7 Steps to Successful Sales Calls

By Kathy Sisk

Making successful sales calls is not easy. Presenting to strangers over the phone is nerve-wracking, but overcome your fears and pick up the phone. Sales calls are your opportunity to learn about prospects. This is your chance to convince them that your product or service is right for them, allowing you to move toward a profitable sale.

Here are seven steps to sales call success:

1) Understand Your Prospects’ Priorities: Your first sales call is an opportunity to get an in-depth understanding of their needs and wants. Allow prospects to do most of the talking and focus on asking probing questions.

2) Show Familiarity with Your Target Market: Create questions to show your familiarity with your prospects’ market: their business, their suppliers, and their roles and responsibilities. Incorporate information about your prospects into your script or call guide.

3) Believe in the Value You Offer: Believing in your value as a salesperson can help you be more effective when making sales calls. Do not be discouraged if a prospect is discourteous or unreceptive. If you truly believe in the value of your offer, you should not easily be put off. Stay confident.

4) Position Your Product and Business: Present your business and product clearly for prospects to understand. Avoid jargon and technical descriptions.

5) Showcase Your Product’s Features and Capabilities: Focus on explaining your product’s features and capabilities rather than just discussing them. Provide examples that demonstrate how your product or service has helped similar customers.

6) Contact New Prospects Daily: Set a numeric goal for new contacts per day. Reach out through various channels: phone, email, text, and social media. Be proactive when searching for new prospects.

7) Make Follow-up Calls: When you don’t hear from your prospects, contact them again. The key is persistence. Try to contact them two to three times a week. If you still don’t get a response, wait a few weeks and try again. Leave irresistible messages that can inspire your prospects to take action. Continue this process.

Although not everyone will respond to your calls, many will. Making successful sales calls is not easy, but it’s not impossible – and it can be rewarding, both personally and financially.

Kathy Sisk, founder and president of Kathy Sisk Enterprises Inc., is a trainer and consultant, contributing thirty-five years of expertise to the telemarketing, sales, and customer service industries.

[From Connection MagazineJuly/August 2016]