When making sales calls, we feel pressure on us to make a sale or a meeting. There is a time restraint for the relationship to develop so we hurry, act un-naturally and push for our needs rather than the needs of the prospective new client.
This pressure – like all pressures makes us try to find a quick and effective solution, which is rarely to learn new skills, listen to the prospect and keep making calls in the face of adversity. A human reaction to any perceived threat is to find a direct solution and in the case of a sales person– “I’ll send them an email!”
I’m a keen golfer and have played for years. I’m not very good but I can play respectfully well and more enjoy a walk round a field with friends followed by a beer. One summer weekend I asked my brother to join us for 18 holes. He had never played golf before. By the 9th hole he explained how golf was pathetic and stupid and disappeared to the club house for a none deserved beer. His emotional reaction was not to book lessons with a golf pro, spend evenings at a driving range practising and investing in books. It was to find a direct solution to the emotional fear of failure and the frustration at receiving immediate feedback from the ball that he was in fact ‘no good’. The golf ball had rejected him and in return he rejected the entire practise of golf.
If you’re struggling hitting target, building rapport or handling objections it is natural to find the fastest solution to the issue – The prospect is an idiot, the data is terrible, the product I’m selling is too expensive, it’s the wrong time of year etc (sound familiar?). We reject the entire practise of sales or our products and services. This is a natural reaction but not a constructive one for generating revenue. Sales is not rejecting you and your prospect is not rejecting you. You are receiving immediate feedback that you need to get better, and feedback is a gift! What can you do with this emotional and direct feedback? Go to the equivalent of a driving range for your sales skills – The Sales Dojo, The Telemarketing Takeover and Cold Call Like a Boss! Don’t get bitter – get better!
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https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/telemarketing-takeover-may-tickets-54043623934?aff=ebdssbdestsearch