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How do YOU open up an inbound telesales call? Let’s focus on four things:
- The Blend of Qualities
- First Words
- First Questions
- First Answers
1. The blend of qualities.
Consider the call, and put on the shoes of the caller. How does the call sound from the customer’s point of view? What is the customer’s ideal model person that he would love to be speaking with? Wouldn’t it be someone who sounds like he really wants to be there, and who is genuinely eager to help? Wouldn’t you want to speak with someone who is well-informed and has the ability to provide you with a tangible solution? Isn’t that what you you’re looking for when you call that number? Well, we need to recreate that sound consistently with every call. But, how do we do that throughout the day with our natural ups and downs?
Think like an actor. How would the actor play the part of this character we need? That character has a blend of four kinds of qualities.
Happiness is the first, and this shines through in the actor’s voice and the smile on his face. He will sound like he wants to be there. That smile will create that desirable sound you need. It’s key to be able to blend that with professionalism, which urges you to be careful about the words you choose to say. Be careful not to offend anyone. Also, be careful not to use words that may not be understood or initials that are not likely to be known because you wouldn’t want to sound like you’re trying to fool them or be confusing.
You also need to blend in energy. When I get on the phone and I ask somebody a question, he or she says, “Hi. How can I help you?”
Customer Representative: “No, sorry. We don’t have that.”
Me: “What about…? Well, couldn’t there be another option or another version of this?”
Customer Representative: “Yeah, well maybe there is one other way.”
***
All of a sudden, I realize that I had to think of the solution myself. This person didn’t even have the energy to develop another solution for me. I want to speak to someone who sounds like he is not only energetic, resourceful, creative, but who really wants to help me with my problem.
Add confidence into the blend. If you are simply all about energy, you are going to be speaking too fast, but if you are also filled with confidence, you will be able to slow down and choose words that clearly convey your message and ensure that it is understood. You know much more about the subject then the customer does. You are in a position of authority, so embrace this and sound like you are.
2. Now, onto the “First Words.” Typically our first words are very simple, aren’t they? We say, “Hi, this is…” and you say your name of the company and perhaps the name of the department. This line is actually more important than you think. The more of something we say, the faster it tends to come out. We say nothing more often during a call than the greeting and our own name, and so at the end of the day, the whole “Hi, this is Kevin from the Sales division at ABC Co.” all comes out as one speedy blur.
Make sure that you are speaking slowly, so that the person on the other end of that call is absolutely syncing up with what you are saying. You will want to use both your first and last name because that makes you sound more professional. Remember that what they have to say is more important, so do your best to keep your sentences short and simple. Try saying, “Hi, this is [first and last name], from [division and company]” and then proceed to “The First Questions" (please stay tuned for tomorrow’s blog post).”
About the Author:
Steve Bookbinder is Co-founder and CEO of Digital Media Training, a training partner to some of the most successful sales organizations around the world. DMT delivers training which treats sales as a competitive sport and changes behavior needed to help sellers consistently win. DMT is a leader in M-learning training reinforcement with a proven track record of improving sales through training. Steve has delivered more than 500 keynote speeches at national sales meetings, conducted more than 3,000 training workshops and trained, coached and managed more than 35,000 sellers and managers from leading companies around the world for more than 20 years.
