How to Lose a Sale Anyone selling today using the methods they learned ten years ago is going to have problems. Covid changed everything. The pandemic changed the way people feel about work, time and personal worth. Call it what ever you want: the Great Resignation, Quiet Quitting. Buyers, who may hold positions of power or the executive suite, place a high value on their time and they aren’t very tolerant of people who waste it. It can take dozens of attempts to secure a meeting with a prospective customer. Before covid it took 27 touches to make a connection with an unknow person. Now? You can double that. And when you do connect be ready to hit the ground running! There are NO second chances! When you’re finally in the room with a decision-maker, don’t make mistakes that will cause them to end the meeting or deflect any attempts at following up. Follow-up is the key. Remember the rule of 27 even if it is now 54 or more. When we talked to buyers Buyers, no matter if the person your facing as a future customer is a professional buyers or a manager or owner. the majority of them told us in follow-up interviews that the salespeople visiting their offices were doing it all wrong. Conversations were unfocused (or focused on the wrong topics). The salesperson did not have a plan of action which they wanted to present to the customer. The prospects had a hard time understanding why they should do business with the salesperson calling them. Sales people are selling all wrong in preparation, presentation, and follow-up, and worse yet they did not do their homework! Preparation Mistake #1 - Failing to take time to learn about the company and individuals with whom you will meet. The prospect has probably done research on your company before you set foot in their office. Think about this a minute, doesn’t this mean you need to do the same. Are you the professional here or what? Just wing it when you get there, you will be fine. . .  NOT!   Mistake #2 - Forgetting about preparing thoughtful questions or anticipating objections. If you think you need to ask only one question after you make your pitch - “Well, what do you think?” Be ready to whip out your price sheet in case they say, “I’m ready to buy. How much does it cost?” or my favorite from days gone buy: "Press hard 3rd copy is yours", guess again. You need to know your prospect and his industry as well as they know themselves. Online, trade magazines, industry trade shows it is all out there for you. Preparing for the meeting includes identifying the prospect’s likely objectives. Why did they agree to meet with you? (Hint: It’s not getting the lowest price. If it is, you’re probably talking to the wrong person). You’ll also want to identify your desired outcome. Send a pre-meeting agenda and stick to it. If you or the prospect has a time restraint keep to the time allotted. If you are invited to stay longer make sure you can use it wisely and not blow your entire presentation. Presentation Mistake #1 - Start the meeting by talking about your products and services. This is always the most fun (for you) The prospect may not have a need for half the things you mention, but they probably won’t say anything, so just keep going to show them you really know your stuff.  Mistake #2 - Ignore what the prospect is saying. Their objectives and business challenges are just distracting. Keep focusing on why you’re there—getting the order no matter what! Steer conversations away from specifications, it is not time for that. What you want to discuss are the prospects business goals, such as customer acquisition, retention, conversion rates, upselling, lifetime customer value, regulatory compliance, and customer experience. By aligning your services with their business goals allows the prospect to move forward with finalizing decisions with you still in the hunt and not road kill. Follow-up Mistake #1 - Leaving follow-up to administrative people back at the office. Your job is selling, not nurturing. Besides you have more prospects to go see!  Mistake #2 - Ignoring the prospect’s buying process. It’s your sales process that’s most important. If customers insist on extra steps, it just slows everything down. You have a time line and that is the way it should be. Everyone sends a thank you email after the sales meeting, in this age of electronic communication if you really want this account you might just want to send a real thank you card though the mail. Almost no one does this anymore so think about how you will stand out from the crowd! Going back to our interviews, the prospects we talked with said they were disappointed if post-meeting communications didn’t include guidance about the next step. You are the professional right? So what would you suggest them do if they use your company? Follow-up notes are a great way to show you were paying attention and you have ideas about helping solve their problems. I never hand anyone tell me NO don't take notes on our meeting. You might even do a little research on what you think is the best solution for there situation. Include some relevant content, or a research report or case study, that is helpful towards your solution and help them as they progress through their (not your) decision-making procedure. We learned from the people on the other side of the desk that salespeople had plenty of room to improve the way they approached a business about buying their products and services. These concepts are even more important today, given the experience of the last couple of years. So Why Use A Lead Generation Service Like Larson & Associates? Mistake #1 - They said no last time so they will say no again. Things change, situations change, needs change. It is not our place to think that hard. Really. If they are in your power niche, your geographical territory we make the call!  Mistake #2 - Overselling! Yes you do a data dump on them. We don't do that. Tell them who we are what we do and ask if they need to meet with us. Qualifying a prospect isn’t about what they can do for you; it’s what you can do for them and if your services or products fill a need they have. We don't think hard about it, there is only one question to ask "When do you want to meet." Mistake #3 - Features and benefits! A prospect will not be impressed by a laundry list of generic features, benefits and capabilities. Instead, the discussion must focus in how we will elevate the prospect's business. Because we are using niche selling we already know and understand their challenges and pain. Armed with this knowledge we can empathize and offer solid industry specific pointed solutions that will grab the attention of a busy entrepreneur or executive.  Mistake #4 - Building the relationship. Sorry Charlie but I am not here to be your best friend. I mean trying to develop a friendship and not asking any probing questions if it gets that far is not what lead generation is all about. You have to immediately look for ways to be significant to them and build value, and ask for the order or appointment. What we do is bring you QUALIFIED leads, not just names! Some of our competition thinks that handing over a name with a job title which fits a job discription is a lead. Is it? At Larson & Associates we take the pain of cold calling and new account acquisition out of your sales equation and bring you actual sales leads with real names from real companies with real people. If I could really bring your company QUALIFIED leads at a fraction of cost of what it would cost to generate in-house would you be interested? Larson & Associates, is a performance-based sales support company exclusively designed to meet your business needs as we become a professional sales team trained in your products/services to engaged ourselves to generate new business for you, for a mutually agreed upon success-based payment plan. We work to keep your sales pipeline filled with qualified leads. We train our staff to your companies needs and target market so you reap the rewards of our efforts.  Larson & Associates We make good businesses great and great businesses even better. Larson & Associates 3475 Steeplechase Way    Suite 101 Grayslake IL 60030 847-991-1294

