle. Make it easy for people to be at ease with you. This is more common sense than revelatory sales technique.

3. Their opening line was terrible and made it easy for me to reject them. I was ready to reject them and they made it easy for me to do so with their opening. If this was a prepared sales script it was bad. If they were winging it, that is worse.

They said:

“Hi, I’m Mike, this is Frank from didn’tgetthename company, we have an alternative to UPS that saves money…”

My suggestion would have been something like this:

“Hi, I’m Mike from Amalgamated. Could I share with you a shipping option used by 137 local businesses and 30,000 nationwide? I appreciate your time and will only take a moment.”

As to delivery, the tone would be soft, understated, sincere and courteous.

1st key: “share with you a shipping option.” This is purposely a broader approach that doesn’t enable qualified prospects to conclude “that is not for me.”

2nd key: “Share” can mean a few things and is soft language. The words and sales script is not limiting the conversation.

3rd key: Say the company name clearly. In their pitch I didn’t grasp the name of the company. So rather than concentrate on what they are saying next, I’m thinking “From where? What did he say?” Their poor delivery of the words lost me.

4th key: “…137 local businesses and 30,000 nationwide.” Credibility, credibility, credibility. If you are going to have any shot at cold call success your sales script must convey credibility. If I chat a bit, I need to know that I am not wasting my time with a non-credible company. If I was a candidate for their service, I need to know at least that there is a possibility that I would consider them. Those specifics tell me that maybe, maybe, they might have something.

5th key: What cemented in my mind that they were two clueless idiots sure to waste my time? Their reference to saving money. That was the worst thing they could have brought up and least important to me. Of course, they know nothing about what we spend so their credibility immediately plunged in my mind. Also, that is the least important factor to me. Shaving a few pesos off a budget item which isn’t on my radar doesn’t interest me. Now if they had mentioned convenience factors, tracking options, customer notification and satisfaction options, saving admin time and a few other things, my ears might have perked up. But saving money. If that was the best thing they could say up-front they obviously had no clue what really mattered to their decision-makers. Bye bye.

5th key: A low-key approach combined with sincere appreciation of some time and requesting only a moment. Common decency and a great door to door sales technique. If I was willing to entertain a new shipping option now or maybe just listen to what they have… and I was balancing between “do I listen” and “do I not,” that ending may make the difference and get them a few moments and lead to a longer interaction. I am sensing a possible benefit, not sensing a risk and am more likely to give them the benefit of the doubt and a few moments. What the heck?

All of the above in my opinion would have given them a much greater chance of some additional time. If they got it, they would follow with a bit more expansive statement of benefits and some questions that would lead to a more in-depth interaction with the following possible results.

An account now.

An account later.

A referral now.

A referral later.

A suspect crossed off the list.

They could have been working with a cold calling script that worked, rather than scaring people away.

Words matter. The words you use should be crafted to give you the best shot of getting to the next step of your process. If you are ineffective at any step you are out of the game or building on a weak foundation.

If you understand what you are trying to achieve with each component part of your interactions and how your words influence the result, you have the best chance of selecting the words that will earn you the next step.

Hope this sales script example gets you thinking.

Scott Channell

16 B2B Cold Calling Contrarian Truths: Get It Right by Knowing What Most Get Wrong

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If you or your team excel at setting B2B discovery calls,
there are things you know and do,
that are not accepted or done,
by those working much harder for much less results.

These are cold calling contrarian truths,
accepted by top peformers,
but shrugged off by mediocre and bottom of the pack callers.

1. Top Sales Achievers Do What Works, Even If it is Uncomfortable, inconvenient or against what the great unwashed “know” to be true.

The top sales producers do what works. No matter whether it is accepted by most, comfortable for them, they want to do or they really really really want to find prospecting success another way.

Guess what? Cold Calling for Appointments is not rocket science. Not easy, but not rocket science either.

If you cling to the fantasy that you are different, your industry is different, your customers would not respond to those strategies… do it your way, and keep banging your head against the wall.

2. Top Appointment setters do not make the most calls.

If you think more activity will save you, you probably don’t even know the right questions to ask, never mind the answers to how to set more appointments with perfect prospects when they are actively seeking to buy.

You can stir a pot faster and faster of lousy script verbiage, non-existent call process and lousy lists but it won’t change what you have.

