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Cold Calling Mistakes You Must Not Make with Gatekeepers
The number one question asked by sales professionals, business owners, and heads of corporations alike is, “How do you get past that stumbling block, the gatekeeper?” Well, you don’t. Why would you? Think about it. The executive’s gatekeeper is a professional who is entrusted with running the company when the executive is away. Gatekeepers are well paid, highly respected professionals. They are not low-level clerks who take orders. The sales professional who understands the true nature of the gatekeepers’ position will gain valuable insight as to how to get a coveted meeting with executive-level decision-makers. If your goal is to get past the gatekeeper so you can talk with the executive, it is time to revisit that decision. You are no doubt painfully aware that most sales professionals have had their fill of gatekeepers. What you may not know is that these well-paid executive assistants have had their fill of sleazy sales tactics including pushy sellers, sellers who refuse to state what they are calling about, and those clever sellers who call in using a disguised voice. Executive assistants are annoyed by and just plain tired of sellers’ games. Think about the gatekeeper as a professional who truly wants a mutually satisfactory outcome for all parties; change your language and tone and address her in a way that gives her place and position as the executive that she truly is; and watch in awe and wonder as the one you thought of as a pit bull transforms into your strongest ally. The majority of your colleagues have yet to grasp two critical concepts. First, sellers are on a level playing field with the gatekeeper. Not one step up or one step below. Second, gatekeepers are responsible for making the decision as to who does and does not attain a coveted appointment with the executives. Learn how to speak to executive assistants as important decision-makers and watch their treatment of you change dramatically for the better. Granted, for you to reap such results may very well require a significant change of thinking on your part. Toward that goal, here are three effective tactics for working with gatekeepers:
When you cold call high-level decision-makers, speak respectfully, use language that lets the gatekeeper know you’re in a position to offer a solution to an executive’s current problem, then stand back and make room as the doors open wide and you are ushered into the executive suites with red carpet treatment. ***** Forward this article to friends. They will thank you for it! For your mini-course “Jealously Guarded Secrets to Cold Calling Company Presidents” visit www.ColdCallingExecutives.com or call New Business Development Coach, Leslie Buterin (like butterin’ bread) at (816) 554-3674 9-3 CST (that’s Kansas City/Chicago Time) (c) 2008 Leslie Buterin. All Rights Reserved.
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Leslie Buterin, founder Top Dog
Consulting |