Increase Multi-Channel Results By 88%

The Numbers Are in: Multi-channel Campaigns Are 37% More Effective

The average adult is connected to the internet via 4.5 devices, and with the advancement of the IoT, that number is growing. For those of us in marketing reaching our target audience through one channel or one device just doesn’t make sense, or money. Relying on a single channel approach is simply not the way the business world works anymore. This means that with each channel you don’t use you’re losing a lot of touch points. But just how many?

A multi-channel campaign enables you to promote offers to a wider spectrum of the prospect ’s in all sorts of ways from e-mail, direct mail, blog, websites, mobile, social, and call centers. At Larson & Associates, we have researched over 5,000 campaigns across a variety of verticals, using this knowledge we have come to recognize the true power of multi-channel campaigns. Of the campaigns we researched, 16% were multi-channel campaigns, engaging prospects through two or more of the most widely utilized channels: email, SMS, Facebook Custom Audiences, Google Display and phone.

Multi-channel Campaigns vs. Single-channel Campaigns

Multi-channel campaigns received a 14% response rate. Meanwhile, single-channel campaigns received a response rate of only 10.2%. The results show a 37% increase in response when using a multi-channel campaign compared to a single-channel campaign.

Next, we looked at response rates to specific channels of single and multi-channel campaigns. All single channel campaigns received a single digit response rate compared to the multi-channel: both only-SMS and only-email campaigns had an 8% response rate, while only-push campaigns came in at a mere 2% response rate. Within our research when we looked at multi-channel campaigns we initially focused on channels that combined either email and SMS, or only utilized email. Campaigns combining email and SMS had a 15% response rate (compared to the control group). This is a substantial gain compared to the 8% response rate garnered by email or SMS alone. In fact, this multi-channel strategy almost doubles the efficacy of the campaign, improving it by 88%. Now lets add in a telemarketing channel! Our next research focused on the multi-channel combination, primarily involving email and phone. Here, the results were even more striking. The response rate for email and phone campaign came in at 14%, a 600% improvement over phone-only campaigns, which returned only a 2% response rate.

