Selling to Big Companies Blog

Part II: Where Have All the Prospects Gone

What can you do when your previously hot-to-trot prospects disappear into "The Black Hole?" When you don't know what's behind their silence, figuring out how to respond can be a dilemma - especially since you don't want to be a pest. Jill Konrath

Here are some strategies you can use in dealing with "The Black Hole:"

• Just keep trying. Realize that prospects expect you to carry the "keep in touch" burden - so do it. It can often take 8-10 contacts before you actually reach them again. Don't panic. This is normal in today's business environment.

• Make each connection valuable. Don't just say, "Hi Eric. Just getting back to you as I promised about your xxx decision. If you have any questions, give me a call.
  
  Instead, you might say, "Eric, Based on our conversation last week, I know how important it is to you to shorten your sales cycle. There's a white paper on our website that addresses this issue. I'll be sending you a link via email shortly."

• Have a sense of humor. After 4-5 contacts, leave a funny message such as, "Eric. I know you're swamped. But I also know that shortening your sales cycle is important to you. That's why I keep bugging you. I'm looking forward to FINALLY reconnecting."

• Leverage a variety of mediums. Mix up phone calls with emails, mailings, invitations to upcoming events, sending articles, etc. To position yourself as a resource, makes sure each connection educates, informs or adds insights.

• Create multiple entry points. Never let one person be your total gateway to a company. Identify and nurture multiple relationships concurrently. When appropriate, reference others you're talking to in your messages/emails.

• Re-evaluate your initial connection. How could you increase their urgency? Determine if you're just column fodder? Or, tie your offering more into their business priorities? In way too many cases, sellers have done a product/service dump when talking to prospects. Instead you need to on critical business outcomes and the difference you can make.

• Plan your next step now. Never leave a meeting without a homework assignment (for you and/customer) and a firm follow-up appointment scheduled. If they're unwilling to do this, it's an indicator that something may not be quite right - which should prompt you to explore their need and urgency in greater depth.

• Let them off the hook. Send an email stating that you thought they were interested, but perhaps you misjudged the situation since you haven't heard back from them in the last 6 weeks. Believe it or not, this strategy often gets a response & an explanation from a prospect who is feeling guilty about not reconnecting.

• Reduce your contact frequency. If, after ten touches, you still haven't heard, start contacting them less often. A quarterly schedule might be more appropriate. Or, you might want to keep on top of what's happening in the account and reconnect at a more appropriate time.

By leveraging one or more of these strategies, you'll often be able to re-engage a prospect who has disappeared into "The Black Hole."  Not always, but often. And, if you've continually provided value and focused on the impact your offering makes, they'll likely be ready to implement your solution yesterday.

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Part 1: Where Have All the Prospects Gone?

When I was growing up, the folk rock trio of Peter, Paul & Mary sang an anti-war protest song called, "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?" It's funny how after all these years that this tune came roaring back to me as I was thinking about disappearing prospects.

Don't you just hate it when hot prospects suddenly stop returning your call. It's especially hard to deal with when they'd been so eager to move forward with you only weeks before.

At first, you assume their lack of responsiveness is an isolated situation that will quickly self-correct. But after repeated failed attempts to connect, you start to question your own sanity.

You could have sworn they were interested, but their current behavior indicates otherwise. And, not wanting to appear too desperate or to come across as a real pest, you're stymied in terms of what your next steps should be.

Truth be told, they've disappeared into the infamous "Black Hole" - sometimes never to be seen again.

Why They Disappeared
As a seller, it's always important to analyze what may be causing this behavior before taking action. In my experience, these are the typical reasons why prospects disappear into "The Black Hole." Jill Konrath

• They're totally swamped. Without a doubt, this is the most common. In virtually ever company today, people have way too much to do and not nearly enough time to get it all done. They fully intend to continue the conversation, but not right now.

• Priorities changed. This can happen overnight. Changing market conditions, bad 3rd quarter results, and new leadership are just a few of the possible root causes. But when this happens, it's darn near impossible to regain your momentum in the short term.

• Lack of urgency. Sometimes sellers confuse a prospect's interest level with a desire to take action today. As such, they share all the glorious details about their offering instead of building a business case for immediate change.

• Column fodder. Occasionally prospects just need comparative bids/pricing to justify their decision to go with another company.

