Warming Up Cold Calls

Transcription

1 The Radio E-marketing Cold Calling Workbook to Accompany Your Monthly Sales Training Video Warming Up Cold Calls Cold calls today are considered unprofessional and are simply rude interruptions. So much so that YouTube has more than 100 videos like this on how to get rid of sales people who make cold calls; And sales reps know the odds of rejection are extremely high when you make cold calls like this So why do stations engage in prospecting through cold calls? Because new business development is absolutely critical for every station. Changes in strategy, changes in marketing managers, changes in market conditions, and the lure of trying the latest shiny new media all contribute to 20 to 25% attrition rates, meaning we need to uncover a minimum of 25% new business just to tread water more than that if we want to grow. So how do the stations we consult make effective cold calls? They don t! Our grumpy old man explains why traditional cold calls need to be warmed up prior to making that call; I don t know who you are. I don t know your company. I don t know your company s product. I don t know what your company stands for. I don t know your company s customers. I don t know your company s record. I don t know your company s reputation. Now what was it you wanted to sell me? Mark Twain said, Courage is mastery of fear, not absence of fear. The self confidence you develop with our Warm Call system overcomes the fear of rejection from grumpy old men.

2 Mastery Factors to Overcome the Fear of Rejection Selling has often been described as a transference of confidence. A confidence and attitudinal shift occurs when these six ENS Media Attitude Mastery Factors are in congruence; 1. Know your. Your prospects can t keep up amidst trying to run their business, hire staff, order merchandise, deal with accountants, accommodate customer complaints, and more. Knowing that you are a full time student of marketing equips you to be more confident in the recommendations you make to your prospects. 2. Be comfortable with the. What if your prospect doesn t buy? Knowing that you have succeeded up until now without your new prospect s business helps you to accept the in stride. You lived before you met them, and life goes on without a hitch after the rejection. 3. Be and have integrity. Make sure, based upon your expertise, that what you are proposing really does deliver value to the client. Knowing you are doing what s best for the client, you ll develop the attitude that it is your prospect who loses, not you, if they don t do business with you. 4. Understand the. If you know your closing ratio, and the steps involved in warming up cold calls, you ll understand that each step takes you one step closer to a sale. For example, if you know your closing ratio is one in ten, then you can train yourself to become more excited with each rejection. At rejection number 9 you re one presentation away from making a sale! 5. No doesn t always mean. Understand that client s needs and strategies often change. A prospect who says no to one idea or presentation, may see the merit in another idea or strategy in your next presentation every prospect. Knowing your station can deliver value to your prospect is a huge confidence builder. In old-school cold calling the mirror test was the only pre-qualifier. That is, if you held a cold mirror under the alleged prospects nose and it fogs up, they re considered to be a prospect. There is a list of pre-qualifiers you can use at the back of this workbook. 7. Know your. Your first call is not a call to sell something, but rather your mission is to get that first appointment to diagnose the prospect s situation with a CNA (Customer Needs Analysis). Prescription without diagnosis is malpractice, and as a radio marketing professional your diagnosis always precedes any attempt to sell. Now you know that you need to consistently be prospecting to: 1. Replace business. 2. Grow your revenue. 3. Grow your personal. And we ve explored the seven master factors you can employ to overcome the fear of rejection.

3 The 3 Step Process to Get the 1 st Appointment A warm call is as easy as your prospects. Do the math, and you ll quickly discover there is certainly no shortage of prospects in your market. In fact, there are more than 50 businesses for every one thousand people in your market. Our research shows that 82.6% of them cannot recall seeing a radio rep. Using the Prequalifying Score sheets in this workbook you can uncover and prequalify your most likely and high-quality prospects. Do your. Build and follow a strategic plan to warm up every prospect BEFORE asking for an appointment. Check out their website, other advertising and industry websites and online trade publications to become a marketing expert in your prospect s business category. Learn to speak the language of their category and understand the marketing and economic trends which affect their business. And always know the name and title of the decision maker before you pick up the phone. Never ask who that person is when you are making your first call. Creating a blog, dropping off or mailing helpful research or information about marketing that client s business can start to build your reputation and answer the I don t know what your company stands for questions. Tools like our SoundADvice can build awareness for you and your station and establish your brand as a helpful marketing expert before you make your phone call. 3 Make an to make an appointment. It sounds strange, but busy decision makers today seldom allow telephone interruptions to disrupt their day. You need an appointment to make the call to get a face to face appointment. Send an or snail mail (snail mail is used so seldom today so it can really stand out) to name drop referrals, or tease useful information you uncovered during your research phase or any other Valid Business Reason to suggest you ll call on a particular day at a specified time. Now you can honestly tell the gate keeper you promised the decision maker you would call at this time and they re expecting your call. The Bottom Line: Have a Valid Business Reason for Every Call A VBR is defined as anything that delivers the value perception, or that makes investing with you a better experience than originally anticipated. And remember, if you follow this process and are not able to secure an appointment, the prospect is the loser, not you because you are simply trying to help increase their sales.

