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Break Open the Voicemail Clamshell
Being effective at prospecting requires that you maintain a steady pace with your sales calls. That’s how you ensure your sales funnel remains large enough so that you meet your sales targets year after year (and remember, that funnel has to be three times the value of your targets). In making those calls to new leads and prospects, sales people often complain to me that when they are intercepted by someone’s voicemail, it too often becomes a black hole. No matter what you put into it, your efforts never see the light of day ever again—prospects don’t return your calls and you spend more time than you think you can afford being on the phone leaving message after message.
It doesn't have to be that way! The key to mastering voicemail is to recognize its true character…and to use that knowledge to your advantage so you can sell more to more customers in less time.
Facing up to the facts about voicemail
Let’s face it: nobody really likes voicemail. It’s slower to use than other communications tools and yet we’ve all learned to accept it as a necessary part of our busy lives. To understand how you can leverage this imperfect technology to your advantage, exercise those empathy muscles that all successful sales professionals possess.
If you think its tough being the calling party having to deal with that robotic message taker, put yourself in the shoes of the called party for a moment. While most will admit reluctantly that voicemail can help avoid calls they didn’t really want to answer, it’s still a major nuisance that taxes their time as much as it does those who are trying to leave the messages in the first place.
Recognize that not everyone leaves short, purposeful messages. In fact, too often it’s left to the called party to trudge through each message to determine which ones require some kind action on their part. That’s why, in the end, both the caller and the called party wind up feeling frustrated and overwhelmed. It has even prompted Michael Arrington of the widely read Silicon Valley-based blog TechCrunch to plead publically “think before you voicemail.”
Here’s another important fact to bear in mind. In sales, no matter how successful you become, you will always have to deal with voicemail. Finding ways to master it so that it helps you reach the goals that matter to you—that’s what will set you apart from the other eighty percent of sales people in any organization. Treat it well and it can be a highly effective selling tool that helps you make a positive first impression on prospects. Treat it poorly and it will be a clamshell that will snap shut on you.
Three-step strategy to break open the voicemail clamshell
Over the course of more than a decade as a sales person as well as a sales trainer and coach, I’ve noticed that the most successful sales professionals out there have some common habits in how they use this particular technology to their advantage. Based on that, I’ve developed a three-step voicemail strategy that you can apply to your own business and start getting the results you’re looking for today.
Step one: leave a short, purposeful message that requires no action by the person you are calling. Here’s an example of what that message might sound like. “Hello, Janet, it’s Colleen from Engage Selling. Sorry, I missed you. I’m calling because Chris at the Gizmo Corporation asked me to speak with you about the work we are doing to improve his sales results. I promise to call you back Wednesday at 2:00PM.”
Notice that the message does not include leaving your phone number. There’s a reason for that. Your first message must not require any kind of task or action on the part of the called party. You’re the one who makes the commitment to call back at a specific date and time. Also, if the call is a referral, be sure to include that person’s name in your message. Doing so helps to establish that you’re not some stranger at the other end of the line. You’re a known quantity who has something that is useful to offer to the person you are calling. This gives the called party an added incentive to talk to you.
Step two: leave a short, purposeful follow-up that fully meets the commitment you made earlier. True to your word, when 2:00PM rolls around on Wednesday, pick up the phone and make that follow-up call. If you’re intercepted by voicemail again, leave a friendly message that sounds something like this: “Hi Janet, its Colleen at Engage Selling calling, as I promised, to try and reach you today. Sorry, I missed you. Chris at the Gizmo Corporation thought you’d be interested to learn more about how we are able to reduce your sales cycle by three months I promise to try you again Thursday at 10:00AM.”