• They know everything. When prospects feel they have all the information they need, there's literally no reason to talk with you any further.

Different reasons call for different actions. Some you can prevent by doing things differently in your customer interactions. Always be open to this possibility since prevention is your best cure. Others you have no control over.

In any case, you need answers! Is it "yeah" or "nay"? Are they still interested or not? Should you keep pursing them or find new prospects?

We'll explore what you can do  in Part II: Where Have All the Prospects Gone?

Are You Losing Them at Hello?

In the movie Jerry Maguire, when Tom Cruise is in the midst of his proposal to Dorothy, she stops him with, "You had me at hello." Every seller dreams of hearing those exact same words when they approach corporate decision makers.

Unfortunately, the opposite usually occurs. Instead of capturing their prospect's attention, most sellers create resistance with their opening remarks and blow the opportunity.

Why do bad things like that happen to good people?
In short, weak value propositions.

If you're running into trouble cracking into corporate accounts, most likely the root cause is your failure to clearly articulate the business outcomes that customers realize from using your products, services or solutions.

A couple weeks ago, I did a new exercise while training a group of sellers. In small groups, they rated common value propositions that sellers could use when prospecting for new customers.

Using a 1-10 (tops) scale, they evaluated value propositions such as these on their effectiveness in initiating change from the status quo:

__     We offer one-stop shopping for all your (fill in the blank) needs.
__     We're the industry leader in (fill in the blank) and have been
         recognized for our exceptional (fill in the blank).
__     We specialize in ( fill in the blank) and work with well-known
         clients such as Microsoft, Best Buy and Kraft.

After serious discussion amongst the sellers, these value propositions received scores between 4-6. Their rationale? They were nice benefit statements about the company, but not quite as punchy as they could have been.

Since my book, Selling to Big Companies, was required reading prior to the session, I assumed these sellers would ace this exercise. Not so! In fact, they were way off.

The truth is that all the above value propositions really deserve a score of one. Not four. Not six. Just a measly score of one.

"C'mon, Jill," you might be saying. "How can that be? They're not horrible statements. They're nice."

Yes, they are nice. I'll give you that. But they're grossly ineffective and that's why they rated so poorly.

Capturing the Decision Maker's Attention
While those commonly used value propositions listed above might be important at some point in the decision process, they're totally and utterly worthless when prospecting.

When it comes to capturing a decision maker's attention, here's what you need to think about:

Webinar: Conquer Cold Call Reluctance

Check out this webinar by sales expert Leslie Buterin. She knows exactly what it takes to reach the Top Dog. 
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In this session on Conquering Cold Call Reluctance, you’ll learn the real reasons just thinking about making cold calls strikes terror into the hearts of the best sales pros. Plus, Leslie shares numerous tips, tools, and techniques that’ll move you through call reluctance and into position for cashing in on your cold calls.

• How you can cold call with confidence and STOP being thought of as “just another peddler” … worse yet, a used car salesman!

• The way to shine and stand out head and shoulders among others who call your prospects … even if you are the 100th person to call them from your company!

• Where to find the courage to cold call and how to have the conversation flow as easily as breathing out and breathing in!

• How to get in with the first call; successfully call back even if you blew it the first time!

• Words that’ll safely keep you away from price objections and “turn offs” like “I’m satisfied with our current vendor” and “Thanks but no thanks”  … these objections will transform into things of the past!

Register now at Business Experts Webinars.

3 Hard-Earned Sales Lessons from the School of Hard Knocks

The pathway to sales success is strewn with lost opportunities, embarrassing moments and downright stupid mistakes. In my opinion, one major difference between top sellers and average ones is their ability to turn these disasters into growth opportunities.

Painful though it might be, top performers revisit their gaffes to figure out how they can avoid similar outcomes in the future. Scarred, but not beaten, they gradually learn what it takes to be successful.

I know. I've been there. Over the years, I've had more than my share of blunders. And just the other day, some of my biggest ones came flooding back to me as I was driving to do a training program for a local printing company.

When I exited the highway onto Como Avenue, I was immediately transported back to my days as a Xerox sales trainee when I covered the 55414 zip code. It's where I learned many invaluable lessons that I still embrace today.

Lesson 1: How to Get Unstuck
After finishing the Xerox training program, I was assigned to follow Jim Farrell for several weeks to learn the ropes. But finally the day came when I was sent out on my own.

