Improving your B2B calling skills is a great way to introduce qualified leads into your sales funnel quickly. A successful teleprospector should identify areas for improvement after each sales call – successful or not.
Are you or a team member finding it challenging to close sales? Here are three ways to begin the process of constantly improving your B2B calling skills.
1. Create a Sense of Urgency
Creating a sense of urgency on a call can be the deciding factor on whether or not you connect with a decision maker. Learning to create this sense is key to improve your calling skills.
The first step in creating a sense of urgency is to greet the prospect with a positive attitude. Having confidence that each call will be productive and beneficial for both parties involved will build confidence in you and the individual you propose your service. However, an upbeat attitude won’t close sales on its own; the second step in creating a sense of urgency is to ask the right questions.
What exactly are the right questions? When speaking with a prospect, the right question will allow them to respond at length. Posing a yes or no question enables them to say “no, thank you” to your entire offering.
Instead of asking: “Would you like to hear how this product could benefit your project?” Ask, “What’s the top priority for you and your business throughout this project?” Depending on how they answer, tailor your response to address how your product or service meets their priority.
To improve your calling skills, we recommend that you write your sales questions with the goal to learn more about your prospect, not just to sell. Also, you may want to revisit your questions if they’re hyper-focused on pushing your product or service.
The third step in creating urgency is to know the product or service your prospect provides and the industry in which they operate. Understanding your prospect’s common pain points will help you address their concerns while building your prospects’ confidence with industry knowledge. In addition, this bit of research may be refreshing to managers who are contacted by inexperienced or under-informed sales reps.
2. Do Your Research
In addition to being informed about your prospect’s product or service and industry, you must stay current on sales tactics and best practices to remain competitive.
Retaining an up-to-date understanding of these practices takes ongoing work. Luckily, there are volumes of information to train yourself and make yourself the best salesperson you can be.
TED Talks is a media organization that posts lectures online for free. Some of these talks gear toward sales-minded individuals and share information that will help close sales. Get started with “5 of the Best TED Talks for Salespeople” and tune in for more ideas to improve your B2B calling skills.
For all sales, all the time, check out the JMS Elite blog for expert guidance on teleprospecting, Artificial Intelligence (AI) lead generation, email marketing, and more.
If you’re considering a venture into an uncharted market, consider turning to JMS Elite for Market Validation & Insight. Have confidence in rapid market entry after a thorough and disciplined analysis of the market and the needs of potential buyers.
3. Be Human
In your pursuit to improve your calling skills, don’t forget to treat the individuals you’re interacting with as people. Notably, while on calls, it’s important to listen more than you talk.
Each interaction you have with a potential client is an opportunity to learn more about their operation and understand how you can help. Be personable and informed while understanding that each word you say will ultimately influence your prospect’s decision.
Whether you’re new to sales or a veteran salesperson trying to sharpen your skills, approach each client interaction with the intention of getting better. Consult publications like TED Talks or the JMS Elite Blog to keep your strategies honed. Remember that each prospect has a different set of expectations and motivations.
What’s a skill you’ve learned from an experience in sales? Please leave us a note in the comments.