Multi-channel campaigns are critical in today’s multifaceted, multi-device world. Reaction and receptiveness vary with the individual creating appeal and interest via multiple communicative channels increase market reach and effect. Likewise, specific messages can be tailored for specific channels or mediums, creating a customized, unique approach more in line with clients expectations and desires. Varied channels offer multiple points of ‘attack’ or access points to your clients on different levels, at different times, in different ways, all while delivering the same message.

Three Key Concepts for Successful Multi-channel Campaigns

So what does it take to do multichannel marketing right? Larson & Associates has developed a multi-channel approach ‘three keys to success’ method: 1. Create and maintain a single prospect’s view Customers and prospects often interact with your brand in a variety of ways that involve more than one touch point. Creating a single customer/ prospect view requires a centralized marketing CRM that consolidates all data in one place regardless of source. In order to stay on pace with the changing nature of your customers and business, this data has to be dynamic and constantly refreshed and updated. 2. Establish a multi-channel marketing platform Multi-channel campaigns involve synchronizing your messaging across different channels. By establishing a multi-channel marketing platform, you will greatly simplify the creation and execution of cross-channel campaigns. The technology will enable you to reach the right person with the right message through the right channel at the right time while reducing costs and improving the effectiveness and performance of your marketing efforts Here are the capabilities you’re looking for: Campaign management, including capabilities for segmentation, workflow creation and campaign execution Analytics and campaign optimization Execution, including capabilities for event triggering, real-time messaging and full multi-channel support 3. Create consistent customer experiences across all channels The prospect’s experience is one of your most powerful competitive differentiators, but the quality of the prospect’s experience is influenced more by its consistency. By managing campaigns across multiple channels you’re creating a presence for your brand for your prospect. If you treat each channel separately you will fail to deliver consistency, and harm the prospect’s experience. Gone are the days when a single message through a single channel sufficed to reach your complete prospect and customer base. The days of crowded inboxes and stuffy offices cooled by oscillating desk fans are gone, relying on ringing phones and suit and tie clients over cocktails is no longer enough to get you a seat at the ‘table’. It’s a whole new world out there. Advances in technology, changes in culture, society and the world economy have forever altered the way we ‘play the game’ and unless you are ready to adapt and grow your brand then you are in real danger of being left behind. The good news is that there are new tools and attitudes designed expressly to help you win, tools such as specialized technologies and multi-channel marketing systems. Your prospect base is still out there, waiting to hear from you. The right technological platforms will make your brand’s voice loud and clear.

At Larson & Associates, we can help you create and maintain a presence for your brand, through cooperative planning, business, and marketing strategies and through the supportive management of marketing campaigns across multiple channels. Our goal is your goal, successful marketing, brand recognition, market share and exponential growth. When you win, we win, we’re in this together. So just pick up the phone and call us at 847-991-1294 or email me at howard@larsonassociates.ws Your marketing and lead generation can be that simple.

Become Familiar To Your Prospects

Success in getting new customers is the engine that drives your business, the engine that powers your dreams, energizes your ideas and delivers your expectations. A well-tuned engine delivers powerful results, it takes you where you want to be, and beyond.

Starting that engine and running it at peak performance is the priority and end goal of every business. In the B2B arena, this becomes an even greater challenge, where customers are clients, individuals who have been in the trenches and know the drill, what to anticipate when you knock on their door. Often the engine is already built and just needs to be tuned up, sometimes it needs to be rebuilt.This subtle recognition is about making your presence known without all the obnoxious baggage. It’s about being seen and remembered, but for all of the right reasons. When the time comes and your potential client, after recognizing their need, contemplates where to go, what to do and who to call, you want their decision maker to say “Eureka! The answer is right here, call **Insert your organization's name here** immediately!” This is where ideas begin to become a success, where cold calls become clients, this is conversion.

At Larson & Associates, we firmly believe that the success of the campaign is not measured by leads, referrals, or clicks and likes on your social sites, but when the conversion is made. This is when potential becomes a client, where the rubber meets the road, driving your bottom line, creating success.  Everything else is just fluff and puff.

Here are the cold, hard statistics of lead generation. The good, the bad and the ugly.

