Monthly Archives: October 2013

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Post From the Trenches: Cold Calling

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Even experienced sales professionals wince a little at the thought of dialing up an unknown person and attempting to persuade him/her to entertain the idea of doing business.  Those who perceive themselves as busy often never answer their phone.  Those who are reached usually decline the offer.  Yet if by some stroke of luck you reach a VIP,   prepare yourself to both deliver a pitch that will keep the prospect on the phone and hit a single to keep the inning alive.

Cold calling is prospecting and it is not the time for selling,  but rather for determining whether there can be an opportunity to sell.  Hitting a home run is not on the agenda.   During the call,   confirm whether the prospect perceives a need for your product or services and ask for a meeting.  In advance,   you will have researched the company and will be able to anticipate basic information that may be requested.

But first,  one must reach the prospect.   We all know this is increasingly difficult,  but 8:00 AM and 5:30 PM are good times to call: there are usually fewer distractions at those times.   If you have the prospect’s mobile phone number,  text a concise and tantalizing sentence about how your offerings might help the decision-maker to achieve an important goal and request a time to talk,  in person or by telephone.   If you do reach a warm body,  here are some hints that will help you execute a successful cold call:

Write a script

Identify yourself and your company.  State your product or service.   Confirm that you’ve called at a convenient time.   If told that your timing is not good,  as for a better time to call.   If told that you’ll be given a minute,  thank the prospect and say that you will be brief.  State an outcome achieved  (or problem avoided)  when using your product or service that is relelvant enough to intrigue your prospect and entice him/her to keep listening and ask for a couple of details.  Concisely fill in with a couple of pieces of information.   Ask how the need in question is being fulfilled now,  so that you can position your product/service.   Ask the prospect what  specific information would be appreciated and if he/she can see how what you are selling might be useful.   Ask permission to extend the time limit on the call and also offer to schedule a time to speak in person.

Speak with the decision-maker

In general,  there is no reason to speak with a gatekeeper,  unless that individual is able to facilitate access to the decision-maker or provide accurate information about competitive products and services that the decision-maker is now using.  Ideally,  you want to speak only with the person who has the authority and budget to green-light your presence.

Pursue prospects with big-money potential

Active pursuit of small budget clients is a waste of time.   Because they have little money,  small clients agonize over budgets and will do whatever possible to limit your billable hours.  Unless your goal is to gain experience,  let the small clients come to you.

Name drop

People usually trust those with whom they share a common relationship.  In other words,  if you are trying to get in the door somewhere,   obtain permission to use the name of a person whom the prospect trusts and respects.  Also, ask the referral source to speak on your behalf should the prospect want to check you out.

Make your cold call a dialogue,  a two-way conversation.  Listen to your prospect and respond to questions and objections.  Be pleasant and professional.  Even if you don’t do any business,  that prospect might refer you to a colleague.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Presentations: Impromptu and Prepared

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In June of this year,   I became president of a local membership organization that is primarily social.  I’ve been a member for 12 years and a board member for 8 or 9 years.  I find the experience to be very gratifying.  I’ve made friends.  I’ve continued to develop and refine leadership skills.  I am fortunate to preside over a board that is comprised of top drawer members who are committed to the organization and who work diligently to develop strategies and plans that will sustain the organization over the short- and long-term.  I do whatever I can to create conditions that enable board and committee members to do their best work and then get out of the way and let them do it.

To become an organization leader is to become its public face and unifying symbol to its members.  Public speaking is part of the job.  It is often necessary to offer words of inspiration and encouragement and verbally demonstrate that you embody the vision,  mission and values of the organization.  There are impromptu speaking  “opportunities”  that arise when you are half way through a second glass of wine and surprise! someone asks you to say a few words.  How do you successfully make an unrehearsed speech and manage to sound reasonably eloquent (and sober)?

There are also impromptu speaking opportunities that are professional in nature,  where one must speak ex tempore about business.  These speaking obligations are unscheduled but they are not completely unexpected,  since one attends certain events with the desire to meet and greet peers and prospects and talk business.  Finally,  there are scheduled speaking opportunities,  when one presents information to prospective clients.  Three types of speaking opportunities:  how can you stand and successfully deliver?