Step three: leave one final, purposeful message that takes ownership of why that person hasn’t called back yet. Again, meeting your commitment to call, you pick up the phone on Thursday at 10:00AM. If voicemail greets you one more time, leave one final message like this: “Hi Janet. It’s Colleen at Engage Selling. I promised I would reach you today at 10:00AM. Sorry I missed you. I noticed you’ve been hard to reach this week and I’m wondering if that’s because you’re busy with your sales team talking about training, maybe you’ve already engaged another sales trainer or I’ve simply been picking at the wrong time to find you at your desk.” Why don’t you give me a call at 111-1111 and if I don’t hear from you, I will try again on x Date
You must take 100% ownership for why that person might not be returning your calls. Not only does this ensure you maintain a friendly, professional tone, it also says to the called party that there are no hard feelings for the lack of callbacks (and there could be plenty of good reasons for this that have no bearing on you whatsoever). Also of note in that third and final message, be sure to include your phone number so that the called party can call you back. That way, you leave the door open rather than slamming it shut.
One more thing to keep in mind about this three-step strategy to prying open the voicemail clamshell. Its field tested—that means that when it’s implemented consistently, it yields some really impressive results. Clients who have incorporated it as part of their everyday sales calling strategy have reported back to me that their callback ratios have improved by as much as 80 percent.
So embrace voicemail. Treat it right. And be prepared for truly amazing results that influence your bottom line!
Colleen Francis, Sales Expert, is Founder and President of Engage Selling Solutions (www.EngageSelling.com). Armed with skills developed from years of experience, Colleen helps clients realize immediate results, achieve lasting success and permanently raise their bottom line.
Start improving your results today with Engage's online Newsletter Engaging Ideas and a FREE 10 day intensive sales eCourse: www.EngagingIdeasOnline.com
Sep 18, 2008 | General
10 resume mistakes that turn off employers
There is no such thing as a perfect resume. This is particularly true when changing industries, functionalities, or upgrading a job role. Career transitions require a higher-level targeted approach. The best resume, employers say, is the one that portrays the candidate as a solution-provider. Prove you can make their problems go away and you'll get hired.1. NO CONNECTION TO EMPLOYER NEED
Make your job search about them, not you. Pitch relevancy. Perform in-depth research and conduct a "SWOT" analysis of their needs. Identify their Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities for growth, and Threats to growth. Investigate two of their biggest competitors similarly. Present your achievements to quickly demonstrate your understanding of not only an employer's needs, but challenges within the industry. This is especially critical if you're transitioning to another industry in which you lack experience. Your resume must speak the industry's language or you won't be heard.
2. NOT RESPECTING THE EMPLOYER'S TIME
The easier you make it for a hiring manager to read your resume, the more likely you'll get on their payroll. Resume reviews are as exciting to a decision maker as yesterday's stale coffee. Your resume should - in 20 seconds or less - show how you'll make or save money, generate new business, resurrect and retain existing clients or customers, expand and build relationships, and just make their world a safer and more pleasant place. Don't ever assume an employer knows what you're communicating.
3. LACK OF FOCUS AND DIRECTION
Successful marketing campaigns match products with customers. The same rule applies in ensuring job search success. Be strategic in thinking, undiluted in focus, and directionally on point. Your resume should communicate career progression and intelligent, meaningful contribution. Even if your job history is marked with job hopping, or appears transitional, your resume needs to highlight the transferable skills you used to succeed in completing a project. A Qualifications Summary or Profile positioned at the top of your resume is the best place to demonstrate that your career is not rudderless.
4. NOT SHOWING KNOWLEDGE OF THE TARGETED INDUSTRY
Your resume must answer a recruiter's primary question: "What can you do for me?" When you are moving to another industry, you need to neutralize all the naysayers who think you aren't qualified due to your lack of industry-specific experience. The words you use to detail career accomplishments and showcase transferable skills should be crafted to show relevancy. One of the simplest ways to connect the dots for them is by studying help-wanted ads in your targeted industry and looking for job functions, tasks, and requirements that are similar to what you are currently doing.