Starting that engine and running it at peak performance is the priority and end goal of every business. It takes 1 to 3 touches to re-engage an inactive customer It takes 1 to 5 touches to engage a prospect who is high in the buying cycle It takes 5 to 12 touches to engage a warm inbound lead to buy It takes 5 to 20 touches to engage a prospect who has only a minimal familiarity with you or your company It takes 20 to 50 touches to engage a cold prospect who does not know you or your company Now ask yourself how are you going to to that? If you have done your research and have begun focusing on the names of companies that are a good fit for you, then you are ready for another cold, hard fact, it’s likely that many of these companies do not care about you or have even ever heard of you or your organization. Your name brings a blank stare and holds no value for them. So, what do you do?Plan to become familiar to them.   This plan might include office visits, phone calls, voice mail, e-mail, social media, trade shows, and industry conferences. Most importantly, establishing and maintaining contact with them, brand yourself and then integrating yourself into their business world. A word of caution, do not focus solely on building the relationship, do your work, use your product and professionalism in action, this will leave a lasting impression. Each time you leave a voice mail they hear your name and your company name Each time they read an email they see your name, e-mail address, company name and your product/service line and how it fits with they’re pain/pleasure needs. Connect on social media and familiarity increases If you “like,” comment or share something they posted you become more familiar (and important). When you meet and talk at industry events and conferences a name is put together with a face and you are even more familiar. While building your relationship learn all you can about their business. Be aware of any recent changes and any talks of upcoming changes. Don’t be afraid to go the extra mile, the clients will remember you. Respond quickly, never make them wait. Be More than an email address. Create an online presence.  Even with the most finely tuned engine, you’re like the man out driving, who is hopelessly lost but making excellent time. Yet when you build around a plan, with a focused list, clear objectives, aimed at a niched based prospect channel it becomes easier, faster and brings greater results. Invest your time, your efforts and your resources wisely.   If you don’t have a clear plan, if you haven’t identified your objectives or have nothing in particular in mind, then that is what you can expect, nothing, or even worse, a glimpse of success and the knowledge of preventable loss.   At Larson & Associates that is our plan, that is what we do, we sit down with you and create the roadmap to your success. We find the tools to help fine-tune your engine, to reach a peak performance that will put you in the fast lane to success. We offer the services and solutions to assist you in building your business, we ready, willing and able to step in at any part of the process, from creation to fine-tuning, repair, rebuilding or management, we have the right solution for you. Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines! Call or email Larson and Associates 847-991-1294 howard@larsonassociates.ws

70% More Effective Marketing?

What if your marketing could be 70% More Effective?

Call it whatever you want: Multi-channel, Cross-Platform  Omni-Marketing: your marketing strategy needs to rely on both digital and traditional platforms online and offline to reach customers across multiple channels in various ways for the way they want to be contacted. Traditional forms of marketing such as print, trade magazines, direct mail, PR, radio, television commercials, and billboards if used together with digital marketing like email, social media, websites, blogs, YouTube, Pinterest starts to create a major spike in name recognition. Not surprisingly, cross-channel integration where online and some traditional forms like direct mail are linked together with the use of tracking software or bar code technology a telephone campaign and follow-up becomes 70% more effective.

I have 6 Tips for a Better Strategy

First you need to know your target audience. Who are they? What niche is it? Where are they? What channels work best for your business model? What are the channels your target nitch uses more than others? For example, an ad campaign for bath bombs might do well with a television advertisement or direct mail coupon. Events and musical concerts will get more ROI with social, emails and YouTube.

Second focus on the customer experience. Your marketing strategy should present information clearly and directly. Multi-channel digital campaigns should cater to not just convenience but also for after-sale 2^nd sale service, dependability, and responsibility—all qualities customers place value on. Consistency across all platforms is the key to talking about this success.

Third measure your results. After or even during any multi-channel campaign, review data to see which channels are working and how they are performing and which could use more improvement. And ask yourself why and are there other channels we should have or could have used? This will help allocate resources, time, and money more efficiently for the next wave or next attack.

