Cold Calling Mistakes: Learning from mine Sales and Selling |
- Cold Calling Mistakes: Learning from mine
- What qualities entail that a sales job is good?
- Reddit Sales and Business Development Podcast- Episode 10 with Chris Stocker
- What are your tactics for getting to the decision maker in B2B?
- Job interview Help!
- As an SDR should I be calling less?
- Opinion on Facial Hair, Particularly in Insurance Sales.
- Adidas or Nike
- B2B Sales - Any topics you'd like covered in an upcoming podcast/Facebook Live?
- Remote SDR/BDR Roles?
- Help with a development plan for transition from inside to outside sales
- Account executive position at yelp vs business development at copier/print/imaging services company.
- How have you effectively reached out to a sales manager for a job?
- Trust Fall
- Chance to potentially interview for SDR position at Salesforce but no cold calling experience, should I hold off on the opportunity? How strict is Salesforce
| Cold Calling Mistakes: Learning from mine Posted: 08 Dec 2017 02:43 AM PST Thanks for all the love on my previous post, it meant a lot that you got value from it. I decided to create a post on the background of it, and why it led me to develop scripts that may be slightly different from the conventional. This is a post from my blog, but I took out the pictures of other sales scripts that I didn't get any benefit from. Happy to link you the post if you'd like to see how some big companies give advice on cold calling (and how it didn't work for me). Cold Calling Mistakes Cold calling can be a daunting task, especially for people new to sales. While it's great to learn from our own mistakes, I believe it's better to learn from other people's mistakes to become better, faster. Considering there's a tonne of cold calling advice out there, it can be hard to find advice that aligns with your values and style. When I was researching, training and self-improving, I struggled to find techniques that I could rely on as a proven method. That's why I created my own "style" here No matter if you agree or disagree with something, the mark of an educated person is the ability to question and learn from it. I like to think of this style not as revolutionary, but as a combination of the sales gurus of the world and sprinkled with a touch of contemporary flavour. The purpose of this post is to provide a background to how and why I formulated my own style. Perhaps it will inspire you to challenge the status quo and create your own, or maybe your style aligns with mine. Starting Out I had a big problem when I started: I actually didn't know I sucked. This is called "unconscious incompetence," and can create difficultly in life no matter what you're doing. I was arrogant and thought I was a good salesman because I'd watched some videos and read a couple articles, and was running a small business. However, because this business didn't require a sales process as such – and definitely didn't require cold calls to prospect and close – my sales acumen was smoke and mirrors. Ignorance is bliss, until it isn't. The watershed moment came when I entered my first sales role. I built the databases, psyched myself up and made the cold call. The fact I booked a meeting out of it was a miracle; I stumbled, stuttered and felt helpless. The feeling of having no control or confidence during the communication was terrible. I knew I had to change. And fortunately I knew how to change - training like it's a sport. My incompetence became blindingly obvious. I was now "consciously competent," meaning I was now aware that I sucked. Progress, baby! Improvement was swift. Videos, articles, books and trainings focused on technique allowed me to learn from the ground up. I enjoy dissecting methodology to find out why something is like it is. From there, I trained to become "consciously competent." It took time, but I'm now aware of my ability and confident in it, but it requires focus to make sure I'm doing the right thing. The quest of all salespeople should to become "unconsciously competent," or what I like to call "sales nirvana," which is where sales skills become second nature, and you can perform without thinking. This is what I'm aspiring to, but I know it's a long journey. These helped me reflect on my cold calling mistakes, which I'll go into depth below. Winging it I bought into the idea that "sales is an art" and should be "natural and organic." I've since found this to be false because sales is also a science; there are formulas for success and it can definitely be taught. I believe the "art" concept refers more to the typical personality of a sales person (extrovert, outgoing, etc.), but this isn't to say other personality types can't succeed at sales. I was "messy" on the phone because I didn't have a clear structure in place. Without a clear goal for the call (meeting, follow up, close, etc.), there was no strategy to ensure it was progressing properly. I hated being caught off-guard by objections and I became defensive myself, rather than remaining calm and working through it. Scripts definitely help, no question about it. I believe salespeople are actors in a sense; internalising words and making them come to life. Talking too much I thought the mark of a good salesman was the "gift of the gab," or being able to talk relentlessly. I was most comfortable when talking and I felt compelled to fill any silence. I'll strike up a chat with most people because I'm a friendly person; I love telling stories, jokes and having a laugh. When cold calling and meeting prospects, I was "vomiting" words onto them. I talked so much about our company that I didn't take the time to learn more about what they do, or what