The most successful appointment setters generate qualified leads in a steady stream. But they don’t make the most dials. You have to make enough calls to be in the zone, but “more dials” is never the reason for call success when other factors are not present.

Making more dials when you have few conversations or convert too few to appointments rarely makes the difference. Once you are in a reasonable range of dials, improving on those other 2 areas, having more conversations, converting more conversations to appointments, typically will get more drastically improved results. Improving on those things involves some strategic thinking, knowledge of the sales and marketing principles that drive success, preparation and practice, not “more dials.”

3. This game is more about disqualifying sales leads than it is about qualifying.

You got that right. Disqualifying. Up front, quickly, no benefit of the doubt, ruthlessly and with certainty, is far more important to accelerate sales ramp up.. The goal is not to make excuses and conjure up reasons to keep the weak and hopeless alive. There is no Heimlich maneuver in sales prospecting, no mouth to mouth, no chest compressions. The best appointment setters and sales closers identify and kill the weak. ASAP.

Those who are best at finding gold are best at identifying what is not gold. Deciding whom NOT to call, whom NOT to call again, who NOT to meet with is critical. Get good at not wasting your time and guess what… you spend a lot more time with worthwhile prospects.

Reality is that most b2b sales staff and team members are dealing with a long sales cycle. Sales cycles of six months to two years are not uncommon for a business to business sales rep. That is a different situation than b2c. Top b2b sales producers are very good and have the guts to identify and properly slot those that are not worth the sales effort right now.

4. Giving up is very important. Sales People Must Know When to Move On.

You think you will win this game by initiative and effort? Call call call and then call again. You are wrong. Big mistake made commonly is to continue to invest time well past the point of diminishing returns. Work a plan. Work a process. When you reach the end of the plan, let go.

5. Don’t Pay Attention to What They Tell You. It is usually not literally true.

This one is a little tricky. I guess what I am trying to say is don’t listen literally to what a potential customer or account says. Many, who tell you they are “all set,” “want info” or a call back are not giving you an accurate picture of the situation. If you at that moment do what they say, you will be losing many opportunities. You must have responses to these common forms of resistance so that you can uncover the accurate story and get the meeting now when possible. When you hear objections like those above a calculated response will get you a meeting now about 25% of the time.

6. Gatekeepers and Sales Influencers Are Much More Willing to Give you what they think is UNimportant to you.

This is kind of stupid but true. On the phone, if you come right out and ask for something… qualifying info, direct dial, extension number… gatekeepers will keep the cookies in the bag. Yet, if they think the same info is unimportant to you, they give it much more freely.

Use the “Columbo” strategy. Ask for what you really want after the fact. Your first request you don’t really need, it’s the afterthought you just remembered as they were about to hang up or transfer you that you really wanted. I find I can get qualifying info and info that makes it much easier to get someone to pick up the phone when using this “Columbo” technique.

7. Many, who tell you they are “all set,” will in fact buy from a competitor within 2 – 12 months.

Happens too often. Someone who swears satisfaction, no money, no interest, no need and no time is called back six months later and guess what? Just signed a million-dollar contract for products and services they had sworn they didn’t need. And with a lousy competitor to boot. Too late.

If you are a b2b service provider reality is that if it is cost effective to cold call and set appointments that most of your targets don’t buy or change vendors often. It’s more like every two or four years, maybe. In a business to business sales environment you are far more likely to interact with someone when they are not in active buying mode. You must have phone script strategies to flush out those that will have a need in the near future. If you don’t, you are doing all the work to run 99 yards to the goal line but stopping on the one-yard line with no one in sight. (I hate sports analogies.)

Use model responses to resistance and quick probing questions to ID those opportunities after they say “no, no, no.”

8. Lead Generation Success has much to do about basic management, being setup properly and working efficiently.

Your sales manager, or, if you are managing yourself, your own self management efforts matter most at the beginning phases of the sales process. What you do early on has the most impact on ultimately closing a deal.
Why would someone torture themselves prospecting for 5 – 10 – 20 hours weekly using a paper system or an excel spreadsheet trying to set appointments and getting little but headaches, but won’t spend the one time 3 – 5 hours it takes to get properly setup to work at maximum efficiency all the time. Productivity doubles with this one step. No joke.

