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Marketing is all about timing. The right message to the right audience at the right time. So – is sending a weekly email on a big public holiday a bad move? We’ll see! But I guarantee that you’ll always get SOMETHING out of the emails (which is why you should get them direct instead of waiting for the blog post)! I promise I’ll keep it short this week, but there’s some great info below…

Give this song by Blondie a listen with me as we see what the experts are saying.

Call me anytime? Well, not quite…

What’s the best time for a sales call? If you’re a sales rep, you might say anytime… but what about your prospect/customer? Factoring in the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the way many people work and engage with businesses, flexible work locations and schedules have made sales call trends more unpredictable than before. Let’s look at HubSpot’s research on the best times to call buyers in 2021!

1. Best Day for Sales Calls – Wednesday and Thursday remain the best days to call prospects. By mid-week, people have had enough time to settle into their working week and take care of pressing matters without your call feeling like an interruption.
2. Best Morning Time for Sales Calls – The highest likelihood of answered calls is 10-11 am. The last hour of the workday, 4-5 pm, is also good to reach prospects as they wind down for the day.
3. Worst Time of Day for Sales Calls – Calling before 10 am can cause uncertainty about whether your prospects are ready and willing to take your call.
4. Best Response Time – There could be a 450% difference in response time for leads receiving a follow-up call within an hour of submitting an inquiry and those that didn’t! Call those leads ASAP!
5. Persistence Pays Off – Over 30% of leads never receive a follow-up call after initial contact. But salespeople have a 90% success rate on making contact with their lead on the SIXTH call. Make more attempts and you can experience a 70% growth in contact rates!
6. Speed-to-Call Trumps All – Responding quickly to a lead can make or break your ability to close the sale! 78% of buyers buy from the first company to respond; sales teams that don’t respond within five minutes experience a lead qualification decrease of 80%.

So what have we learned here? Be smart about your calling – when you call, how many times, and how quickly! And if you can’t handle the volume or be consistent, talk to an outsourced provider to see how they can help – anytime, anyplace, anywhere, any day, anyway…

I hope you’re enjoying your Labo(u)r Day weekend and wish you and your families all the best. Let’s finish the year strong!

As always, don’t hesitate to call me to brainstorm or just say hello.

Looking forward,
Rick

Rick Endrulat, President | ricke@v-causeway.com | www.linkedin.com/in/rickendrulat

The post You CAN’T Call any Day or Night – Best Calling Times for Sales Reps appeared first on Virtual Causeway.

1. Know your goals

You can’t achieve goals if you don’t set any. They provide long-term vision and short-term motivation.

By setting out Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound (SMART) goals you can motivate and challenge yourself to reach and even surpass those goals. Not only will this help you be a better salesperson, but you can take pride in the achievement of your goals. Even if they are small, they’ll help you see the forward progress you’ve made.

2. Keep organized

Staying organized will help you be more productive and save time. Use a CRM tool to keep track of leads as well as customer data and interactions so it’s on hand for when you need it. Make use of a scheduling assistant such as Plann3r when scheduling meetings and calls to find the perfect time-slot for everyone.

3. Believe in what you are selling

Of course, it’s important to be well informed about the company you work for. But more importantly, really believing in the product or service you are offering can make a world of difference. If you’re passionate about what you’re selling, it becomes that much easier to convince others that it’s something they need, especially if it’s something that’s going to make their job easier. If you want your customers to engage with you, it’s important that they feel your passion for the product. You’ll find that your excitement is contagious and that’s a great way to have them champion the investment.

4. Listen more than you speak (Start a conversation, not a pitch!)

Reading off a script or running a sales pitch certainly saves a lot of time and is much easier than carrying on a conversation. By starting a conversation, you are taking the pressure off the customer and lowering the likelihood of them feeling annoyed, intimidated, or overloaded with information. By listening more than you speak you will get a better idea of what it is the customer is looking for. As a result, you will be able to find a solution that better fits their needs rather than offering them something they might not want. This will help to provide a more positive experience for the customer and increase the likelihood of making a sale.

Remember the old saying: you were given two ears and one mouth, so be sure to listen twice as much as you talk.

5. Constantly build and maintain relationships

Customers are a company’s greatest asset. Without them, there is nobody to buy your product. The relationships you build with current and potential customers are priceless. Remain honest and authentic, and show genuine concern for their needs. Once the customer is engaged with you and you’re moving through the sales process, you should work on maintaining that relationship. If they’re satisfied with the service you provided they will look forward to continuing to do business with you or returning to do business in the future.

6. View the customer’s success as your own

Happy customer = happy manager = happy salesperson. When you sell a product or service, you should see this success not only as the customer’s, but also as your own. This is a chance to see what you did right (or did wrong) in your sales journey. This is also a great opportunity to seek feedback from the customer for your benefit, and for the benefit of the company.

These tips might not be for everyone, and following them isn’t a guarantee to make you a better salesperson. But adding some of these to your routine and changing things up a little may prove to be beneficial to your overall strategy.

What are some of your tips to up your game and become a more effective salesperson? Let me know!

Marlene Keay, Senior Manager, Business Development | marlenek@v-causeway.com | www.linkedin.com/in/marlenekeay

The post Six Tips to Become a More Effective Salesperson appeared first on Virtual Causeway.