I am going to share with you a short sales script that makes no logical sense yet delivers qualified opportunities again and again with virtually no extra effort.
But first, some realities of high-level prospecting.
Reality #1: The odds of you connecting with a buyer on your first round of calls is slim.
Changing service providers or vendors every few years, at the most, is the norm for major purchases. Upgrades or new initiatives that require working with new companies don’t occur frequently. It is more typical that you speak with a decision-maker not ready at that moment, but will buy from a competitor in 6 – 12 months. You must have a strategy to identify and get permission to reconnect with these buyers at the right time.
Reality #2: What they say is not literally true.
“No” means “no,” except when prospecting. Your sales scripts path should anticipate this. You must have a strategy to get beyond the superficial “no, no, no” of those who will end up buying from someone else in the near future. ‘No” can mean many things. Not this minute. Not in the near future. I’m going to buy but can’t focus on this yet. You need to have a strategy to peel back the onion and identify those on the cusp of buying.
Reality #3: You have done the hard work and been blown up. What is one more question?
If you are appointment setting correctly you selected this company to call as they fit the profile of your highest probability buyers. You carefully selected this GROUP to call knowing that they were very likely to contain many with needs you could fulfill. Within these companies you identified top level decision-makers to gain entry. You called, called and called to get this top dog to pick up the phone. (Statistically, it takes an average of 12 calls to a specific decision-maker to have a conversation.) You have done all that, endured the corporate phone system and just spent about 2 minutes being totally rejected by your top decision-maker. What is one more question? What the heck, let it fly.
AFRAID OF MISSING AN OPPORTUNITY? YOU NEED TO ASK THIS QUESTION.
The fear of missing out on opportunities can be a motivator or a curse. It’s great it compels you to dig a little deeper and try harder while prospecting. It can mire you in mediocrity if the fear of “missing out” on a potential sale causes you to call, call, and call low-probability low-worth targets. I see this mistake made all the time at great cost to the salesperson. If you have this fear, you must ask this question at the end of your script path.
So, before I give you your sales script path happy ending script which will turn defeat into victory, one point and let’s set this up.
YOU SHOULD BE USING A SALES SCRIPT PATH
You should be calling not just with a sales script, but a sales script path. You should be prepared for all the common scenarios of the call, including the ending. You have an initial appointment setting pitch, responses to objections and common questions, and should have an ending that gives you a shot at uncovering an opportunity rather than just uttering “Thanks for your time, goodbye.”
Your sales script path happy ending question
Your perfectly delivered appointment setting pitch has been rebuffed. Your credibility laden benefit full perfectly delivered responses to objections and questions have hit a brick wall. Say this rather than “thanks for your time.”
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“Not an issue, don’t want to be on your back. But obviously we do a lot of this. Could you suggest a time for me to be back in contact with you?
Then be quiet.
If they suggest a time, ask one more question.
“Happy to do that. Is there a particular reason why that is a good time to call?”
Then be quiet.
This sales script path strategy is illogical, stupid simple and shockingly effective
I set more than 2,000 C-level b2b sales appointments and it always shocked me that someone would rebuff me, reject me, repel me… then answer that question with “Ya, call me in 30 days.”
Ridiculous and illogical. But is it?
Remember our realities above. Many we work so hard to speak to will buy from a competitor in the near future but are not ready to focus at the moment you call. What we hear on the phone is not literally true. You have done a lot of hard work and invested time on that phone call, what’s one more question?
The real money is just under the surface. Your sales scripts path must enable you to find it.
Those that really get the most from their appointment setting time have a “Plan B” and excel at identifying worthwhile future callback opportunities. Rather than hit a dead-end they create future slam dunks.
This sales script happy ending question will add qualified opportunities to your pipeline with virtually no extra effort.
If you or your sales team need to punch up your sales script paths and maybe tighten up your appointment setting process, contact me to discuss options. You don’t want to miss out on anything.
