Bob Barber

Ask salespeople to list their least favorite selling activities, and you can count on “prospecting” being at the top of the list. And, the least favorite of all prospecting activities is unquestionably making cold calls.

When asked, “How’s business?” most salespeople respond with “Great!” “Terrific!” “OK, I guess,” “Not so good,” or “Good, all things considered.” Most of these replies translate to, “I don’t know.”

How do you know if someone is listening to you and understands what you are trying to communicate? You need to get some type of feedback from that person in order to know that s/he was listening, and understood the message you wanted to convey.

Let’s look at how you run your company; how it’s being managed. Do you feel overwhelmed by the state of your business?

Tim arrived at the prospect’s office fifteen minutes before the appointment so that he could sit in the car and mentally review what he was going to say. Tim very carefully visualized each step of his presentation making sure that the benefits of buying from him and his companies were crystal clear. Looking at his watch, he took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and proceeded in to the appointment.

We can’t borrow goals from our neighbors. We can’t order them out of a catalog. So where do we obtain goals?

The Up-Front Contracts concept in the Sandler Selling System can be applied directly to management people. Up-front contracts are the mutually agreed upon expectations between individuals, established before moving forward in any endeavor. In sales, when you set an up-front contract with a prospect, both of you have agreed to what will happen next, provided a specific set of events occurs. The mechanics are more involved, but the concept is that simple.

The STORY: Tim arrived at the prospect’s office fifteen minutes before the appointment so that he could sit in the car and mentally review what he was going to say. Tim very carefully visualized each step of his presentation making sure that the benefits of buying from him and his companies were crystal clear. Looking at his watch, he took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and proceeded in to the appointment.

The prospect asks you, "How big is your company?" You haven't found her preference and you don't know the significance of the questions. Most importantly, you don't want to be caught in a box and have the sales process end before you decide that it is over. Being the astute Sandler student that you are, you know how to answer-you reverse. You say something like, "That's a significant question; why do you ask?" or "That's important. When you say 'big' are you referring to clientele, revenue or number of employees? Help me understand." You have avoided the trap and arranged to get more information.