Phone skills that book more events

I got this question from a new marketing client of mine who started a new catering and events company after years of working for someone else.

I’m finally getting website leads! This week I received more job inquiries than ever before. Now my problem is to sell them once they call me. How do you handle an incoming call from a potential client who is thinking of hiring you? Thanks, LT Here are some tips I passed on to LT. He informed me that he is much more relaxed and has so far booked a $9,000 job using these ideas. I hope you have the same luck!

First of all, you want to create a report quickly. You want the caller to feel good about you and your business. No, this is not about “nose teasing” or “licking” or “gossip”. It’s about attitude.

Some thoughts to consider before you pick up that phone…

Gratitude attitude. Be happy that someone gives you the opportunity to serve them in a way that allows you to use your gifts and talents and make a profit. Whose Act grateful… BE grateful.

Service attitude. Be prepared to help the caller in any way you can, even if it means sending the caller to your competition.

attitude of enthusiasm. When I trained LT, we recorded some of his phone conversations (you can record your part of the call without getting permission) and he was shocked. He was trying to sound like a “business professional”. He seemed as enthusiastic as a Department of Motor Vehicles employee on a Friday afternoon.

Unless you only attend funerals and bankruptcy hearings, most clients are excited about the event they are planning. They want to deal with a relaxed, confident and happy event professional.

The most important person in the world.

Dale Carnegie taught us to “make other people feel important – and do it honestly.” How do you do that? Ask questions that you really want the answers to and listen carefully to the answers. When was the last time you talked to someone who really cared about your opinion? Really try to understand what the customer is saying, very few people do.

Watch out. Don’t ask about a customer’s fishing trophy if you really don’t care. That is cheap, insincere and transparent. My selling style is strictly commercial: I’m not talking about sports, the weather, or how nice your tie is. When I meet with you as a prospective client, I always get down to business, not my business, your business.

Prepared. I go to every meeting prepared, I don’t ask questions that a professional should already know. If I’m trying to get a trade show account, I know as much as I can about the industry, the company, the competition, and their latest products. If I’m looking for a sales incentive meeting, I know the names and territories of the sales managers, the size of the sales force, and the demographics of the attendees before approaching the buyer. Knowing what you are talking about goes far beyond an unctuous treatment.

How do you prepare for an unexpected phone consultation? Stop improvising!

Admission form. Write an intake form to capture all the information you’ll need…and include questions your competition isn’t asking.

High value questions. Make a list of smart questions that will increase your understanding and improve your professional image. Make a list of questions that make the customer say, “Wow, I’m so glad you asked me that, I didn’t think of that!”

Important sales tip! Always ask the caller if they have ever purchased or experienced a service like yours. Then ask, “What did you like?” and “What didn’t you like about that?” Get the answers to these two questions and your callers will have told you exactly how to sell to them.

When LT asked a customer what he didn’t like about a previous caterer, the customer said he didn’t like the servers, they didn’t look professional. LT emailed photos and testimonials about his service staff. He got the job!

Objections. Start keeping track of all the objections you get on the phone…and then put together a presentation that overrides them. The best way to handle an objection is to structure your presentation so that it never becomes an issue, but be careful to prevent customers from raising legitimate concerns.

LT thought that by telling callers, “Our prices aren’t cheap, because we don’t do cheap work and our customers only want the best,” it eliminated the price objection. He didn’t, he made his caller too embarrassed to share price concerns, and he made LT sound like an idiot!

Dirty writing. No, you never want to read a sales script to a caller and end up sounding like a bogus telemarketer…but you do want to make sure you give the caller a great introduction.

Here’s how to write a great phone sales script: Don’t write it, talk it.

Record and transcribe yourself talking to clients. Listen to your recording with a colleague or coach and choose the parties that you think do a great job of selling their services. Transcribe those sentences, exactly as you said them, and create your “pitch.” It will sound like you, but your best you!