I.  Let’s start with the easiest,  the business meet and greet.  This is where your elevator speech is delivered.   You must decide which version you will roll out.   Are you being introduced to someone and asked what you do?  Keep your elevator speech conversational and limited to what the business provides,  your role or title and the name of the organization.  If someone asks what you do while in conversation,  give a vague but accurate description of the outcomes or benefits of the service you provide or products you sell.  Formulate a sentence that describes the business function and your role,  with a focus on benefits and outcomes.  In either scenario,  provide more information only if the person seeks more information.  Make the encounter a dialogue by asking questions of your own,  to establish whether this individual has a need for your products and services,  or is just making conversation.

2.  Twice,  I have been unexpectedly asked to address members of the organization for which I serve as president and twice I did a good job.  How did I do it?  Primarily,  I was fortunate to have a very good set-up introduction and I was smart enough to listen and pick out a phrase on which I could launch a quick little speech.  In the first,  I found a good tag line that I still occasionally use.  In the second,  I was able to find a theme and spin it into a good three-minute talk.  The moral of the story is,  a leader must anticipate public speaking obligations.  Keep your antennae tuned for anecdotes or observations made by organization members or others that can be used to develop an inspirational mini-speech.

3.  I pass along to you my interpretation of a Power Point presentation template developed by Bahar Martonosi of Princeton University.  You may find this template useful when auditioning for a prospective client or delivering a report of findings during a consulting assignment:

Your name and business name   (1 slide)

Project outline: work that the prospect would like performed   (1 slide)

Rationale: why is the project or problem important to the organization    ( 1 – 2 slides)

History: what has been done before   (0- 2 slides)

Method: your firm’s approach to the project or problem   (1 – 3 slides)

Results: this is the body of the talk.  Present the key results and findings. Do not present all results or findings.  (2 – 6 slides)

Summary:   (1 – 2 slides)

Back-up:  prepare slides that answer expected questions   (1 – 3 slides)

Keep things simple and focus on a few key points.

Repeat the key insights.

Know your audience and adjust the presentation as needed.

The post-presentation informal Q & A is very important.

Make eye contact,  be approachable and it’s OK to smile  (but this is business, not social, so know your role).

Make your audience want to learn more.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Achieve Business Objectives With Facilitated Strategy Meetings

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Attracting and retaining customers and ensuring that an organization remains competitive in the marketplace are the primary responsibilities of for-profit and not-for-profit organization leaders.  Organizations run on revenue,  regardless of tax classification.  Every three to five years,  savvy leaders review their organization’s current state and the environment in which it operates,  the organizations’ customers,  the delivery of products and services,  the competitive landscape,  obstacles and threats to success and apparent opportunities and use that information to identify and prioritize goals that will set the organization on a path to a sustainable future.

It is imperative to create the conditions for a successful strategy planning or process improvement retreat/meeting.  The world has changed and there is no time to waste on possibly unproductive  “brainstorming sessions”  that may have sufficed in the past.  More than likely,  the results of the planning retreat are vital to the organization and it would be unwise to allow the winds of fortune or internal politics to control outcomes.

Engaging a professional meeting facilitator to guide your strategy planning or process improvement retreat will guarantee that participants will identify goals and objectives that are SMART  (specific,  measurable,  attainable,  relevant and timely)  and earn the support of mid-level managers and other key staff.   A facilitator allows all stakeholders to fully participate in the meeting,  rather than confining a key decision-maker to the role of meeting overseer and time-keeper.

The facilitator creates a positive meeting environment for the participants and lays the groundwork for teamwork and productivity.  He/she  keeps participants focused on the topic and momentum flowing.  Should a strong personality attempt to high-jack the agenda,  or if  the meeting somehow drifts off topic,  the facilitator employs techniques to re-establish focus without offending or squelching participant engagement and creativity.

