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Inside Sales Reps: Find Your Mojo!

  
  
  
  

As part of my role as Manager of Client Operations at AG, I shadow Inside Sales Rep calls and offer constructive feedback on how they can better their process.  Part of what I measure is what the inside rep may be doing that is getting in the way of their success.  More often then not, I can credit that to phone presence.

What do I mean by phone presence? Pizzazz! Have you ever heard the expression “they can hear a smile over the phone”? Well…it’s true.  Something I was trained to do as an inside sales rep was to always leave a voicemail as if it was my first one of the day. If voicemail number 40 sounds like number 40, they will not be compelled to call you back? Everyone has something that makes them laugh, makes them excited and more importantly makes them motivated. Inside sales reps need to find their “mojo” and have it present on the phone at all times.

It may mean hanging a mirror in your cube, so you can take a look at yourself and smile throughout the day. Don’t take yourself too seriously and let a funk come over you when trying to reach your number. Be excited and keep yourself motivated - look yourself in the face, smile and have the confidence to succeed.

Be yourself! You are not Billy Mays and a canned pitch will get you canned. Use the tone you would use with a friend or family member and take a deep breath. In a recent post from my colleague Janet Stucchi of The Bridge Group entitled: “Are your Reps Pitchmen? [please say NO]”, she uses the well-known infomercial star Billy Mays as her example in outlining the importance of being you. Janet talks about focusing on the result not the product, slowing down and listening! Here are a three of my favorite points from Janet’s post:

  1. Focus on the result, not the product
    Prospects need to understand how your product/service will solve their problems and be able to quantify the benefit. Companies are tightening up on buying authority. Before ever thinking about getting buy-in from senior management, your buyers need to believe that this is a priority and that the results will be significant. 
  2. Slow down & insert pauses
    There’s nothing worse than trying to keep up with a motor-mouth - trying to digest what they said three sentences ago. Reps should provide an opportunity for the prospect to process information and ask questions. If prospects are given time to think, they will be more likely to open up and discuss issues.
  3. Listen
    Many reps are so eager to ‘close’ that they forget to listen to the prospect. We’ve all seen Reps framing the next question or comment while the prospect is still speaking. I love this line from Geoff Alexander, “As a rep, keeping to your own objectives is important, but in doing so, remember to stop when you hear a great clue, and address it right then.

Personality, not sticking to a script verbatim, and being genuine are essential for success.  Keeping these things in mind along with actively listening while learning about the prospects pains and needs is really what makes a successful inside sales rep.

Take sometime with your team and challenge them to talk about what excites them, what scares them and what they think makes them a successful inside sales rep.  If they can identify those personality traits and use them daily, they will have the pizzazz they need to succeed.

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