Forth timing is everything. Constantly update your touch points. A successful strategy is well-timed and relevant. You might want to update your web page and send out emails the day before a big event. A drip campaign strategy allows you to space out information to generate interest and thus customers. Cross-channel integration brings your marketing strategies both online and off line together in a seamless flow. Incorporate a Twitter feed, use hash tags, incorporate bar codes in your direct mail, link your Facebook business page with your emails, generate printable coupons from your website or social business pages for in-store use. The more ways you can connect your customers to your brand, the better.

Fifth learn to change your strategies and platforms as needed. Don’t get too comfortable. What works one week may not work next week, so keep up to date on the latest marketing trends. And remember to track everything you can to know what works, where it is working and how it is working.

Sixth follow-up follow-up follow-up. Everything needs to be followed up on. You need to reach out and call someone. Yes the telephone. If you don’t make the reach out and make “that call” just save your money. The prospect is not going to call you 99.9% of the time. You have got to have a follow-up. Make that call or have me make it for you and your odds of a sale go up at least 10 to 20%

So now you only have to ask yourself:

Do I have the time?

Do I have the knowledge?
Do I have the connections?

Do I have the recourses?

If not we are here for you.

Howard Larson

Larson & Associates

Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition

Making good businesses great and great businesses even better

847-991-1294

howard@larsonassociates.ws

http://www.larsonassociates.ws

http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/LarsonAndAssociatesFans

http://www.linkedin.com/in/larsonassociates

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

Creating A Multi-Channel Marketing Attack

In a time where content and information is expected to be available 24/7, prospects and customers want to interact with businesses in ways that works for them and their lifestyle, not yours. The fact is: using one, single channel is not enough.

Why is multi-channel marketing an effective strategy?

There are 5 reasons why I see companies using this approach:

• Build a brand experience – Prospects are on multiple channels – and to gain name familiarity you need to leverage each channel to connect with them or at least have them interact with your brand. By using a multi-channel attack you are allowing prospects to choose where, when, and how they want to engage with you.
• Drive consistent in your message that keeps prospects informed – With multiple channels, you can ensure that your prospects are making informed decisions each time they interact with your brand through a consistent message across a variety of touch points.
• Keep your prospects in control – “No one likes being sold but everyone likes to buy?” The choice to interact with your brand where it’s most convenient to the prospect puts them in the driver seat and begin the buying journey. It takes 7 to 9 contacts with a prospect before they buy and they see or hear only 1 out of 3 so that is 27 messages to get you to sales heaven. Multi-channel marketing makes it convenient for your prospects to learn about your company and gives them the right information on their favorite channels at their time.
• Personalize your efforts for each prospect – What works best for one person may not work with the next. If you go single channel, your message will only impact a small part of your potential market. By using multiple channels of attack you reach people at different digital touch points.
• Fine tune your marketing strategy by measuring each touch point –You need to have an understanding of how to leverage channels in the context of each prospect or customer. This ideal process requires you to be able to target the right people at the right time – delivering the right message and most value with an integrated, multi-channel approach. Then you to measure what works and what doesn’t work to refine this strategy.
  
  

So you may be wondering what you can do right now to implement this type of strategy? According to a 2015 study by Econsultancy and Adobe, only 14% of marketers said they were running coordinated marketing campaigns across multichannel.

To help address this challenge, I’ve highlighted three simple ways I’ve seen Radius customers engage their prospects across multiple channels.

3 examples of multi-channel marketing

It’s important to note here that these are just a few simple examples used by other leading businesses to leverage multi-channel marketing. While this is by no means a definitive list of campaign ideas, the goal here is to inspire you to rethink marketing strategy with multi-channel driving the change:

1) Combine digital with email into telemarketing

Our customers have seen an increase in appointments when they launch a social campaign in combination to an email before anyone starts making calls. Here’s an example – You’re a window cleaner and its winter the weather is bad, snow & sleet are blowing all over the place making windows dirtier than normal, no one really wants to go out and clean them, so try running a campaign to a Facebook custom audience promoting your company. Then, start an email campaign, have your reps follow up on that same list with phone calls. This not only gives your business multiple hits to your target, but the digital ads, the email and the phone help warm up the prospects for your sales team. Prospects tend to be more receptive to speak with companies that they are already familiar with. 7 times familiar.

