We Need Your Help with a Marketing Question About a Call to Action

 Articles, Blog  14 Responses »
May 162012
 

We need your help.  What would a Call to Action from High Probability Selling (HPS) look like and feel like?  We want to hear your thoughts, and even more importantly, we want to know how you feel.

Marketing experts tell us that every “pitch” should contain a clear Call to Action, something that we want the reader or listener to do.  But they live in a persuasive world, where marketing and selling is all about pushing or nudging or influencing people into buying something.  High Probability Selling is not in that world at all.

We don’t pitch.  Instead of trying to get someone to buy, HPS is about finding someone who wants to buy what we are selling, and then communicating with that person in a way that is completely consistent with this purpose.  So, what would a Call to Action look like in order to be compatible with High Probability Selling?

It can’t be pushy.  We’ve tried that.  Our website used to say “Get Started Now!” in big bold type on the home page.  It just didn’t feel right, and one of our readers pointed this out to us recently on Twitter.  So we changed it to something else.  We thought about it, and made a guess about what might work.

Our thinking went like this.  In the world of persuasion, a Call to Action is a push in a direction chosen by the seller.  In the world of HighProb, it’s replaced by a map, so that the potential buyer can make an informed decision.  People want to know what direction to go, but they don’t want to be pushed.  What we have now starts with “What’s next?  We offer the following suggestions”.  This is followed by our best guesses about what a reader might want.

High Probability Prospecting contains a good example of a High Probability version of a Call to Action.  Another Twitter friend pointed out that we are asking someone to make a decision (a type of action) when we are prospecting and we ask, “Is that something you want?”  When we do this, we make no attempt to steer the prospect toward a particular answer.  It’s a Call to Action without a direction.

We need to be creative.  High Probability Selling contradicts conventional wisdom about marketing and selling.  We want creative people to tell us what they think and feel.

 

We thank our readers, especially Linda Sgoluppi and Russ Thoman (@Linda_Sgoluppi and @RussThoman on Twitter), for calling us into action and for helping us clarify our thoughts on this.

Posted by Carl Ingalls at 1:35 pm

Turning the Fear of Selling into Confidence

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Mar 292012
 

In my first sales job, I visited over 100 potential customers a week.  Every time I walked into a company and asked to see the person who could make a decision to buy the kind of product I was selling, I did so with trepidation.  Each time, it became harder and more nerve wracking.

When I occasionally got to talk to decision makers, I was uncomfortable just trying to build a little rapport with them.  After 4 months, I had sold nothing, I was thoroughly discouraged, and I was ready to quit.

Then I got lucky.  The top salesperson in the huge company that employed me agreed to let me go on sales calls with him.  I learned a new way of selling by carefully observing how he worked.  I also learned that his truly relaxed way of communicating set him apart from other salespeople.

He did not do any of the typical rapport building techniques that salespeople are taught.  He knew how to control the conversation confidently without controlling the prospect.  After watching him for a couple of days, I learned how to do that by practicing his way of communicating with everyone I met.

Five years later, I was a highly successful salesperson and managed my first sales force.  Since that time, I have hired, trained, and managed hundreds of salespeople.  Most of them exhibited the same kind of anxiety that I did as a neophyte salesperson, even after they had been in sales for years.  I taught many of them how to be relaxed and confident, and they became much more successful.

Just as I did, people can learn to talk to almost anyone with confidence in their competence if they get the right kind of training and practice.

Posted by Jacques Werth at 5:02 pm

Learning The Hard Way-Jerry Rubin’s Story

 Articles, Blog  4 Responses »
Mar 172012
 

It was 1995 when business owner Jerry Rubin became a student of High Probability Prospecting.  He immediately valued the course and it’s teaching, but admits to never quite working the program like he was taught.

“I would make prospecting calls,” Rubin shares.  “But leads were scarce and hard to come by for my annuities business so I had a very hard time asking for a commitment.  I had a solid fear that I would burn the lead if I asked for one.”