At 9 a.m., I pulled up in front of Quality Products to begin my cold calls. But I couldn't get out. I was terrified and tongue-tied, convinced that my sales career was over before it even began.

Getting Past Gatekeepers - Key Insights

In yesterday's teleseminar, cold calling expert Leslie Buterin of The Top Dog shared her secrets for gaining executive-level access. Several key insights include:

• Don't be crude & try to blast past the gatekeeper. You need to turn this person into your ally.
• Your company name is absolutely irrelevant - as is your job title. Leave it out.
• Speak to the gatekeeper as if they're the executive. Their job is to protect their boss's calendar, ensuring that only people who can address critical business issues "get in."
• Use "bottom line" language - the kind that's used in the boardroom. Say it slowly and be prepared to repeat it up to 3x. Assume the gatekeeper is writing down what you're saying.
• Resist the temptation to go into a sales presentation. Instead, focus on your business impact.
• You must sound like a "top dog" yourself  the tone of your voice, cadence, professionalism. Plus, she showed us how that sounds.
• At most, you have 90 seconds with an administrative assistance so you must be prepared before you make the call. Otherwise you'll be blasted into rapid oblivion.

I loved it when Leslie said that if the gatekeeper asked, "Are you selling something?" your answer should be, "Absolutely I'm selling something - but only if it's a good fit." She then shared how to take control of the call again so you can set up the appointment.

I know a lot about selling, but I found myself taking copious notes during this session with Leslie. If you're interested in getting the audio for "The Golden Keys to the Gatekeeper", click here. You'll discover more about all the above, plus additional strategies on what to do/say when asked to send more info, how to keep at the  executive level instead of getting shoved down, and much more.

Or, if you'd like to learn more about the entire "Foot-in-the-Door" Teleseminar series, check this out. If you sign up you'll get immediate access to Leslie's session and my previous one on "Cracking Into Corporate Accounts."

What Sales Really Needs from Marketing

On LinkedIn today, Bob Apollo posted a question about "problem marketing." It's been a pet peeve of mine for an eternity. In fact, that's why I wrote this ebook last year.

To be successful, Marketing needs to work hand-in-hand with Sales. But this happens far less often than it should. If Marketing had its way, we'd all be talking about our unique methodologies, robust systems and one-stop shopping. With today's customers, that just doesn't cut it.

Whether you're in Sales or Marketing, you'll find ideas that can stimulate much-needed discussion. Download "What Sales Really Needs From Marketing".

Selling to Big Companies Interview & More

If you have a few moments today, you might want to listen to Bob Sommers of the Recognized Expert ask me about the challenges of selling to the corporate market . You'll discover how to find the right decision maker, how to avoid the most common sales mistakes and more.

When you're done listening to my interview, make sure you add your two cents in the comments section. Also, if you have a Digg or Del.icio.us account, please don't keep this interview a secret.

Also Tim Gordon & Roger Pike at Communication Steroids selected me & Selling to Big Companies  as a favorite on their End of Year People, Blogs and Networking List.  Download their Christmas Gift PDF file to see the other resources they highly recommend.

Dealing with Cold Calling Angst

How do you get over the fear of cold calling?  If you're tired of that pit-in-the-stomach feeling of dread that overtakes you every time you sit down by the phone, here are a couple suggestions that may help you:

Research your targeted firms prior to making a call.
Having some knowledge about the company, their direction and challenges grounds you and gives you a context for the positioning your product/service offering.

Craft several customer-enticing messages.
Use the guidelines in my Selling to Big Companies book to establish credibility, pique curiosity and close with confidence. Create a script, say it out loud, rewrite it so it sounds normal and not salesy. Make sure it focuses on the difference you can make - not your product/service.

Practice what you'll say. Revise & redo.
Call yourself on your own voicemail. Listen as if you were the customer. See if you'd delete yourself. If so, revise it again. Then practice on your friends or colleagues. Get their feedback. Would they delete you? If so, when?

Role play what to say when you reach a decision maker. Figure out your common stumbling blocks and think of new approaches that would lead to different outcomes. Plan how you'll pass the "Tell me more" test.

Personally, I try to look at it as a challenge. I chose not to see my dead-end calls as failures. Instead, they are simply challenges to be overcome. I'm always searching for ways to be more effective.

