Article Contributed by Marius Fermi
That phrase ‘I’m touching base’ is like the awkward moment you try to engage in a conversation with someone on a night out. You know why you’re there but the other person doesn’t care.
It’s down to you to have a reason, be confident about that reason and make sure everything is clear as to why you have just decided to ‘touch base’.
So here’s a run-down of what to say instead of generic phrases;
- “Hi Mr/Mrs X, (general chit chat). When we last spoke we discussed your need to have our service going ASAP but obviously wanted to determine the benefits for you. So let’s set up a time and date that suits you to have a meeting and we can start saving you money right away.” – Remind your client that what you are offering is something of true benefit to the company. If it greatly reduces the price or improves on efficiency then most people are willing to listen. As always prepare with some research to identify key features only a market expert in their industry would know.
- “ Mr/Mrs X, it’s always hard to leave the comforts of something you have used over and over, but I’m sure switching over to this would be of huge use for you. The best thing to do is have a look at this (blog, slideshow, ebook, podcast etc). If we can set up a time and date to meet that would be great.” – Many small businesses will fall into fear of leaving something they are used to simply because it’s a scary world out there with the big players. Education is essential so explain how it will work and make sure you have case studies at hand, even provide a means of communication with previous customers.
- “Mr/Mrs X, we have just had a trial run of this (product/service) and it went great. (Case Study) has seen a huge improvement and they have a heap of similarities to your company. Is there any chance you have a few minutes to discuss it?” – The standard phrases ‘you are the first to try it’ are boring and we all know they are usually not true, but having a case study that shows a resemblance to the clients company is a great way to build a relationship and more importantly it makes your client aware of the fact you are actually looking to help them rather then drain them of all their money.
An important aspect of any call is that you have reason for this contact, rehearse what you need to say before the call or just go with the flow – when going with the flow you’re much less likely to include buzzwords and structured sentences that turns the whole conversation into an automated machine.
Some other pointers to consider:
- People in business generally have no time or at least they’ll tell you so. Within the first sentence of your reason for calling tell them you’ll only be on the phone for X minutes (5, 10, 15 but no more) and have a stop watch.
Sticking to the short amount of time you mention may seem to go against all rules of sales but essentially this is a follow up call, one that has to resemble as little intrusion as possible into the world of this very busy person.
- We all love emails because they offer us freedom of expression, editing and time to answer without the pressures of phonecalls. With your 10 minute follow up call, you’re going to have a reason for the call – details, new products, and general ideas – so mention these but say that you’ll email everything over right away.
Once you’ve got this trust with your customers that a 10 minute call is going to be a 10 minute call, an email of information is actually going to be just that your future phone calls won’t be treated with hostility. The last thing you need is a follow up to be cut short or ignored because of your inability to be quick and concise.
Follow up calls come at awkwardly inappropriate times and many people find it difficult to chit-chat with a sales professional – in order to turn all of these issues around you need to make sure you leave the customers wanting more of your time, but always being there when they call or contact you.
Less intrusion, more structure.
About the Author: Marius Fermi, director of online communications at Tactical Sales Training – B2B focused sales training and courses. We teach the subtle art of sales with next day results.