7 best phone sales tips

How many times have you received a sales call at home and was totally turned off in the first ten seconds? Did you ever stop to really examine why the person on the other end bothered you so much? Now think about the calls you make to prospects, how do you think they react to your opening lines? The phone is an amazing sales tool if used properly but it can destroy a brand, not to mention a commission check, if used incorrectly. Check out these seven phone sales tips to fine tune your first impression.1. The first ten seconds Within the first ten seconds of the call you are going to make an impression that is going to determine how the rest of your call is going to be received by the prosect or customer. Every call, regardless if it's the first call to a prospect or the fiftieth call to a customer creates a "first" impression. Know why you are making the call and what you are going to say in that first 10 seconds. Above all else, be natural; don't sound like you are reading a script even if you are.2. Scripts can make or break youSome organizations place great trust in a phone script. They paid good money to have a professional (who may or may not have ever made a prospecting call on the phone) come up with just the right wording to elicit the desired response. They may have invested in a contact management system that has scripted responses for every situation. If you have to use a script, practice it until it sounds like your normal conversational style. If you use a script it has to sound like it's the first time you have spoken those words. Nothing turns people off faster than being "read to" on the telephone.3. Clean up your languageHave you ever noticed that network anchors don't have a discernable accent (except one noted Canadian)? There's a reason for that. People tend to trust what they consider an "educated" voice more than they do a voice that uses slang or "lazy" English like fer for for and yer for your. Practice reading aloud into a recorder and focus on speaking clearly and correctly. For a real challenge read the ingredient list off almost any package and try to make it sound conversational.4. Listen without prejudiceThis is tough particularly if you are accustomed to making 50 to 100 calls a day. What you need to do is to be able to really hear what the person is saying. You may hear the same response to a question a dozen times a day but you have to refrain from thinking that this individual means the same thing as the other eleven people did. Let them finish their answer before your brain starts searching for the "canned" response. In other words, treat the individual as an individual and not a survey sample. Many managers will tell you that prospecting is a numbers game but if you hear something you don't like and blow off the rest of the call you may have sailed right past a close.5. The more they talk the betterTry using open ended questions that encourage detailed responses. The more the other person talks the more the call is perceived as being about them and their issues rather than you. The more they talk the more information you mine and the better you'll understand their needs and what motivates them.6. Stay positiveAny subject can be presented in a positive, negative or neutral manner. "He died so young." "He's in a much better place now." "He's dead." Keep all your dialogue positive. Use words that elicit optimism. You don't have to be Mr. Sunshine but you do want to leave an impression that you have a positive attitude and you truly believe in whatever it is you're selling.7. Stay honestDon't give in to the temptation to stretch a truth to keep the conversation going. Honesty and integrity, unfortunately, are still something of a scarce commodity and honest responses will be received as a breath of fresh air.There are some amazingly successful sales people who earn significant incomes and who have never seen their clients face to face. Their secret is their telephone presence and their ability to really understand a client's needs. Working on that first impression is the first step in joining that group of successful pros.

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