Finally, do it despite your fear. I don't know many people who love cold calling. Over time, you'll do less of it because you acquire a customer base, but at the beginning it's tough.

I used to sit in my car for 1/2 hour before making live cold calls on customers. It sometimes took me forever to pick up the phone - or so it seemed. Yet I did it anyway, cause it needed to be done. And it does get easier, but it takes time.

Trash Talk & Delete Buttons: A Candid Letter from Your Prospective Customer

Dear Seller,

I only have a few minutes, but I understand you're interested in what you can do to capture my attention and entice me to want to set up a meeting with you.

Let me say this loud and clear right now - you have no idea what my day is like. You may think you do, but you're missing the boat. Until you understand this, my advice to you makes no sense.

I got into the office early this morning so I could have some uninterrupted time to work on a major project - something I can't seem to squeeze into the normal business day, which is filled with back-to-back meetings.

But, by 9 a.m. all my good intentions were dashed. My boss asked me to drop everything to get her some up-to-date information on a major reorganization initiative. Product development informed me that our new offering won't be available for the upcoming tradeshow. Sales is already in an uproar because they have customers waiting for it. Then HR tells me that one of my key employees has been accused of cyber-stalking.

Starting to get the picture? Welcome to my world of everyday chaos where, hard as I try to make progress, I keep slipping behind. Right now, I have at least 59 hours of work piled on my desk, needing my attention. I have no idea when I'll get it all done.

Did I mention my how many emails I get daily? Over 100. Everyone copies me in on everything. It drives me crazy. Then, add to that at least 30 phone calls - many from vendors who want to set up a meeting with me. And the pile of junk mail I get each day is ridiculous.

In short, I have way too much to do, ever-increasing expectations, impossible deadlines and constant interruptions from people wanting my time or attention.

Time is my most precious commodity and I protect it at all costs. I live with the status quo as long as I can - even if I'm not happy. Why? Because change creates more work and eats up my time.

Which gets us back to you. In your well-intentioned but misguided attempts turn me into a "prospect," you fail woefully to capture my attention. I'm going to be really blunt here: I could care less about your product, service, solution or your company.

I'm not one bit interested in your unique methodologies, extraordinary differentiators or one-stop shopping. Your self-serving pablum, while designed to lure me into your clutches, has the exact opposite impact.

It's trash talk! I quickly scan your emails or letters looking for those offensive words and phrases that glorify your offering or your firm.

The minute they jump out at me, you're gone. Zapped from my inbox or tossed into the trashcan. When you talk like that in your voicemails, I delete you immediately. Delete, delete, delete.

That's the most expeditious way to handle bothersome telemarketers. Use those same words on the phone with me and I'll quickly raise an objection you can't address.

I'm a master at sniffing out trash talk and deleting it. I have work to do and refuse to waste even one iota of my time on something that's irrelevant or self-promotional.

You need to know though that I'm not always like this. Occasionally a savvy marketer or seller captures my attention, gets me to raise my hand asking for more information and even entices me to request a meeting.

What are they doing? They're completely focused on my business and the impact they can have on it. That's what's relevant to me - not their offering.

I'm always interested in ways to shorten time to market, speed up our sales cycles and reduce our supply chain costs. Notice that this is business talk, not marketing speak!

When you get even more specific and tell me how much impact, now you're really talking my language. I guarantee that if you mention you've helped organizations similar to mine increase sales conversion rates by 39% in just 3 months, I'll be on the phone to you in no time flat.

Do you have any good information or fresh insights about the challenges my company is facing? How about how other companies are addressing these issues? If so, I'm interested in that too.

That's the good stuff. It stems from a focus on the difference you can make for my company, instead of how you're different from every one else. When you emphasize that, I'm interested.

But you can't rope me in with the good stuff, then slip back into that trash talk. If so, you're gonzo as fast as I can hit the delete button.

I pay attention in about 5 second increments, too. I don't have time for fluff. If it's relevant info, you've got me; start meandering and I hit delete.

Get the picture? I hope so, because I'm late for a meeting and while I've been writing this, the phone's been ringing off the hook.

Hope this helps!

Your Prospective Customer

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Jill Konrath, author of Selling to Big Companies and founder of the Sales Shebang, is a frequent speaker at national sales meetings and industry events. For more articles like this, visit http://www.SellingtoBigCompanies.com. Sign up for the newsletter and get a BONUS Sales Call Planning Guide.