4 22 Valid Business Reasons For prospects and clients; 1. Offer to arrange strategic marketing or promotional alliances with other clients. 2. Deliver usable current information about their business or business category. 3. Suggest timely and topical promotional opportunities. 4. Deliver usable current information about his/her consumer target group. 5. Demonstrate how to use relevant information to create better ad strategies. 6. Help uncover more co-op from existing and new sources. 7. Present new creative ideas 8. Offer to conduct a post-campaign analysis, and in particular, outline how to improve the next campaign using radio. 9. Bring a new customer or lead. 10. Conduct a seminar for your prospects or clients or their staffs (there are great seminar topics from customer service to branding in your SoundADvice Field Guides and Application guides, many of which can be easily converted to 20 minute presentations) 11. Offer to conduct customer focus groups on your prospect s or client s behalf. 12. Develop a media file and planner for the prospects or client's use. 13. Work the floor or meet with the staff to learn more about the sales obstacles they face. 14. Offer trade magazine articles or books that would be helpful to them. 15. Send regular e-tips or e-marketing tools like SoundADvice. 16. Conduct a marketing audit or analysis of your client s online efforts including their web site and social media. For existing clients; 17. Make a presentation at your client s staff meeting to support the client's ad campaign. Update and/or go deeper into their customer needs analysis. 18. Send written "thank you" notes. 19. Help tie in or use other media more efficiently. 20. Be pro-active in initiating creative changes. 21. Schedule a meeting between the client and your manager. Let them know their business is important to you. 22. Give the client written wrap-up reports, demonstrating how you under-promised and over- delivered. *Please see the Pre-Qualifying Score Sheet at the Back of This Workbook* ENS MEDIA INC. Helping media companies build stronger, more profitable, advertiser relationships.

5 Pre-Qualifying Score Sheet Characteristic Score (1-5) Aggressive Marketer. This prospect historically has been an aggressive marketer in other media or through aggressive marketing techniques such as telephone soliciting or direct mail. New Needs. This prospect has a strong new need created by new competitors, new product lines, changing market conditions etc. (If nothing is changing there is little motive to change the marketing plan to include your station). Target Audience The prospect obviously targets our exact demographic, or I have compelling evidence they should begin to target our audience. Purse Strings I ve clearly identified and the real decision-maker; the person most concerned with the business profits. Insiders I have, or have reason to believe I can, get support/input from some of the prospect s suppliers, staff, customers or key advisors. Valid Business Reason I can definitely make sure the prospect benefits from seeing me. I have a powerful, unique and compelling reason to meet with the decision maker beyond generic information she may have seen previously. Seeding I know the prospect has been, or will be, made aware of me or my station through, seed letters, networking, seminars, listening to us or through other marketing efforts. Marketing Change The prospect has been advertising on media like yellow pages, newspapers that are in decline, or through telephone soliciting and other practices limited by new legislation. Referrals I have been or can be referred to the prospect by someone they know and respect, or I have a testimonial from someone they respect. New Customers I can prove unequivocally that we can reach and influence prospects this prospect does not reach with his/her current media. Category Knowledge I have done enough research, or know enough about the prospect s category through personal experience, to discuss their specific needs in their language and craft CNA questions specific to their business or category. Category Leadership I can through developing a unique selling proposition and/or through the share of voice = share of mind = share of market formula, demonstrate how this prospect can capture top share of mind with our audience. Specific Knowledge I have done or will do a walk through, done business with this prospect, or talked to their staff and customers to give me specific insights into their problems and opportunities.

6 Pre-Qualifying Score Sheet Continued The Big Idea I have a proven big idea or case study that I can demonstrate will increase the prospect s sales. (caution; you must be able to confirm your big idea is the right big idea for that prospect through research and questioning before you expose it). Volume The prospect has enough volume, locations, or profit per sale to be able to afford a high frequency campaign on my station. Vendor Support I ve determined one or more of the prospect s suppliers offers co-op for radio, or would support a campaign. Ambition I ve seen evidence the prospect does want to grow and is not content with the status quo. Timing We are about to enter the prospect s peak selling period, or we are pursuing this prospect ahead of their annual or quarterly planning cycle. Resolution The prospect used us in the past and had a bad experience. I have a way to resolve that problem and turn an unhappy customer into a happy customer. (studies reveal if you can turn an unhappy customer into a happy customer, they will be 20 times more loyal than a customer who s never been unhappy). New Offerings We have a new format, new digital products or other new offerings previously unavailable to this prospect. TOTAL Ratings Estimates and Appropriate Action Plans 75+ Get in there! Put in the extra effort, do your homework, and make the call. You ll eventually sell one in 10! A fair prospect. Plan for creative and innovative ways to move their score up Don t write them off, but limit the amount of time you invest and know when to cut your losses and move on. Less than 25 Fish in another pond