Returning Your Call

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free-to-use-sounds-QwqMtGYyH-0-unsplashOn Thursday when I checked my voice mail messages, this was the first message:

“Hi Ann, this is Janet returning your call. You can reach me today until 5 pm Eastern time at [her phone number].”

What was wrong with this message?

I didn’t call anyone named Janet.

Neither the name, the phone number or the area where she placed the call were familiar.

Some may think this is a clever way to reach a busy person who may have forgotten that she placed the call.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t the first time I had received a message like this.  Trust is destroyed with deceptive calls like this. And can never be rebuilt.

I love this quote from Stephen Covey:

“Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.” –  Stephen R. Covey     

Thanks for reading – here’s wishing you a safe and healthy day!

Ann

Effective voice mail message tips:

What happened to voice mail?   and:

Why bother to leave a voicemail message?  and:

3 reasons why it’s important to leave a voicemail message

 

This is How She Built Trust

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trust-shaking-hands“If building relationships is the key to sales success, then trust is the foundation.”  Entrepreneur.com

I learned the importance of trust when I began my first sales job years ago.

My responsibilities in the new position included purchasing the products we were going to sell.

Vendors called to pitch their products. They sent glitzy faxes and colorful catalogs. One after the other raved about their “superior” products and wonderful services.  They all sounded pretty much alike.

Except for one person – who set herself apart from everyone else. 

This supplier – after learning that I was new at the job, did something different.  She (her name was Rita) offered to help me.  She had been in the business for 20 years and was exceptionally knowledgeable about all the products I needed to purchase.

Rita told me to call her if I had any questions  – even if her company could not supply the products.

What a great sense of relief.   She made my job easier!

Rita was the one person who was willing and able to provide information I needed. No one else had made that offer.

She followed up with her promise to help.  Again and again I called to ask her about products being requested by my customers.  Products I knew nothing about.  She always had the answers, including price and availability.

Result

She built a strong relationship with me and I trusted her completely.

Rita was the first supplier I called when I needed to order.  She had set herself above her competitors by offering to help me, rather than just pitching her products. She DID sell to me by being authentically truthful and believable.

The Importance of Trust

According to a recent survey conducted by Hubspot:

Only 3% Consider Salespeople To Be Trustworthy.  Ouch!

But you can begin building trust during the first call.

Spoiler alert:

The next part of this post is all about the next e-Course.  If this does not interest you, stop reading now. (Though I hope you won’t stop.)

3 Ways to Gain Trust in the First Call 

  1. Remember that the first 9 seconds of a cold call are critical to gain trust and build credibility.

Example:

“Using what I learned in Ann Barr’s e-course, I have actually changed my initial greeting. I really feel like this has helped me gain more trust in the eyes of my prospect and has given me more credibility.”

 Venetta Diesel, Managed Print Services Manager, Millennium Business Systems,
Cincinnati, Ohio

 2. Instead of making every statement about you and nothing about them, talk about how THEY will benefit.

Results:

“In the Ann Barr e-Course I’ve learned a lot about how to approach my work. I now have a much clearer idea of how to approach prospects and what they want to hear from me versus what I want to say.”

 Felipe Hernandez, Zeno Office Solutions, Midland, Texas

  1. Ask questions in a way that gives you the information to help the customer:

Success:

“Ann, your e-Course helped me become more successful as a sales rep because I now know how to acquire the information needed to develop a relationship with potential customers and how to be successful in increasing my personal sales.”

Christina Tolea, First Phase Data, Winnipeg, Manitoba

Here is how YOU can develop a relationship with potential customers and increase your personal sales:

Be one of 5 to register for my one-to-one sales success e-Course starting on Wednesday.

Why be one of 5?  Because I work individually and personally with each person & there are just 5 spaces still remaining.

In this e-Course you can:

  •     Learn how to create your own unique opening statement which will allow the prospect to become more comfortable and will end up in more sales for you.
  •     Use authentic words that will cause the prospect to trust you and feel that you are there to help her rather than “just get the sale” because we all love to buy, but we hate to be sold.
  •     Find out exactly how to create trust during the first call.
  •     Discover specific questions to ask the prospect that will motivate her to think and share important information you need to move forward with the call and the sale.

So what exactly is this e-course?

It is a self-paced study training program that shows you step-by-step how to feel more comfortable making outbound calls in a way that is authentically “you” and irresistible to your prospects.

Click here to see feedback from successful reps who have completed this course.

How will you benefit?

With this 4-week once-a-week one-to-one e-Course you can learn how to write your own scripts and e-mails that sound genuinely like you and motivate people to want to buy what you sell.

Boring and self-promoting wording in a sales call or voice mail message can lead to rejection and is a fully reversible condition. But if left untreated, it can hurt your business.

Get Rejection-Proof Skills

Whether you’re a beginner or polished sales professional, everything you say and write in your emails will become more compelling and effective.

  • Work At Your Own Pace
  • Work on it whenever and wherever you can.
  • Revisit and review as much as you like: The materials are yours to keep for life.

How it Works

As soon as you register, and make payment, we will schedule a time to talk so you can describe your situation and I will let you know exactly how the course works and answer any questions.

Then I’ll send you the Week One workbook in a pdf document and assignment pages in a Word document.

After you review the workbook and complete the assignment pages, email your completed assignment pages to me.

I’ll review your assignments and send you an email to set up a date and time to talk and give you my ideas and suggestions and answer any questions you may have.

Click here to see more about this e-Course and how it can work for you.

Interested?

Send an email to annbarr@annbarr.com and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible because I would love to work with you and help you achieve your goals.

And good news  . . .

. . .  BTA educational discounts apply for this course!

- Ann

PS:  The course begins on Wednesday and there are just five spaces still available.
PPS:  If you’re interested, send an email to annbarr@annbarr.com and ask any questions you can think of.
I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

I’d love to hear from you!