Little by little he “diluted” his opening introduction, moving further and further away from what he was taught.  He started asking “is that something you’re willing to take a look at?” instead of asking “is that something you want?”  Rubin admits that there were many times he drove hours to talk to a lead that was “willing to look at” his material and product, only to drive home empty handed and frustrated.

“Everyone is ‘willing to take a look’”, Rubin adds.  “But there’s no commitment in that statement and all I was doing was wasting time and tapping dancing for low probability prospects.”

Rubin’s “ah-HA” moment came years later, and came in the form of a new employee.  As he trained his new hire he remembered the High Probability Selling system and realized the error of his ways.  This new realization was sharpened by the fact he was now paying someone else whether he was making a sale or not.  Rubin witnessed his new hire working HPS the way it should be, asking for commitments from prospects and getting them.

“Getting a commitment took on whole new meaning, and the light bulb came on,” Rubin adds.  He took over the reins and started using High Probability Prospecting the way it was designed; asking for the commitment from the leads that were being generated. He immediately saw results and reports he is getting a commitment from 80% of the prospecting calls he makes.

“My ah-ha moment helped me line up my internal parts and thoughts and enabled me to do what I should have been doing all along; asking for a commitment,” Rubin shares with pride in his voice.  “There’s no way I am going back to my old ways.”

 

Posted by Becky Flansburg at 5:19 pm

How Scientific is “Scientific Selling”?

 Articles, Blog  3 Responses »
Mar 062012
 

I got my first college degree in 1955, with a major in Industrial Sales.  They were calling it Scientific Selling back then, which is just another form of needs based selling.  The “science” was from a real scientific study of how most people make buying decisions.  The result of that study was a simple buying decision model, showing how a buyer goes through these 5 stages:  Attention, Interest, Desire, Conviction, and Action (AIDCA).

The original scientific study did not include anything about how to use the AIDCA buying decision model to create a selling process.  Nor did it suggest that this model could be used as a basis for manipulating people’s minds.  However, that is exactly how most salespeople began using it.

The Information Age and the Internet have made the alternative to needs based selling much more attractive.  Today, most top sales producers use some form of wants based selling.

Posted by Jacques Werth at 6:11 pm

The “All Buyers Are Liars” Trap

 Articles, Blog  4 Responses »
Feb 202012
 

The belief that “all buyers are liars” is a trap.  It sets up the salesperson for failure.

“All buyers are liars” is also a self-perpetuating belief that makes itself true, once you’ve fallen for it.  The belief makes you do things that sabotage trust.  Salespeople who exaggerate the benefits and ignore the negatives can’t be trusted by their prospects, who often respond by lying about their buying intentions.

However, you don’t hear “all buyers are liars” from the top producing salespeople.  They know that they are more likely to get the truth from prospects when they themselves are completely truthful.

Mistrust breeds mistrust.  If you think your buyers are liars, they will probably think the same about you.

Posted by Jacques Werth and Carl Ingalls at 2:43 pm

Talking Differently Opens a New Market

 Articles, Blog  1 Response »
Jan 122012
 

A recent graduate of our High Probability Selling (HPS) and High Probability Prospecting (HPP) Workshops wrote to us about how his new mindset about selling has changed his sales career.

Jacques and Richard,

Thank you for the HPS and HPP workshops.  You have given me a new mindset that has changed the way I interact with people (both at work and at home) and that has given me a foundation to build the rest of my sales career on.  Before I took your class I wasn’t hurting or about to quit my job, but I was starting to plateau.  Your workshops have made my old ceiling my new floor.

Today I finished an appointment that I know I would not have been able to close using my old sales techniques.  Instead of presenting my product through my understanding of the prospect’s situation (i.e. guessing what they wanted), I was able to gain their trust and respect and to understand exactly what they wanted and what they were willing to live without.  The best part is that a number of my old “lost” sales fall into the same category as the prospect above.  It’s like I’ve opened up a whole new market simply by talking differently to my current market.

Thanks again

Note:  We have not identified the author of this email, because the High Probability way of thinking is not what his company currently believes about selling.

