Un-slam the door
"And if you don't know, now you know." - Biggie Smalls
Every part of a sales pitch can be broken down into parts. The best sellers don’t optimize their pitch end to end but instead focus on each individual “act” of the sale. Eventually, the sum of the parts is what wins. It all starts with the first interaction with a customer. Whether it’s a cold call, booked meeting, or inbound you have mere seconds to win a customer over.
The Cold Opener
In any sales opener, the customer is going to ask themselves a series of questions, including:
Who is this person?
Are they professional?
Am I comfortable?
Are they relevant to my need?
Would I like to continue the conversation?
So, how do we satiate this need:
Introduction: Say your full name, where you are calling from, and ask them how they are doing.
“Hi is this Frank? Hi Frank, this is Jennifer Marcus from Acme, how are you doing today?
Relevancy Statement: This is your mini-description of why you are calling this person at this time.
“Great, the reason for my call is I know you spoke to my associate “insert SDR” last week, and she mentioned you were interested in learning more about toner”
Disclaimer + first open question: This is what we call a “stop-sell” to disarm the customer and put our cards on the table that we are willing to walk away.
“Cool, so we primarily work with companies who are actively searching for toner, and I’m not sure if that is a priority for you right now, but can you tell me a little more about what led to your conversation with “insert SDR”?”
Agreement to move to discovery: Assuming there is a fit and the customer hasn’t hung up yet, now is the time to get buy-in to engage in a line of questioning.
“Totally understand, it sounds like there could be a mutual fit, but I need to dive a little deeper to fully understand, do you mind if I ask some questions about the business?
Moving to discovery
Prescription without diagnosis is malpractice. If the customer is still speaking to you it’s time to get as close to the customer's need as we can and develop an emotional link to solving the problem (also known as the “e-link”). There are two main principles to consider when doing discovery:
Create an atmosphere of cooperation: Customers should perceive your conversation as something they can get value from whether or not they buy your product.
90% listening: The worst salespeople “hear” and then “talk”, but the best “listen” and then “ask”. This is the customer's time to share, and your time to digest whether you can solve their problem.
There are two types of discovery questions:
First-level questions that uncover facts about customers. They provide us with the tactical reasons a customer is in the market for a solution.
Second-level questions go deeper and uncover the true motivation for a buying decision. Almost all buying decisions are made off an e-link to the problem.
The art of discovery is moving seamlessly between first-level to second-level questions and drilling down when you strike gold - i.e. the customer reveals a key motivation. Drilling down has three parts: first-level question, second-level question, and an exploration of consequences
“So where do you buy Toner today?” - First Level Question
“How have prices changed with your current supplier?” - First Level Question
“I’m sorry to hear that, a lot of my customers tell me it’s hard to generate a profit margin when they need to spend so much on their day-to-day operation. Have you felt anything similar?”- Second Level Question
“Ok, it sounds like we’ve got a serious situation on our hands, and we need to get you toner at a price that doesn’t break the bank” - Consequence Exploration
This is obviously a simple example, but the key is to continue drilling down as long as you have the customer's permission to do so. Be self-aware and don’t push customers beyond their limit. Work to collaborate with your customer and get to a focal point on which a deal can close.
All great customer relationships start with an initial disarming and asking good questions.
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