Getting to ‘no’ even faster
Jerry L. Kennedy | TLT Selling Points October 2010
It’s the quickest way to get to ‘yes.’
The funnel system: 100 prospects equals 25 appointments equals five presentations equals one sale.
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Over the past couple of columns we’ve been discussing the need for salespeople to accelerate the pace at which they get customers to tell them “no.” If you missed the first two articles (June & August TLTs), go back and have a look, because we’ll be expanding the topic even more. You can access those articles at
www.stle.org.
For this issue, let’s talk about one of the best ways to get to “no” faster and more often: talking to more people.
No kidding, right? In fact, I could end this article right here. After all, you don’t need four or five more paragraphs to help you understand that if you want to hear “no” more often, the easiest way to accomplish it is to see more prospects. Fortunately, though, I’m in a giving mood, so you’re going to get those four or five paragraphs anyway.
It’s become popular lately to discount the idea that sales is a numbers game, and to some extent I agree—selling today is far more complex a matter than just who can make the most calls. But at least during the prospecting and qualifying phases of the sales process, volume does count for something.
Look at a typical sales funnel report, and you can see that it never looks like a cylinder. They call it a funnel for a reason. You have to see a lot of people in the initial stages to get down to those few who could truly become customers in the later stages.
In fact, if you consistently track your numbers, you’ll start to see ratios jumping off the page. Maybe it’s 100 prospecting calls that lead to 25 qualifying appointments that result in five presentations that net you one new customer. What does that really mean? It means that for every one new customer, you have to hear 99 “nos.” Are you beginning to see why it’s so critical to get to “no” faster and more often? Talking to more prospects and getting them to tell you “no” as early in the game as possible actually improves your ability to get to that coveted “yes.”
And here’s something else to keep in mind: When you’re deciding whom to talk to, put a little effort into it. Don’t just say “Well, Jerry said I need to talk to more people, so I’m just going to stand on the busiest street corner in town and talk to all the people that walk by.” Do your homework and spend your time talking to more prospects that actually might have a genuine need for your services. Don’t waste your time with folks who aren’t really prospects, or your ratios will start to get bigger (200 prospecting calls to get 25 appointments, etc.). There’s a lot to be said for targeted prospecting.
Maybe this would be a good time to talk about the elephant in the room: the fact that nobody, even the best of the best salespeople, actually likes hearing “no.” That’s a valid point, and one that needs to be addressed. And here’s how I’m going to address it: Get over it. I’m sorry, but you’re a salesperson, not a delicate flower.
If you want a job where nobody ever says “no,” sales ain’t it, kid. Try government work (I hear the benefits are great!). If you want to be a successful salesperson, “no” comes with the territory. To paraphrase the immortal Strother Martin (in “Cool Hand Luke“), “I don’t like it any more than you men (or women),” but that’s the way it is. The benefit of talking to more prospects and hearing “no” more often is that you start to develop immunity; it doesn’t hurt nearly as bad the 999th time you’ve heard it as it did the first.
So get out there today and see how many prospects you can get to say “no.” If you’re on a team, maybe make a little contest out of it—the one with the most “nos” at the end of the day gets to wear a big “N” pinned to his or her shirt the next day. Talk about a conversation starter!
And if you’re the entire sales force, set a goal for yourself and beat it. Keeping track of your “nos” is way easier (and more fun) than keeping track of “yeses” anyway!
Jerry Kennedy, CLS, is owner of Inside Out Business Solutions, a sales and customer service training organization. To learn more sales strategies, visit Jerry’s blog at http://jerrykennedy.com.
You can reach him at jerry@jerrykennedy.com.