their goals are. I quickly learned that you don't make sales by talking, you make sales by asking questions and listening. There's also a big difference in the way you listen: initially I was listening so I could respond, but over time I listened so I could actually absorb what they were saying. Once I truly listened and digested what was being told to me, my responses weren't "automated," they became more genuine. From there, I could identify trends and similarities. Once I began asking more questions and also becoming comfortable in silence, I felt my confidence rise and good things started happening more often. Not considering the prospect's point of view This ties in with talking too much, but when I began to envision myself as the prospect, I felt like my empathy helped to guide them through the sales processes much smoother. Instead of thinking about commissions, I wanted to picture myself as the prospect. If I were a prospect for my own products, what would my priorities be? I've got my own life, responsibilities, stresses and deadlines that I'm trying to meet. How would I like to be contacted? What would be the best way to approach me? Personally, I would like the salesperson to be courteous and respect my time. I want them to get to the point of what they're selling and how it will benefit my company and me. I want the transition to be as painless as possible – if it's going to take a long time, there better be a huge upside. If the rep can outline the benefits, be upfront with the price and help reduce friction with on-boarding, then I'm interested. No need for fancy talk, just be authentic! Giving up too easily I was making slow progress because I was gullible when prospects would brush me off with a knee-jerk reaction. They'd say, "Not interested right now, but can you call back in a month?" I'd say "Sure!" So I called back at 9am 30 days later, all happy, only to hear the same thing! It became obvious that they weren't being entirely truthful, and they were letting me down gently. However, I wasn't discovering their true objection to our product/service and they weren't even giving me enough time to explain the benefits of our offering. Instead of accepting their brush-off, I now retort, "I understand, but if you don't mind me asking, is it a timing issue or what we're offering?" Then you can delve deeper depending on what the prospect says. Avoiding making the call I've been guilty on occasion of not putting in the call to a particular prospect. Maybe it was a daunting first call or follow up call. Instead, I sent an email. I was ashamed. I overplayed things in my mind of how the call might go. I convinced myself that even if I received a "no," it's much better than being in a "maybe." Eventually I sucked it up and made the calls and it turned out well! The over-analysing and fear was far worse than the actual call. Do what you need to do. Don't send 10 emails, or 7 messages on Linked In. Make the call. Summary Sales processes (especially cold calling) shouldn't be left to chance, but shouldn't be set in stone either. You need to be structured AND adaptable. Something Bruce Lee said really resonated with me. While he was talking about fighting – and perhaps life in general – I found it perfectly summed up my views on sales: The ideal is unnatural naturalness or natural unnaturalness… I mean here is natural instinct and here is control. You are to combine the two in harmony. Now if you have one to the extreme, you'll be very unscientific. If you have another to the extreme, all of a sudden, you become a mechanical man… It is a successful combination of both. I'm always looking to learn and improve, and hopefully this post outlining my cold calling mistakes provides something of value for you. [link] [comments]  |
| What qualities entail that a sales job is good? Posted: 08 Dec 2017 11:48 AM PST |
| Reddit Sales and Business Development Podcast- Episode 10 with Chris Stocker Posted: 07 Dec 2017 07:11 PM PST This a different one than most of the others. I have with me Chris Stocker from Edgen Murray who does Business Development in the East territory in Industrial sales(Natural gas and power). I have learned so many things from interviewing him. We discussed how to be a true partner, how to build rapport, and how to provide value in every interaction across the board. The importance of Sandler training and how an MBA in data analytics can be applied in business development. I had a lot of fun. I hope you guys enjoy it as well. Let me know what your thoughts and which type of sales you guys want next on the podcast. If you guys want to follow him, check out his Linkedin below. https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-stocker-mba-674bab11/ If you guys want to stream it. https://fccdl.in/2tQYnOy4P If you all want to see all of the other podcast episodes. https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B9NBrI6ZwmMvUFhDU1pielp4Mk0 [link] [comments]  |
| What are your tactics for getting to the decision maker in B2B? Posted: 08 Dec 2017 11:16 AM PST A lot of times I end up getting in front of the wrong person who is reporting to the decision maker. Looking for any advice! I'm in copier sales so I generally need to meet with a purchaser, IT, or doctor [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 08 Dec 2017 11:03 AM PST Hello! This will be my 6th interview with this company, I've been told it will just be doing quick pitches. I did one in the first video interview and it was pretty bad. The job is selling our delivery service, end to end, to restaurants in a new market. Do you guys have any advice or good resources to get me prepared? I've never been in sales so this is a new venture for me. Thanks for anything! [link] [comments]  |