You wouldn’t go swimming with weights tied around your waist, ankles and neck. Yet, when you prospect without being setup properly, which takes very little time compared to the time and torture you will invest in calling, you doom yourself to failure. You just can’t move fast enough to survive.

Spend just a little time to make sure you have the basics in place first, then build from there. List selection, contact manager setup, basic script paths, a call process, an automated follow-up system, just getting the basics right in these key areas greatly increases the odds of your success. Without them, you are doomed.

Manager yourself properly by being setup with the basics from the beginning. That has far more impact on your closing than “magic words” used on poorly qualified prospects when you are desperate to make any deal.

9. Most call lists that are far too large for available time and resources.

Pull down a call list many times larger than you or your sales team can call and you guarantee wasted time, inefficiency, poor targeting and calling frustration. Heed this b2b sales tip at your peril.

The most common result by far of failed sales campaigns is too much time spent on lower probability targets. You don’t get more results by downloading 25,000 records (see it all the time) when your sales team can at max call 3,000 in the next six months. Those records degrade every month. Plus, managers usually pull down far too many records because they don’t know how to prioritize the call universe.
.
They won’t spend the few hours, or simply don’t know how to generate a qualified list, yet expect results when 80% or more of sales time is spent talking to totally unqualified suspects. I see this often and the good people always flee these environments.

10. Lack of sales script preparation.

You only tend to hear 5-7 things on the phone over and over again with b2b lead generation, yet many have not completely thought out the best response. You kill yourself to get a conversation. To not have a tightly worded powerful response ready is self-defeating. Those who “wing it” every time thinking they sound more conversational are deluding themselves.

11. How many people answer their phones only to tell you they are in a very important meeting and can’t talk, but will schedule a meeting with you, if you know what to say.

Happens all the time in business to business sales. People answer the phone to whisper that they can’t talk to you because they are in a meeting. Your first thought? Well, why did you pick up the phone from an unknown number knucklehead? But you don’t ask. It’s tough to get a prospect that meets your best account profile to pick up the phone. Don’t retreat to wimp mode. “Um, OK. Sorry. Click” Prepare for this moment and you will be surprised how many appointments and worthwhile follow-up calls you can get.

12. You can’t model behaviors and beliefs of those that set too few sales appointments, yet expect drastically different results.

Albert Einstein is credited with saying “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.”

Yup. So why would an ambitious salesperson study the collective judgment of the mediocre, the struggling, those that are not top producers, those that abandon their plan every time they hear about a “fresh strategy” or a “new rule of selling” are doomed to forever tread water?

Why would someone buy into the sales thinking of that group and say “Now there is my ticket to sales success!”Makes no sense but it’s the modus operandi of far too many salespeople.

Identify and model the prospecting behaviors of those that have actually done what you seek to do. Whether you like it, want to do it, it is uncomfortable or not. Do it. You will get comfortable when you start making more money.

13. You are interrupting and are going to annoy people. Get over it.

The same verbiage and sales script paths and responses to objections and gatekeeper interactions, that are welcomed by many and lead to maximum conversion to happy satisfied accounts, that same verbiage and approach will be an unwelcome interruption and annoyance to those with no need.

Non-buyers will always be annoyed by something they are not interested in. Of course. Worry only about your message to the buyers and communicate well with them. Totally ignore those who are annoyed.

Your main objective should always be to maximize your reach to qualified buyers and have something worthwhile to say to them when you do. The first 3 seconds and the first 30 seconds are most important to that conversation.

When someone with a need and authority to buy picks up the phone (and of course you don’t know that when you hear “Hello.”) be clear, direct, specific and say something that is meaningful to the prospect and enables them to understand you are credible and can help them. Enable them to quickly “get it”and let them say “yes” or “no.”  That respects the time of your prospect.

In my humble opinion, those that drop to their knees to beg and start with “Hi, how are you?” “Have you got a minute?” “I know you are busy and will only take moment.” “I am not worthy, I am not worthy.” They are the ones that annoy the most as they suck up time and say nothing that is helpful to the prospect.

14. There are far more good profitable accounts within the group you speak to but won’t meet, then there is in the group you meet with.

Think hard about this b2b marketing truth. There is far more great profitable business within the group that you speak to yet initially refuse your offer to meet, than you will close from those that agree to meet.

