Tag Archives: prospect

Just Fishing or Trying to Land the BIG ONE?

Fishing is very much like advertising sales. First, we must prospect or fish in the right spots, use the right bait and equipment, and then we must know what we are fishing for. Are you fishing just to catch some fish, or are you trying to land the BIG ONE? And, how do you know when it’s a BIG ONE?

We know that furniture stores, car dealers, and grocery stores all have great potential, but they are not always the big fish. In fact, sometimes you would just as soon throw some of these back!

If and when you hook onto what you believe is a big one, there are a few lessons that we can learn from the fishermen.

First, you need to let them nibble a bit, don’t try and set the hook too quickly. Secondly, take your time reeling them in. Just like setting the hook, if you reel too hard and too fast your chances of losing them increases.

If you know you have a prospect with great potential (A BIG ONE), take your time, educate them on how you can help them, ask more questions, have additional meetings to make sure you have all the bases covered, and don’t try to get them in the boat before they are ready. A longer sales cycle typically reaps better success.

The biggest fish, like the biggest prospects, need to be handled with great care. I can tell you that nearly every six-figure account that my sales teams landed took 3 to 6 months to get on the air, and in some cases, even longer.

Patience is a virtue! Once you have the hook set, guide them in with due diligence, but be prepared for sudden changes so you can adjust accordingly. If they should decide to swim up stream one more time, give them some line (more information) and then steer them back towards the boat. Your chances of getting them in the boat will greatly increase.

If you would like your team to become better prospectors and learn how to land the BIG ONES, click here and we can visit on how ENS Media can help train and motivate your team to have more success in 2019 and beyond.

Happy Fishing – Happy Training!

Take Responsibility for Sales

When sales organizations are not achieving their targets, they often point their fingers at individual salespeople. The three most common criticisms these organizations default to are:

1.) Our people don’t prospect enough; not enough cold calls.

2.) They don’t know how to handle objections.

3.) They don’t know how to close.

Of course, they do need to do more prospecting, learn to handle objections and increase the number of “asks” to increase their sales.

The two most common solutions these organizations pursue to achieve these objectives are:

1.) More training for the salespeople

2.) New sales compensation plans

Seldom do these failing organizations take responsibility and take a close look at themselves.

In addition to the two basic solutions prescribed here, the most successful organizations we see, ask themselves these important questions;

1.) What are we doing to warm up those cold calls for our account executives?

2.) What can our organization do to prevent objections rather than asking our salespeople to “handle” them?

3.) What can we do to reduce the need to exert closing pressure and encourage our prospects to enthusiastically buy?

Our SoundADvice radio e-marketing system is helping stations answer all three questions;

1.) SoundADvice creates trust and credibility for account executives with new prospects every week warming up those cold calls.

2.) SoundADvice educates advertisers on how to get a higher return on their advertising investment, minimizing objections.

3.) SoundADvice invites advertisers who are ready to buy, to make an appointment with your account executives FIRST.

Are you ready to take responsibility for your organization’s sales?

Click here to arrange a free online demo to discover what SoundADvice can do for your organization.

The Difference Between Success and Failure

Very often, the only difference between a very successful salesperson and an unsuccessful salesperson is their ability to handle rejection.
The way you handle rejection is largely about selling yourself on the value you deliver. Here are some ‘mind game’ strategies you might consider;

1.)  Develop the attitude that when a customer says ‘no’ they’re the loser, not you. Assuming you have put together a proposal in your prospect’s best interest, and purchasing your proposal will increase their sales, they’re the loser, not you. Pity the advertiser, not yourself, especially if their competitor ends up buying your idea.

2.)  Remember, you had nothing when you made the presentation, so you don’t lose anything when your prospect says ‘no’. You lived without that sale before and can live without that sale when your proposal is turned down. (That attitude also takes the pressure off you and helps you make a more relaxed and engaging presentation)

3.)  To a degree, selling is simply a matter of math; more presentations equal more sales. Calculate your closing ratio, then get excited about each ‘no’ as it’s one step closer to a yes, based upon your closing ratio. For example, if your record indicates you’ve closed one in ten, you can get pretty excited on your ninth rejection in the knowledge that in all probability your next presentation will be a hit.

4.) Take responsibility for ‘no.’ No busy decision maker has agreed to sit still for a full presentation if they have no interest in what you are offering. Therefore, retrace your steps to determine where you did not meet or beat their expectations and use what you discover to arrange another presentation. The best Sales People, learn from their mistakes.

5.) Structure your presentations so your prospect is not saying ‘no’ to you or to your stations. Structure it so the ‘no’ is only for that particular presentation or idea, thereby leaving the door open for another opportunity.

6.) Change your mission and definition of success. You have no absolute control over whether your prospect says yes or no. You do have complete control over the thought, strategy, and quality that goes into your presentation. Knowing you’ve made each presentation the best that it can be makes you feel like every presentation is a success, regardless of the outcome.

Are you looking for ways to capture more appointments and to make more customer-focused presentations? Consider our local TOMA (Top-of-Mind Awareness) surveys and SoundADvice radio e-marketing system. These proven programs will help you and/or your sales team capture more appointments and more sales.
Click here to arrange a free online demo of these amazing revenue-generating systems.