A skilled facilitator knows how to bring forth the wisdom in the room.   He/she knows that most leaders already have the answers to the challenges their organization faces because they are its leaders.  They only need the right flow of energy to bring wisdom and good ideas to the surface.  If the group gets stuck,  the facilitator will help participants to consider the questions that should be asked,  which is another way to access the right answers.

One competency at which your meeting facilitator will be particularly adept is building consensus around a common vision and  priorities,  even if interpretations of these matters are divergent.  Helping opposing camps to listen to the reasoning behind the concerns and choices of the other side can lead to the discovery of a  “third way”,  alternatives that incorporate the key strengths of each viewpoint,  address what is important to each camp and allow the group to coalesce around this new hybrid approach.

Identifying long- and short-term goals that when implemented will grow market share;  overcoming business challenges;  improving service delivery and other process systems;  creating or more effectively utilizing competitive advantages;  and improving  bottom line profitability over the approaching 3 – 5 years is how organization leaders fulfill their responsibilities and behave like good stewards.  Contracting with a professional meeting and strategy planning facilitator ensures that leaders will meet these obligations and dispatch them appropriately.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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To Work For a Nonprofit Board

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Not-for-profit organizations make up the majority of my client list.  Frequently,  it is the executive board and not the executive director who contracts for my services.  Getting hired by an executive board is nearly always a challenge.  Typically,  a dozen  (or perhaps nearly twice that number)  people must approve both the proposed project and the service provider (me!).

Boards are always political and they are frequently hotbeds of strife and rivalries.  I have first-hand knowledge of board dynamics because for the better part of the past 20 years,  I’ve served on boards.  Board service can be tremendously rewarding or maddeningly frustrating.  I’ve experienced some of my most exhilarating victories and most painful defeats while serving on boards.  Through boards,  I’ve made good friends with whom I remain in contact and unfortunately,  more than a couple of lifelong enemies.  I understand boards very well.  In fact,  board development is a service that I offer to clients.

The problem with working on a per-project basis is that organizations are chronically understaffed and over-loaded with work,  both essential and ridiculous-but-required.  It is very easy to put anything that is not immediately urgent on the back burner forever.  The best way to get a project approved is to gain the confidence of a champion,  a person with authority and a budget,  or someone who can influence the one with the authority and budget,  and convince that individual to shepherd your project through the decision-making process and protect it from the inevitable naysayers who will oppose the project for reasons either understandable or mystifying.

Entrepreneur and venture capitalist Mark Suster of Upfront Ventures in Los Angeles has compiled a list of the usual suspects who impact group decisions.  In addition to the players listed,  there will also be neutral people,  who can go either way.

Champion

The project champion is its greatest supporter.  This individual has oftentimes conceived the project and has a big stake in seeing it realized.   The most effective project champion has authority,  persuasive power,  well-positioned allies and access to funding.  The champion takes an active role in pushing the project forward,  lobbying for support and outmaneuvering those in opposition.  Any initiative that involves a group decision will die in committee without the support of an influential and active champion who will run interference and speak up to defend it.

Expert

Decision-makers often have someone who acts as the  “expert witness”  when important matters are evaluated.  This person may have a background that allows him/her to know well the specific needs of a project,  which guides the choice of who is hired.  Alternatively,  the expert may be one who has excellent judgment or a gift for playing devil’s advocate that helps the decision-makers see obstacles or even other options that might otherwise be overlooked.  This person has influence,  not authority,  but their recommendation carries weight.

Influencer

The influencer probably does not possess the specific project knowledge of the expert,  but  he/she is a peer who has knowledge,   experience,  perspective and authority that the decision-makers respect.   He/she will be consulted or may volunteer an opinion when an important matter is up for discussion.

Sage

This person has significant tenure with the organization,  understands its core values and is generally respected by others.  He/she knows how things work and how to get things done.  The sage can be very helpful to you during the approval process.  He/she has valuable information that can be shared,  if you portray yourself as someone who cares about the organization and shows him/her some respect.  The sage can tell you who’s who on the decision team.  The sage usually cannot directly impact the decision process.

