How to Start Sales Calls So Prospects Don't Hang Up On You

How do you feel when your phone rings and you realize you’re receiving a call from a salesperson?

对于大多数商人来说，这是令人难以置信的，烦人和分心的。

But if it’s your job tocall prospects, you don’t have to fall into the category of “pesky sales rep.”

To kickstart a productive, professional conversation, you need a strong opening.

Your opening should:

1. Start off warm, friendly, and professional
2. 用有趣的想法或问题吸引他们
3. 使前景进入接受的心态
4. Encourage engagement with the call (because engagement reduces the likelihood of them stopping the conversation)
5. 使他们轻松做出积极的决定

这是与揭幕战开始销售电话的方法，以吸引潜在客户，以免立即挂断电话。

1.热情打招呼。

Many prospects regard sales calls as just noise, tuning out any call they don't expect. However, if your greeting is warm enough (like an old friend), you may get them to pause long enough to consider what you're saying. You might open with:

"Hello [Name], how have you been?"

Opening with their name acknowledges the prospect. We're hard-wired to respond to the sound of our name, and this greeting creates a sense of familiarity and respect.

"How have you been" is superior to "how are you" because it acts as a pattern-interrupt. The propsect often finds themselves considering if they've met you before, and this may give you an opening to continue the conversation.

但是，请记住，有些潜在客户将如此热情的问候视为误导，因此请尽力在问候之后达到这一点。

2. Mention the research you've done about their company.

当您的个性化某种个性化时，呼叫另一端的潜在客户不太可能阻止您进入轨道。尝试以这样的方式打开对话：

"My research shows that your company is in the process of..."

This shows you are interested in them and you’ve spent some time finding a reason for calling. It also shows you aren’t trying to sell them something right away.

3. Drop the name of a mutual connection.

Talking about a mutual connection gives you instant credibility. If you've spoken to someone you have in common with the prospect, consider something along the lines of:

"One of my clients, [Name] at [Company], mentioned to me you are [looking for, might be a good fit for]..."

Your prospect will be curious to know why her contact thought she might need your product or service.

4. Reference a company contact.

Even better than a mutual connection would be a coworker of theirs who you've had contact with.

“(前景),我是说你的企业之一s managers yesterday, and he said that a growing part of your business is through [product, niche, market]. As that’s the case, I can…"

抚养潜在客户的同事告诉他们要认真对待您，同时将讨论重点放在新兴收入来源上确保您在谈论公司的优先事项。bob全站app

5.使用其LinkedIn个人资料中的信息。

说到研究，您可以从潜在客户的LinkedIn中找到有价值的东西：

“我正在查看您的LinkedIn公司资料，发现您今年的主要项目之bob全站app一是……”

引用其LinkedIn页面和公司目标证明您有兴趣讨论对他们的价值，而不仅bob全站app仅是推动您的产品和服务。请记住，重要的是要制定如何从那里进行销售对话的计划。

6.参考竞争对手。

Name-dropping a competitor will make them curious if nothing else about the partnership and results. Try this on for size:

"Hi [Prospect]. It’s [name] from [company]? We’ve just worked with [competitor] and have achieved [results] with them. Have you got five minutes now or in the future for us to explore how [company] can achieve the same?"

It’s important to pose your introduction as a question -- your tone of voice should imply they’ve heard of you and your company before.

7.提出疼痛点。

Speaking of your prospect's competitors, they likely experience some of the same issues that your prospect does. Your prospect is likely aware, and solving these problems can make for a competitive edge. In some cases, an introduction like this can be effective:

“我们一直在与您的行业中的几家公司合作，他们遇到了两个主要问题。我想知道他们是否也引起您的关注……”

This piques your prospect’s interest, as they will be wondering what those problems are and whether they are facing them too.

8. Don't be afraid to engage in small talk.

闲聊是人性化和建立融洽关系的一种方法，但如果您进行了研究，它只会出现真实。随便提及一个共同点，例如：

“我注意到你来自托斯孔。我实际上在亚利桑那大学遇到了我的妻子。”

If they are familiar with the university — or, even better, if they also attended the university — you can continue the conversation from there.

Bear in mind to respect your prospect's time as much as possible, though. Too much meandering will leave them wondering the purpose of the call.

9. Reference topics brought up in their marketing materials.

阅读他们的营销材料显示出对公司的真正兴趣。bob全站app这也意味着您的建议将是相关的和有用的。您可能会以其中之一的方式打开：

"I read your [Twitter, Facebook] post the other day about..."

This opening tells the buyer you’ve done your homework and are calling about a relevant and timely topic.

"[Name], in reading your company blog, I noticed that you’ve had some good reviews from customers on your new [product] and I was wondering..."

您对他们的博客的兴趣可以打开新的大门，以讨论您的产品为其他客户取得的结果。

“我看到您的[年度报告，新闻通讯]上周在您的网站上发布，bob官网官方网站看起来您正在扩大您的运营……”

该公司可bob全站app能会在年度报告中付出很多努力，因此讨论该主题可以在聆听痛点和触发事件时创造机会。

10. Drop the tactics altogether.

Sometimes the best thing you can do is abandon the playbook (because people get used to those) and catch the prospect off guard. For example:

“嗨[Prospect]。是的，这是一个销售电话！[等待回复，笑声]您能只剩下三分钟的时间，这样我就可以告诉您[产品]对您有帮助的[福利]？”

Saying this is a sales call will stump your prospect. Typically they’ll make a joke because they are used to tactics and sneaky tricks. The rapport you build will earn you a few minutes.

11. Flip the script.

Many sales scripts position the rep as the individual providing help. In some cases, though, it benefits to flip the roles like so:

"I was hoping you could help me with something."

这吸引了前景的自我和/或利他主义意识，增加了他们的可能性。

Theseopeningshighlight the prospect’s business before even mentioning what product or service you represent. Simply calling and listing what your company sells is a sure-fire way to get the phone slammed down.

The purpose of a connect call should always be demonstrate your professionalism, credibility, and expertise.

When you do that, you give the prospect a reason to at the very least discuss options with you, making it likelier the call will end the way you’d like -- with a second call scheduled.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in January 2018 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.