There is far more gold just below the surface of those that agree to meet with you, than you will skim from the top. Most of you reading this are dealing with long sales cycles. It makes perfect sense that the odds of you bumping into someone at exactly the perfect time to sell is low. Yet many of those you speak to will buy from someone else in the foreseeable future.

If your response to someone that says “no” to your request to meet is to ask if you can call back in three months to check in, you should admit that you are clueless and change your approach. You must have script strategies to identify those that have needs and will soon change vendors or buy from another.

15. “Cold calling is a waste of time” is simply not true.

I teach phone prospecting but I don’t love it. I set 2,000+ C-Level sales appointments and it was work, not fun. Appointment setting is usually equated with cold calling but many set appointments with existing accounts, dormant accounts, referral sources and those that have been referred. Core B2B appointment setting success behaviors are the same whether the call is cold, warm or hot.

Appointment setting, cold, warm or hot, is just a marketing tool. Like any business to business marketing or sales tool, use it when it makes sense for you to use it. If you have better tools, use them. If you do decide to appointment set, then do it right. With B2B sales cold calling and appointment setting, like any tool, used correctly in the right places it gets results. Used Incorrectly in the wrong places… it doesn’t. I have seen businesses turn around and lives change using this tool. To arbitrarily dismiss it in all circumstances seems foolish to me.

16. Not allocating your time to the best quality pool of suspects is the biggest mistake I see.

If there are a lot of things not right about your appointment setting process and all you did was start calling and zeroing in your highest probability suspects, you would immediately see lead generation results improve. You could continue with your lousy scripts and poor call process, yet just interacting with a higher quality pool of sales prospects can deliver an immediate jump in qualified opportunities.

Remember this. No matter what else you are doing right with your appointment setting and cold calling, if you have not prioritized and focused your efforts on your highest probability prospects, you are doomed. Don’t care how good your phone scripts are or how adept you are with your CRM. You are doomed.

Example: You only have time to call and follow-up on 50 new suspects weekly. You can identify 1,000 suspects who look like your best clients. You can identify 20,000 suspects who fit the profile of your average, low volume, little profit accounts. It is mind boggling to me how many salespeople, who could choose to spend 100% of their prospecting time talking to suspects with a high probability of being good accounts, will slog through calling all the rest saying “I don’t want to miss anyone.”

It makes no sense.

Well, there are a lot of crazy things that happen out there in sales prospecting land.

Go get em.

12 Core Discovery Call Keys To Get The Close

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Here are some core concepts to execute a discovery call so as to maximize closing ratios.

For many years all I did was help companies SELL THE MEETING and schedule qualified discovery calls and first sales appointments. Eventually companies asked for help in choreographing (my words) the first meeting/discovery call to get more leads deeper into the pipeline and ultimately to a close.

The two most common complaints were 1) that “perfect prospects” were going nowhere after “great meetings” and 2) that prospects were vaporizing in the middle of the pipeline.

When you are crafting an appointment setting script you have a 3-5 minute interaction to plan for.
With a discovery call,  you need to prepare for a 15-60 minute interaction with many variables flying and the clock ticking.

Here are 12, of what I believe to be the keys, to conducting a discovery call so that you solidify the next step on the road to a close.

  1. The 2% difference gets us the close.

You must extract from the buyer motivations sufficient to overcome the tendency to do nothing. When a perfect prospect decides, will you be 2% better than the competition or doing nothing.

  1. The specifics that will earn us the close are extracted upfront.

You must extract the details from potential buyers that will provide that 2% difference.
You must have a sense of what to extract and whether it will be enough at decision time.

  1. 3. Proposals should be confirmations, not explorations.

Proposals are not fishing expeditions. They should confirm key points already discussed, not explore whether something is acceptable.

  1. Perfect prospects are ranking you against competitors and the status quo.

Are you contrasting your solution results so that perfect prospects can clearly weigh them against other options? If they can’t clearly see the difference, bye bye close.

  1. Are you prepared to showcase your strengths.

What specifics, stories, and examples are you going to communicate and when? You have limited time to get it done.

  1. How will you minimize weaknesses.

“Head off at the pass” the most common causes of doubt about moving forward. Remember, any lingering doubt on issues equates to a no close. Deal with them.