2) Leverage Direct Mail with email campaign and a telemarketing call

There are multiple creative ways to integrate these 3 channels. One example is to monitor how prospects are hitting your digital ads by hits and then customize email campaigns based on level of engagement on different posts. Target the email to the areas that have the greatest interest to your target. Chances are, what is the greatest interest to the majority of your nitch is of interest to all your nitch. If someone is engaging with multiple ads on multiple platforms an email that offers a clear call to action that is opened and then followed up on will drive sales higher faster.

3) Bring all together

The strategy I have the most success with is when customers let me take and use all their channels that are available together in one seamless integrated single message effort. In fact multi-channel strategies generated up to 24% higher conversion rates. This should include leveraging social to build awareness, email and direct mail to drive sales, and then the all important follow up phone call to bring prospects deep into the sales process and the actual sale itself.

Wrapping up

It’s no longer enough for marketers to be using one, single marketing channel – you need to match the buyer’s journey, with the way they like to be approached and target prospects across multiple channels. The more broadly you get your message out, the easier it will be for prospects to know who you are, what you do, and why they can benefit from your product or service.

Experiment with your available channels, use historical data to guide your testing and try to find the optimal mix of channels that gets you in front of the right prospects at the right time in the right way, and don’t forget the telemarketing follow up call or you will waist 95% or your effort.

Larson Notes & Satire: 

It is hard work getting new clients. So I have to ask you why are you sitting back and only using 1 or 2 tools you could be working with when you have a complete tool box right at your fingertips (or keyboard)? People what to, need to, will make you talk to them like they want to weather you like it or not so you had better just start liking it.

Getting good sales results is a hard, process. If your sales are stalled out we have ways that can make it happen for you that are cost effective and will give you results!

Howard Larson

Larson & Associates

Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition

Making good businesses great and great businesses even better

847-991-1294

howard@larsonassociates.ws

http://www.larsonassociates.ws

http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/LarsonAndAssociatesFans

http://www.linkedin.com/in/larsonassociates

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.

Larson the Perfect Partner

I’m a Swede, well half Swede with the other half Norwegian, either way I’m happy with my back ground and the work ethic I was raised in.

So what are the top 15 reasons to form a partnership with Me?

1)     Punctuality – a meeting that was supposed to start at 1 o’clock will start precisely at 1 o'clock. If it s half hour meeting it will end at 1:30, not 1:35. It’s called prick kl.1. This meeting has been booked months ago. This is because we Swedes are great…

2)     Planners – we have already looking ahead to week 45 in 2020. You need to know where you are going if you’re going to get there. It’s called framförhållning.This means we are always...

3)     Prepared – we know how to predict, when to proceed and what to produce. We know what good things might happen, what bad things might happen so we are able to move towards the good and away from the bad and keep out of stormy seas and I hate stormy seas! Put simply, we are good…

4)     Performers– the proof is Sweden’s first place in just about everything. Swedes are also modest but we can talk about that another time.  We also have a passion for…
5)     Projects – these are lead by someone who is hopefully aware of what’s going on, understands what is going on and has a handle on the desired outcome. It’s called projektledning. Swedes are expected to be...               
6)     Participative – giving their opinions when asked for. There are no bad ideas just that some are better than others at bringing a faster outcome. It’s called the förankringsprocess. Everyone should feel part of the…

7)     Process - there are so many that someone has to learn how to manage them. Yet that does not mean anyone is left on the outside looking in. It’s called  processhantering. A process consists of many meetings. One type of meeting is the…

8)     Pre-meeting – it's a meeting before the meeting. Yes let’s get some issues out on the table so people have the possibility to pose questions before the real meeting on “Thursday”. This is because Swedes are…

9)     Precautious – decision making is a lengthy, risky process. It is not that risk is bad but we want to make the pathway that brings us to the end goal the fastest with the least amount of risk and animosity, we are still a team. It’s called the beslutsprocess. Being ultra-careful we might not say 'yes' or 'no' but they may say. . .