Posted by Jacques Werth at 5:37 pm

What I Learned About Sales from Robin Williams

 Articles, Blog  1 Response »
Jan 042012
 

On an evening in 1980, I was standing at the bar talking with Jo Anne Astrow, one of the owners of the Improv Comedy Club in West Hollywood.  As usual, the club was packed with a large spirited crowd, including several well-known entertainers.

Robin Williams came up and said “Hey, Jo” and gave her a hug.  His frenetic energy was like a burst of static electricity.

Jo Anne said, “Meet my cousin Jacques. He’s visiting from Philly.”

I said, “What are you up to Robin?”

“Trying to perfect a new routine – something that connects better and gets more laughs.”

I said, “You seem to be getting the hang of it lately.”

Robin said, “If I can’t do that I might have to wash dishes.  What do you do?”

“I’m in sales.”

“How are you doing?” he asked.

“I’m the sales manager of a company that just became the industry leader.”

Robin said, “Then we’re both up to the same thing – unless you wanted a career in dish washing.”

Yes, we are both up to the same thing.  In a way, all of us are in sales.  We each have to get very good at selling in order to be successful in doing whatever it is that we want to do.  Otherwise, we might as well be washing dishes.

Posted by Jacques Werth at 6:15 pm

What’s Right with Warm-Calling?

 Articles  14 Responses »
Dec 282011
 

Earlier this year, I answered the phone and a man said “I hate cold-calling.”

I said, “I’ve heard that from hundreds of salespeople. What about warm-calling?”

“Warm-calling, what’s that?” he asked.

I asked, “What’s your name and what do you sell?”

Ten minutes later, I knew Robert was calling lab managers, at myriad different types of laboratories, trying to get appointments to sell lab equipment and supplies. He had a good value proposition and he was trying to get the prospects interested enough to give him an appointment.  He seldom got appointments and, when he did, he rarely sold anything.

Most successful salespeople have been cold-calling for a very long time.  They are the survivors, the ones who stuck it out, put up with the pain and pressure, and hardened themselves to rejection. They learned how to get appointments with prospects who are interested in their products and services. Now, they get enough orders to earn a good living.

The first call that top producing salespeople make to a prospect is, by definition, a cold-call.  However, they don’t try to get appointments. They offer their product or service and ask the prospects if it is what they want.  Then, they call the same prospects every few weeks, again-and-again. They, change the wording of their offers each time.  Those are warm-calls. When a prospect is ready to change to a new supplier, it’s the prospect who asks for an appointment. A high percentage of those prospects eventually become customers. That’s just one of the results of “warm-calling.”

So, Robert learned warm-calling. “Now I make the most prospecting calls of all our salespeople, and the fewest sales visits,” he said. “And, my sales volume is  growing faster than I would ever have imagined.”

Obviously, there is a lot more to warm-calling than is explained in this article.

If you want to know more, or to tell me why you think it’s impossible, feel free to post your questions and opinions as a comment below.

Posted by Jacques Werth at 2:14 pm

A Key Ingredient for Becoming a Successful Salesperson

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Dec 122011
 

What are the characteristics of a successful salesperson? Is it the standard old-school-list of persistence, goal-orientated, good listeners, and many more? These are all important skills, and none should be taken lightly. But there’s one key ingredient in the formula of a successful salesperson that often gets overlooked, yet it is no less important than the above list.

It is the willingness to be uncomfortable.

What? You may be thinking. Maybe even just reading that statement makes you squirm a little. The willingness to be uncomfortable doesn’t necessarily mean “painful” or “unbearable.” It simply means to be willing to push the envelope, try something new, re-wire old thinking and old habits. Push it to the point where you are forced out of your comfort zone and into learning something new.

Being uncomfortable doesn’t sound very appealing to some, but it can be a powerful motivator. A motivator that allows salespeople to stop being “safe”, and challenge themselves to break away from their old and ineffective habits. The challenge of asking the questions to prospects they have never had the courage to ask before. The courage and willingness to try something new, even if it makes them “uncomfortable.”

