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Contemporary
Times  Sales Training-Sprint to the Finish Fast Track to the Executive Suite Leslie Buterin, founder of Top Dog Consulting believes the key to sales success is reaching the multimillion-dollar decision-maker. She shares the following tips from her soon to be released toolkit Reaching the Top Dog, how to get to the million-dollar decision-makers. Start at the Top Believe the fact that starting at the top gives you access to those in the organization who are paid to make big-dollar-decisions quickly. See the reality that starting at a lower level gives you access to those in the organization who are paid to screen information and have authority over little-dollar decisions. Think about where your selling time is most effectively spent. Surveys of Temporary and Staffing Services Industry sales professionals across the country show that initial sales calls are placed to a variety of job titles. These titles include: Human Resources Representative, Director of Purchasing, Plant Manager, Finance, Administration, Vice President of Quality, Chief Operations Officer, Chief Financial Officer, and Office of the President. The likelihood of scheduling with a top decision-maker increases dramatically if the call is made to that office in the first place. Most of the industry's sales professionals opt to place the first call to an inside lead and then work up the organizational ladder of the prospect company by calling all of the people in job titles suggested by in-house coaches. Prepare for Action Let your voice convey you are prepared for action. When face-to-face with people, it's a regular occurrence to open your calendar, take out a pen and to see the other person reacting to the visual cue by doing the same thing. Without one spoken word you both understand you will be looking at your calendars with the goal of scheduling a mutually convenient appointment date. Although you don't see the actions of your prospect on the phone, the same sense of readiness and expectation can be relayed through your voice. The tone of voice conveyed on the phone when you are standing and pacing is entirely different than the tone conveyed when you are sitting comfortably in a chair. Executives have trained themselves to give their undivided attention to matters, to glean the important decision-making factors and to make quick decisions based on those facts. Let your voice reflect that you value what they value. The tone of your voice as you stand during the phone call conveys readiness and your expectation that a decision will be make quickly. Take Control with a Positive Attitude When your prospect says, "I don't want to see you," say, "Great!" When he or she takes the wind from your sails by saying with a scowl, "I don't know how you got in here, but it's your dime now," look him or her in the eye and say with conviction and a smile, "Great!" When they say, "We've contracted with 11 other services and don't want to do business with you any more," say, "Great!" Saying great in the face of negativism serves to keep you in control of a positive attitude. A brain frozen with fear and frustrating objections in a sales situation can be devastating. Plan ahead of time to face predictable objections that may come up during a sales call with a positive response. This will serve to preserve your mental agility during an important sales call or any other client interaction. A client in Florida called to talk about how saying "great" kept her level headed during a tense situation. "I was on the premises of a managed services client distributing paychecks to employees. A Vice President saw me and made quite a scene in front of many employees. 'You aren't supposed to be here distributing checks that's against our agreement!' he yelled. I said, 'Great, let's schedule a time to discuss how the checks get distributed.' The Vice President, louder this time, said, 'Get out of here, you're violating the boundaries of the contract.' I said, 'Great, let's meet to discuss what we each believe the boundaries to be.' " The Vice President appeared to be building steam for a third last and time said, "Never mind, never mind, just keep doing what you're doing." Don't give in to the strong voice of resistance. That's the voice that comes from inside yourself or from others that says, "Keep your eyes on the round, this sounds too simple, don't try it, why glance at the stars, it's easier here on the ground." There is power in predetermining that you will overcome objections and other negative situations with a positive response. Combining dynamic presentation skills with her highly acclaimed Reaching the Top Dog: how to get to the million-dollar decision-makers, Leslie Buterin has helped clients initiate contract ranging from $1.2 -$13 million. |
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Leslie Buterin, founder Top Dog
Consulting |