5. INCOHERENT NARRATIVE PACING
A well-written resume weaves a succinct story that communicates mastery of relevant skills, industry-specific knowledge, and the ability to handle all people and situations. Make sure your resume is coherent and logical. A disjointed work history that lacks progression in job role or responsibility, or one that exhibits a lack of emotional stability or adaptability, will unravel your chances of capturing an employer's interest. When designing your resume, keep the most important information at the top. Think like a busy hiring manager.
6. LACK OF SUBSTANTIVE CONTENT
It's not about what you've done. It's about what you've achieved. What are the crucial details? Overuse of weak words such as "managed" or "responsible for" portray intellectual laziness. Accomplishments can also include relevant extracurricular activities, especially those where you demonstrate leadership, ingenuity, and organizational skills. Show a prospective employer why you fit the specific position. Your credibility will tank if you don't.
7. NOT MAKING IT EASILY READABLE
Readability equals digestibility. Simplify industry jargon and acronyms so that anyone can understand your resume. Isolate accomplishments from job duties and focus on transferable skills that are universal to any industry. If you can't tell it, you won't sell it. Tell it in bulleted form. Dense paragraphs and long, run-on sentences guarantee an employer's yawn, and ultimately, a deleted resume. Digestibility equals relevancy.
8. OUT-OF-DATE CONTENT AND DESIGN
Avoid resume templates that make your resume look like a thousand others. Don't include a link to your personal website or MySpace, YouTube, or FaceBook page. Do include a link to your online portfolio. Build instant credibility with a web portfolio that loads fast, is visually professional, and contains well-written sections showcasing your accomplishments, mission statement, core values, career progression, and leadership aptitude.
9. LIES, LIES, LIES
There are serious short- and long-term career consequences to fabricating or exaggerating credentials. Your integrity and credibility are at risk. There's never a good reason to lie on your resume; not a full lie, a white lie, misrepresentation of information, or padding to enhance marketing spin. Resume lies include overstatement of work history or accomplishments, academic achievement, or even deleting an experience because the organization no longer exists. Decision makers routinely conduct background checks and online research to verify a resume.
10. USING THE ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL RESUME
There are at least 10 resume types — including chronological, functional, and those designed for spot opportunities — and each has a specific purpose. The end-game for all resume writing should be to obtain quality interviews. Prove you're in step with reality by ditching the old-school, one-size-fits-all resume. Match the medium or venue with the target audience. Make your resume a marketing piece that sells your long-term value.
Jul 28, 2008 | General
Top 10 Interview Gaffes
NEW YORK -- Hear the one about the job candidate who brushed her hair during an interview? Or the man who sniffed his armpits on the way into the interview room?
They may sound like jokes but these are two of the top 10 gaffes to feature in an annual survey of the most outrageous interview mistakes by candidates compiled by online job site CareerBuilder.com.The list, based on a survey of 3,061 U.S. hiring managers and human resources professionals by
research company Harris Interactive, found the top 10 most outrageous mistakes were:
- Candidate answered cell phone and asked the interviewer to leave her own office because it was a "private" conversation.
- Candidate told the interviewer he wouldn't be able to stay with the job long because he thought he might get an inheritance if his uncle died -- and his uncle wasn't "looking too good."
- Candidate asked the interviewer for a ride home after the interview.
- Candidate smelled his armpits on the way to the interview room.
- Candidate said she could not provide a writing sample because all of her writing had been for the CIA and it was "classified."
- Candidate told the interviewer he was fired for beating up his last boss.
- When an applicant was offered food before the interview, he declined saying he didn't want to line his stomach with grease before going out drinking.
- A candidate for an accounting position said she was a "people person" not a "numbers person."
- Candidate flushed the toilet while talking to interviewer during phone interview.
- Candidate took out a hair brush and brushed her hair.As well as asking about the most unusual blunders, employers were also asked about the most common and detrimental mistakes candidates made during an interview.
More than half -- 51% -- said dressing inappropriately was the biggest mistake a candidate could make in an interview.Talking negatively about a current or previous employer came in second at 49% and third in the list at 48% was appearing disinterested.
