You need more meetings on your calendar, and getting the decision maker on the phone is harder than ever. This guide offers ten proven sales success techniques which will ensure that you connect. 3. You're on the Road That's Rule #1 in sales and for enabling sales success, and I apologize if you don't need to be reminded of it -- but many sales reps do. If you're not passionate about what you're selling, how in the world will the prospect get excited enough to make a positive decision? What you're doing is worthy! You deserve to get the decision maker on the phone! Expect everyone else to feel the same way. 6. People, Places,Cheap Buffalo Bills Jerseys, the Things They Do and the Times They Do Them 2. Don't Sell To Voicemail 7. Go Inside 8. Reference Check If you're cold calling and getting nothing but dead ends, then you need to invest more time and energy toward research. In today's day and age of LinkedIn and a dozen other viable means to discover your personal Six Degrees of Separation, it shouldn't take you too long to leverage a relationship. Webster's Dictionary defines 'friend' as an acquaintance or one that is not hostile, among other things. Based on those definitions, you should have a lot of friends to leverage. You want a meeting with Mr. or Mrs. Big and Lord knows that it's darn hard getting him or her on the phone. You can access dozens of seemingly important folks at lower levels and maybe that works for you. But if you truly need to be selling at the Mr. or Mrs. Big level,Cheap Jerome Bettis Jersey, then stay away from the others. Who cares if it takes 20 or 30 times as many calls to get him or her on the phone -- it's worth it. There's a reason those other folks are always so available. If they had decision making power you wouldn't be able to raise them so easily, either. So if you need to sell to Mr. or Mrs. Big, then hold out and don't settle for less. 1. Call Again Phone systems can be tricky but they can also enable access. Who says you have to call the decision maker's direct line or that of his or her assistant? You'd be surprised how often some random extension in accounting,Cheap Jerry Hughes Jersey, engineering, security or a half dozen other departments will gladly transfer to extension 2501 -- most times they have no clue they're transferring you to the big honcho. Have fun with it and see what works. 5. Time is NOT Money That gem is from the old hit TV series NYPD Blue. Bosses work 7am-7pm while their Gatekeepers work 9am-5pm,Cheap Howie Long Jersey, or thereabouts. Scheduling quality prospecting time a couple of days a week, early in the morning or late in the afternoon and evening can work wonders. 10. Don't Settle for Less This may not be true if you work for an industry-leading company but chances are you don't. As soon as you leave a prospect a voicemail, you've just lost all control. They know why you're calling, and chances are they've made a decision about your offering before you actually get them on the phone. Don't lose control -- don't leave a voicemail. 4. You Gotta Drink the Kool-Aid OK, now we are getting into a grey area. Be careful how you use this technique because if you're not accurate in your wording and how you transition from one topic to another you'll come off as a fraud. I'm not recommending misrepresentations here,Cheap Robert Meachem Jersey, but you'd be surprised how many times you can get through to the head honcho simply by stating that you're calling about Tom Jones or whatever the name of his or her former employee is. Develop a reason to have THAT conversation and if the (legitimate) opportunity exists to extend the conversation to a more virtuous discussion, then run with it. But don't risk your reputation by being sloppy. It's an embarrassment to our profession that I have to lead with this tip. (If I had a nickel for every reasonable,Cheap Mike Williams Jersey, voicemail I received from a sales professional that I simply did not have the time to talk to that particular day). Years ago, I returned everyone's call regardless, but those days are long gone. Why do so many sales professionals call only once? If you try two, three, four or more times, you'll likely get your eight seconds to WIIFM (What's In It For Me). Gatekeepers always want you to leave a message or overly identify yourself and why you're calling. Don't take the bait. "Thank you, Suzie. I'd be happy to leave Mr. Decision Maker a message but I'm going to be on the road today and would rather not ask him to play phone tag. Is there a specific time or day that would be better to try and reach him?" (And if you feel guilty about saying this because perhaps today is not the day you're traveling around the world, my guess is that YES you will be "on the road" even if only locally at some point today). The old adage that time is money is the second biggest piece of bunk ever uttered (send me an email and I'll share #1 with you). Time is INFINITELY more valuable than money. You can replace money a million times over -- you can never replace time. Remember that the next time you go soft on trying to get through or think that your precious seconds and minutes of phone time aren't valuable -- your time is priceless! 9. Warm It Up