  1. Top closers prepare questions; the rest prepare presentations.

If you believe that obtaining a new account is determined by slight differences brought to the surface, those differences are uncovered with a purposeful plan. We are not talking about the lay-ups here, those that are a perfect fit for us, immediately see our value and cannot wait to sign. Nor are we talking about the tire-kickers and price shoppers. Nothing we say will make a difference and we do not want them. We need to sway those in the middle, that are dissatisfied on some level with their current situation and are trying to decide whether to go with someone else or stick with the devil they know. Focus on the middle group.

  1. The clock is ticking.

You have 15? 30? 45 minutes? to cement the next step toward a close. Are you winging it or properly prepared to make maximum use of that limited time?

  1. We close on the details.

We must extract the details which will get us to close. We must constantly ask ourselves “Will the details and specifics I am extracting be sufficient to overcome the urge to do nothing or work with a competitor?”

  1. Competing against not only other competitors but all the project options on the manager’s plate.

You might end up being a superior option, but if a manager perceives that the change is not worth the effort as compared to all the other things they may do with their time and money, you won’t get the account. Being a superior option is not enough. Your bottom line benefit must be bigger than what other projects would bring.

  1. Do not be “deselected.”

Do not say anything that could get you knocked out of the Box.

Why Is Prospecting So Hard? And… Tale of Held Back Caller

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How can it be that sales prospecting is relatively easy, steady and fairly predictable for some, yet for others, the equivalent of ripping out your own fingernails?

The answer to this question is more important in these covid times as the ability to find buyers can determine whether you pick up market share or fall to mediocrity, even ruin.

Over my 25 year career I have heard many companies say “that wasn’t so bad” as they moved from mediocrity to top tier of prospecting results. But for others, in very similar situations, every step seems excruciatingly hard and progress, if obtained at all, is short-lived while they drift back to old, failed practices.

A Tough Love Question: Are You Making It Harder Than It Has to Be?

Below are 4 criteria to help you answer that question.
But first, an example of what happens when you make it harder than it has to be.
Spoke to a very capable appointment setter recently lamenting how hard it was to book appointments. I knew from speaking to her she was capable. Why was she not getting at least average results? Plus, her company had many territories that had very successful lead gen teams that did not find it difficult at all. So why was her territory struggling?

Knowing that other divisions did not have problems (I had worked with a number of them,) I asked a few questions.

Who are you targeting? Answer: Companies found on Chambers of Commerce lists, internet searches and whatever they can find. Yikes! The successful divisions found 50% of their good business came from just 3% of all companies. They were calling the phone book rather than focusing on their most responsive targets. This info was easily available.

What CRM are you using to manage your calls and leads? She named a program that had been left behind by the more successful divisions years ago. Yikes! They were prospecting with a tool that slowed them down and didn’t allow them to segment by key criteria, when a Cadillac solution that costs little was used by the more successful divisions. Why not use the more effective tool?

What are you using for scripts? No clear answer, it depends, we change them up, yada yada. Yikes! The most successful divisions use consistent scripting that is fairly easily available. Why use weak messaging when scripts proven to work are available?

That caller and company are struggling and they should not be.

Why do some stumble along thirsty in a prospecting desert, when others in similar situations are refreshed with a steady flow of future buyers? 4 reasons.

  1. Some are in love with their current prospecting. They can imagine no others.

The heart wants what the heart wants, and even though the relationship has stopped working, they refuse to see it.

  1. Some have stopped learning.

Rather than change and improve based upon lessons learned from those more successful, they have closed their minds to new things. If something is outside of their comfort zone, they are not open to considering it.

  1. Some are not coachable

They are not willing to be honest with themselves or acknowledge blind spots. You need humility as you are vulnerable when you need help. You must be able to admit to flaws seen by others.

  1. An unwillingness to do the work

This I have never understood. People seem willing to do something that is not working, wasting time and money, work way too hard for far too little, over and over again, yet won’t buckle down to do the work to lift themselves into the top tier. Believe me, it takes far more work to be consistently mediocre (or worse) than it does to be successful. Do the work.

If you feel that prospecting is too hard, arduous, onerous, painful and troublesome, ask yourself the question above.

Are you making it harder than it has to be?