| As an SDR should I be calling less? Posted: 08 Dec 2017 11:00 AM PST SaaS SDR having difficulty getting people to pick up the phone. I've had this issue in a couple different companies. I'm usually towards the top of daily dials. At my current company I'm one of the few people that makes 100+ dials (which is our "minimum") but I'm usually towards the bottom of overall talk time. I speak to maybe 3-6 people per day, with maybe 1-2 actual conversations I have a list of 100-200 accounts that I work. I usually add 5-10 accounts to the list each day and prune 5 stale accounts. I'm usually calling these accounts every day/every other say. I change up the times I call, sometimes I call twice a day. These accounts are a combination of existing accounts in our CRM (I usually add new contacts/verify contact info via LinkedIn and ZoomInfo) and net new accounts but mainly existing accounts where I add new contacts. I'm scratching my head here, I'm doing OK setting ~3 demos per week but given my call volume I should at least be setting 5 demos a week IMO. I'm also using e-mail outreach and occasionally LinkedIn. This isn't my first SDR role and I hate not bring the best on the team so I'm asking for help on how to improve. Thanks [link] [comments]  |
| Opinion on Facial Hair, Particularly in Insurance Sales. Posted: 08 Dec 2017 10:46 AM PST Currently I work for a large home improvement company on the sales floor, and before that I was a bartender. However, I'm becoming seriously burned out working on the sales floor for low pay and high hours and going to school with my schedule is becoming quite difficult. When I was hired as a bartender and as a customer service associate I had and have long hair but it's kept in a bun and my beard is give or take three inches long and well groomed. But I recently applied for a couple part time field agent positions selling insurance to families, I want to know from someone preferably with experience in insurance sales if my hair will be a problem, both selling and attempting to get hired. Thanks for any answers! [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 08 Dec 2017 10:39 AM PST |
| B2B Sales - Any topics you'd like covered in an upcoming podcast/Facebook Live? Posted: 08 Dec 2017 08:57 AM PST Hey everyone, Earlier this year I started doing a weekly Facebook Live called Make It Happen Mondays, I've since put that into a podcast. What topics would you like me to cover in any upcoming episodes? My focus is more on the B2B side of things. Make It Happen! [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 08 Dec 2017 08:36 AM PST How common are these and any tips on how to get them? How much experience typically required to work remotely? Thanks, guys. [link] [comments]  |
| Help with a development plan for transition from inside to outside sales Posted: 08 Dec 2017 04:47 AM PST I need to come up with a development plan for my transition from inside to outside sales. Apart from shadowing outside reps can anyone suggest what I should include? [link] [comments]  |
| Account executive position at yelp vs business development at copier/print/imaging services company. Posted: 07 Dec 2017 05:55 PM PST What are the pros and cons of each based on what you know. I'm more concerned with which position would provide an experience that would better develop me as a salesperson. As opposed to focusing on salary and bonuses. [link] [comments]  |
| How have you effectively reached out to a sales manager for a job? Posted: 07 Dec 2017 04:38 PM PST I want to apply to an entry level position at a software company but I don't know more about them/their software than what I can Google. In an email I'm not sure how to address specifically what would make me a great fit. I work hard, learn quickly, and possess characteristics that I believe will make me successful in sales. But those are general qualities and in this situation where you don't know much about the company, or have no experience in that field, what would an example email look like? I would love to hear from those that have done this successfully, and anyone that might have some pertinent practical advice on the matter. Thank you all again! [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 07 Dec 2017 08:57 PM PST Hello guys- Just wondering if anyone here has ever left a large company for an independent company in the same industry. Leaving benefits and all that come with a large company for one with a smaller over head and better commission packages. The job came from a very trusted friend. I don't know if more info is needed but it's basically contract/repairs that are sold. Any help before I make a choice would be greatly appreciated [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 07 Dec 2017 04:50 PM PST I currently work in a role that is more along the lines of Customer Success and Account Management, main part of it involves keeping customers happy, renewing subscriptions that are about to expire, and doing upsells/xsells. Lucked into this role out of college due to a reference but I've always wanted to go into sales itself. Right now I am in my early 20s and have been in my current role for a year. A friend of mines I knew in high school works at Salesforce and wants to put a reference in for me to go for an SDR position as I have wanted to leave my current company for a few months now. Given that I have no experience cold calling, would I be wasting my time interviewing for an SDR position at Salesforce? I've heard Salesforce is very strict about this but wanted more opinions on this. [link] [comments]  |
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