Enemy

This person hates you and aims to derail the project and get you off the premises.  He/she may be a rival of the champion.  He/she may be competing to scoop the funding for a project of his/her own.  The enemy may believe that the project is a waste of organization resources.   Sometimes the enemy doesn’t want you to do the project because he/she is angling to get a friend or relative hired.

Blocker

This person cannot approve the project,  but is happy to act as a spoiler.  He/she may not be able to prevent the project’s approval,  but will do whatever possible to delay the start date,  limit the scope and as a result,  impact your billable hours,  and/or generally catch the project up in red tape.  This person is not necessarily evil and may not actually hate you.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

 

 

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Perfect Pitch

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“The goal of networking is not to gather sales leads,  but to start business relationships and that begins with a conversation and not a sales pitch”,  asserts presentation and communications coach and author of The Anti-Elevator Speech (2009),  Cliff Sutttle.  Whether you’re at the Rotary Club lunch,  the gym or your second cousin’s third wedding,  eventually someone will ask what you do for a living.  For Freelance consultants and business owners,  a well-crafted elevator pitch is your answer.

The original idea behind the elevator pitch was to have something to say about your business to a potential customer whom you met by chance.  Presumably,  the two of you would be in an elevator and you would have about one minute to tell your story.

An appropriate elevator pitch presents you and your business offering in a casual,  socially acceptable manner.  To use your elevator pitch as a sales pitch is always wrong.  Someone whom you’ve just met is not a candidate for a sales pitch.  Delivering a sales pitch when you should deliver an elevator pitch will soon make you a social pariah.

While it is true that a Freelance consultant or business owner must constantly seek out potential customers,  it is important to first,  verify that one is speaking to a potential customer and not to someone making polite conversation and two,  communicate in a manner that is not perceived as selling.  Focus instead on solving a need and building a relationship and formulate an elevator pitch with a style and substance to communicate that.

The right elevator pitch will open doors for you,  business or social.  Your elevator pitch is a verbal business card.  It introduces you and your business to those who inquire.  Follow these steps and create one that works for you:

!.  The Hook

Cliff Suttle recommends that you give a short,  accurate-yet-vague statement of the ultimate benefit of your product or service.  A financial planner might say that he/she helps clients sleep well at night.  A web designer might say that he/she makes sure that potential customers get answers to their questions about your business.   A marketing consultant might say he/she builds communication links between the business and its customers.   After the hook is given,  say no more.  If the questioner wants to know what you mean,  then there will be a follow-up question.

Sales and marketing guru Geoffrey James,  author of the soon-to-be-published book Business Without the Bulls**t,  recommends that in the hook,  position your firm in one sentence that describes who you are and the primary service you provide,  with a focus on benefits and outcomes.  One who facilitates business strategy meetings might say  “In a one-day session,  I get my clients to reach consensus on pursuing a half-dozen relevant and achievable business goals that are guaranteed to deliver measurable results.”  If the questioner asks how you do that,  then proceed to Step 2.

2.  Differentiate

Defend the claim you made in Step 1 and give two or three reasons that show how your services are superior to competitors’.  Years of experience, marquee clients,  a special proprietary system or patented methodology or scientific data published in credible journals are how you make your case.  Client testimonials on your website or LinkedIn page add credibility to your claim.

3.  Conversation

If your questioner continues to show interest,  he/she may just be nosy,  may be a competitor trying to get information on how you do business,  or may be a genuinely interested prospect or referral source.  You won’t solve the mystery until you get that person talking.  When you ask if your area of expertise happens to be a concern at his/her company,  or note that he/she sounds as if they’ve encountered this situation before and inquire as to how it is being handled now,  the answer will reveal true motives.

4.  Meeting

If it makes sense to continue the conversation,  then ask your questioner for an opportunity to meet and continue what has been started.  If your questioner turned prospect  suddenly seems hesitant,  then ask  what less than optimal previous experience gives him pause, or what you can provide to ease his/her mind.  If your newest prospect seems enthusiastic, then ask how to get on his/her calendar and the preferred mode of contact and time to reach out.  You’ll be on your way to building a profitable business relationship.

Thanks for writing,

Kim