How to open your B2B sales call

Picture the scene – your lead is dashing between meetings and has grabbed a quick five minute respite at their desk to quickly check through emails before the next one starts. The phone rings and with a sigh they realise it is a business to business telemarketing sales call….

How you open every telemarketing sales call is absolutely key to the call’s end result – a lead / sale or a firm ‘no’. All too often B2B telemarketers are guilty of not taking the time to win their prospect over from the moment the call is connected. In this issue of the ‘How to’ series we talk you through how to use telemarketer openers in a way that guarantees maximum impact and increases your chances of success.

Greet the person

You might be surprised at how many B2B telemarketing professionals overlook and sometimes forget this and immediately launch into gabbling with their pitch. Potent B2B telemarketing is all about creating relationships that are built on the premise of trust and being open and receptive. Greeting someone is just about good manners and not an optional extra. Keep your greetings professional but warm and ask them how their day is going – careful though, you need to sound genuine or the lead won’t be receptive.

Professionalism is key

Perhaps the greatest tip – don’t badmouth your competitors! 99% of the time this will leave a bad taste in your prospects mouth, immediately making them question whether to continue with the call. Sales psychology has proven that if you mention negative traits about your competitors the prospect is likely to associate those traits with yourself – so remain professional at all times and your lead generation efforts will be rewarded.

Set the tone – and stay in control

Losing control of the call at the outset almost guarantees that the prospect will not trust what you are trying to sell. Take control of the call in a firm but polite manner – telling the prospect your intentions for the call is a great way to manage this – say “I’d like to go over XYZ with you…”. Is a great way to set the agenda whilst making the prospect feel involved.

State why you are calling

Another one that sounds obvious – unless you get to the point quickly the prospect will lose interest, but don’t launch straight into a pre-rehearsed sales pitch. Ensure that you have done your research as to why they will benefit from taking the call. Using the following reasons for calling are a good starting point:

I saw on LinkedIn that one of your major projects this year is….
Similar companies we work with….
Our research shows that your company is in the process of….
We have recently worked with and achieved….
I see that your business specialises in.. we supply …..
If all else fails – Yes this is a sales call – but I believe we can save you time and money….

Ensure the call is a conversation

Sounds simple doesn’t it? However, making sure that you aren’t just talking ‘at’ your prospect is key to ensuring the call opens successfully. Use open questioning techniques to ensure that you build rapport and get the customers feedback on your suggestions. When a lead is engaging with you they are less likely to hang up.

Be enthusiastic

We’ve all been there in a B2C context – a sales call pings through on your mobile, and the person doesn’t sound at all interested, regardless of whether this is a product that you were considering purchasing you are immediately disengaged. The same is true, if not more so, of B2B telemarketing – the lead needs to feel your enthusiasm – after all even business decisions aren’t made purely on rational facts, research has shown that the more engaged a lead is with the caller the more likely they are to convert.

Thank them for giving you their time

This simply assumes that the person will in fact give you some time. Rather than asking for space or time in his/her busy schedule (everyone is always busy by the way), you assume that the person will give you their time. “Thank you for taking my call. This is just a quick one for you…..”

Outsource it to the best in the industry

Outsourcing to an award winning team guarantees success – our team of experienced b2b telemarketers have an average age of 35 so they know how to win at opening all calls. Using structured conversations as opposed to scripts give us a call to see how we can drive leads for your business. https://www.theleadgenerationcompany.co.uk/people-and-awards/