Making The Shift To New Mindsets:

It can very hard to “unlearn” all your old selling habits. Heck, it’s even hard to unlearn being affected by prospect’s rejections. Our habits drive our need to succeed everyday and it’s not an easy task to shake them for the sake of learning new ones. It’s like still reaching for your glasses even though you just got contacts. Or going to another country and looking the wrong way for oncoming traffic when you are trying to cross the street. Habits shape who we are, good or bad, and become like grooves in a record.

Time to scratch that record. There’s an old saying that goes “do what you’ve always done, and you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.”

We all have what it takes to become successful. Are you ready to take the steps and make it happen?

Posted by Jacques Werth and Becky Flansburg at 11:41 am

Driving Your Customers

 Articles, Blog  1 Response »
Dec 012011
 

Watch your language.  Driving is what we do to sheep.  Is that how you feel about your customers?  If so, it probably shows.  If not, then be careful about the language you use, and the messages it sends.

If you don’t respect your customers, and you don’t show this in every detail, you can’t expect them to respect you.  Lack of respect leads to lack of trust, and we all know what that does to sales.

Posted by Carl Ingalls at 5:48 pm

How to Increase Sales With Your CRM System

 Articles, Blog  4 Responses »
Nov 072011
 

Why Most Top Producers Don’t Use CRM
Top sales producers (the top 2%) are typically ambitious, highly intelligent and pragmatic.  Most will use any available technology that enables them to sell more and better.  Top producers seldom use CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems because their own sales processes are different from the sales process that is installed in the SFA (Sales Force Automation) part of the system.  If the top producers’ actual sales process is installed in the CRM system, they’ll use it.  That will benefit them, most of the other salespeople, and the bottom line of the company.

Interviewing Top Producers Does Not Work
Most of top producers learned to sell intuitively, experientially, and individually.  They can seldom accurately communicate how they sell.  Most “best sales practices” studies fail to identify the sales processes of the best producers.  Most of the research methods are question based.  Thus, they are biased at several levels.

An Effective Research Method
The best way to determine your company’s best sales process is to base it on unbiased observations of what your best salespeople actually do.  Observing them while they are working with their prospects and customers will reveal your company’s actual best sales process.  Then, the sales process installed in your existing software system can create a significant increase in sales productivity.

Posted by Jacques Werth at 3:47 pm

Impact of High Probability Selling On My Life

 Articles, Blog  1 Response »
Aug 222011
 

Hi Jacques,

A lot has happened in my life since I took your High Probability Prospecting class.  I want to say that you’ve made a huge impact on my life and way of thinking.  And I thank you for that.

Doing business only with people I trust and respect has been a major piece to increasing my self-confidence and self-respect.  I know it may seem obvious and basic to you, but it was a brand-new concept to me.  It never dawned on me that I had a choice about who I dealt with.  It makes ALL the difference in the world.

Little things like always introducing myself as “Michael Henry” instead of simply “Michael” has definitely caused people to treat me differently.  Every time I hear my business peers introduce themselves only with their first name (which is most of the time) it makes me think of you and your excellent advice.

Using the phone strategies and etiquette that you taught me has made my business calls much more effective, efficient, and productive.  And just like you said, if people realize that I’m genuinely interested in who they are and how they got to where they are in life, they will pour it out.  It’s nothing short of magical.  People tell me all kinds of things about themselves if I just ask and honestly listen.  Jacques, it’s opened up an incredible new world to me!

Understanding — at a deep level — that people only buy what they want (not what they need) has helped me tremendously in dealing with people.  Realizing that a positive mental attitude is bullshit has also helped me chart a course in my life that gets me where I want to go.

Even though I am not currently in a sales position, I am frequently using many of the life philosophy and concepts that you taught me.  I am forever grateful to you for that.

Not a day goes by that I don’t put into action the life philosophy you taught me.  And I’m a much happier, healthier guy because of it.

Michael Henry

Posted by Jacques Werth at 3:13 pm
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