10)  Perhaps – which, for Swedes, is possibly a 'maybe'. But unlike an American  maybe which usually means no, a Swedish Perhaps means we will keep an open mind on the subject and not shut any doors just in case this is the right door. But if we  do say 'yes' then a promise is a promise. We will get on, do it and get it done in the shortest amount of time possible. By global comparison, we are very…

11)  Productive – The projection is probably a larger part of our companies GNP. Ya sure we might be talking small and needing some mico thought to everything but such progress is a result of many skills we possess. One skill is being particularly…

12)  Pragmatic - patiently putting solutions into practice, avoiding too much…

13)  Pressure – which can be both good and bad. It’s called lagom mycket. Too much panic and pressure causes Swedes to walk into the wall. So we prefer to be…

14)  Positive – as in having a positive attitude, positive energy, and a positive mind. It’s called arbetsglädje. And one of the most positive things of all in Swedish business life is the world famous…

15)  Parental leave and vacations – which is the Swedish way of combining being a family, a parent and a professional together. Yes there is life outside of work.
Larson Notes & Satire: So you’re not blonde, you don’t have blue eyes. Yust say “ya sure” and get on with it!

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-1294
howard@larsonassociates.ws
http://www.larsonassociates.ws
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/LarsonAndAssociatesFans
http://www.linkedin.com/in/larsonassociates

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 10 hours a week. Maybe you could add teleprospecting into your marketing mix call today and find out.

Getting Past Gatekeepers on the Phone

Now in calling we normally use what I call the Payton to the right, Payton to the left, Payton up the middle technique. We hit the line with honesty and directness and it works 9 times out of 10. But if you’re having problems getting through or it is one of those need to have accounts sometimes you need to call out of the box.

1. Call and ask for the Sales Department.

Sales always answers. Talking with salespeople can be an excellent approach. It’s amazing how one salesperson will be willing to help out another salesperson. When asking for assistance, be sure to offer to help them in finding potential leads and contacts. Scratch their backs to get your back scratched.

2. Rather than asking the gatekeeper for the person you want to speak to, begin the call by asking them the same questions you would ask your prospect. These people know more and might have more insight then you or I give them credit. Many times the gatekeeper will realize they can’t answer the questions and wind up connecting with the person and/or department who can.

3. Call back before 8 AM or after 5 PM. Most gatekeepers work traditional hours, so calling either before 8 or after 5 may allow somebody else to answer the phone, "How can help you?" Might be considered unprofitable for having a service to these kinds of calling but if it is you? Go for it.

4. Call during holiday weeks. I’m always surprised at how people behave differently knowing there’s a holiday coming. Calling during a holiday week may very well result in speaking with the gatekeeper when they are in a completely different mood. Side note is the gatekeeper might be on vacation.

5. Call one or two digits off from the phone number you’ve been calling. Dangerious to do but When the person answers, be upfront and say who you’re looking to speak to.

6. Call and ask for Accounts Receivable. Who won’t you through to accounts receivable. Every company is eager to collect money if they can, and by asking for that department, you’ll get connected. When you do get connected, be upfront and state who you’re looking to speak to.

7. Call at different times of the day or over lunch. Everyone takes breaks, and many times the person who relieves the gatekeeper for lunch and/or breaks does not take the same approach as they gatekeeper would.  That person filling in may very well put you through.

8. Let your personality come through and allow the gatekeeper to see you as a normal person who is merely doing their job, just like them.

9. Call a different division or location, if the company has one. Using the other location is a way to learn who you should speak to when the location you’re trying to reach is stonewalling you.

10. Don’t allow one rejection by a gatekeeper to stop you from calling again.


Larson Notes & Satire:  I might or might not suggest you using some of these tactics but they can and do work. I might choose to not use some of the shadier ones. Persistence is your best way and can and will pay off in the long run. Don’t take it seriously or personally. Calling is a game of cat and mouse.

If you allow a rejection by a gatekeeper to negatively impact you, there is little chance you will ever be successful.

The beautiful thing about be being blocked by a gatekeeper is the same thing is most likely happening to your competitor. Big difference is your competitor is probably blowing off the opportunity, leaving the door wide open for you once you get past the gatekeeper.

Many times huge sales have been made after getting past the gatekeeper.


For the answer to your sales and lead generation problems call Larson & Associates at 847-991-1294 or email me at howard@larsonassociates.ws .  One call is all it takes.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
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P.S. We make teleprospection for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 10 hours a week. Maybe you should add teleprospecting into your marketing mix call today and find out.