Other mistakes included appearing arrogant, not providing specific answers, and not asking good questions."If a candidate is overly negative, plays the blame game, is easily frazzled or doesn't come prepared, it usually sends up a red flag for employers, " said Career Builder.com spokeswoman Rosemary Haefner.
© Reuters 2008
Apr 15, 2008 | General
The Second Dimension of Screening Sales Talent
By Lee B. Salz | March 29, 2008
Companies, when they interview, focus their attention on learning about the candidate. However, equal importance should be placed on the candidate interviewing them so that both sides can make a solid decision on the relationship.
My wife Sharon and I dated for exactly two years before I proposed to her. Over our two year courtship, I got to know her likes and dislikes. I understood her goals in life and her aspirations. She knew the same about me. On July 24, 1996, in the White House Rose Garden (true story), I asked Sharon to marry me. She excitedly agreed. What might have been her response if she didn't feel like she knew me well enough to make that kind of commitment? Would she still have accepted?
What if during the entire time we were courting, I kept my hand close to the vest? In essence, what if I shared little about myself and what I wanted from life, but asked lots of questions of Sharon to understand her? Would she have enough information to make an informed, educated decision on whether she should take her relationship with me to the next level? Probably not. Perhaps, she would have declined the offer outright if she saw that my goals were completely different than hers.
That scenario may seem silly to you. You probably think that it would be a rarity that someone would propose without letting their significant other get to know them to a level where they could both make an educated decision on the future of the relationship. If you think that, you are probably right. However, my question is why do companies create a one-dimensional process when they screen sales candidates?
I've always been a firm believer that when the time came for me to make an offer to a candidate, taking the ring out of my pocket, both the candidate and I had enough information to make an educated decision. My expectation is that when I make an offer, the candidate will accept/decline on the spot. More often than not, I received an acceptance of the offer.
What is the secret to doing that well? The key is to create your sales talent screening program such that it is two-dimensional. You want to gather data about the candidate so that you can make a solid decision. Most companies get that. However, the goal is to also create an environment where the candidate has the same evaluation opportunity. That is the second dimension.
What does a candidate need to know to make an informed decision on a sales position?
One important consideration for candidates is culture. Some companies, to save money, conduct their interviews entirely by phone and only bring finalists to Corporate. After a day of interviewing with some executives, the team makes an offer/no offer decision. However, the entire process has been a one-dimensional exercise where the company has gathered key information, but the candidate has not.
The decision to join your company is not taken lightly by sales candidates. They need to be able to evaluate the culture to see if there is a good fit. While they come to the table with the skills, they have to determine if they can apply those skills successfully in your world. Thus, the candidates need to be immersed into your environment so they can analyze your culture to a level that allows them to make an informed decision on the relationship.
One of the best ways to share the sales culture with candidates is through reverse interviewing. The way this is done is that you select a seasoned member of the sales team to conduct a reverse interview with the sales candidate. However, the interviewer doesn't ask any questions, thus the expression reverse interview. This is an opportunity for the candidate to ask questions of a potential peer. The candidate should be encouraged to ask questions that will best help them best understand the sales culture.
There is also a tremendous benefit to employers in immersing the sales candidates in the culture. Every company has a story about someone they hired and six months into the relationship, they recognize that the person doesn't fit with the culture. The sales person recognizes it too. Then, the relationship is terminated. A six-month investment has gone down the tubes with nothing to show for it. Had the company allowed the candidate to experience the culture during the screening process, perhaps he would have removed himself from consideration so that both the candidate and employer could have been spared the pain of this experience.
Years ago, I was interviewing with a company in Bethesda, Maryland. The entire process had gone well. The recruiter called me and said that the C.E.O. would like to take my wife and me to dinner as a final step of the process. What he shared at dinner was that he felt that it was important for my wife to understand the company and the opportunity. He wanted her to have an opportunity to ask questions and understand the plans for the company. This made an incredible impression on both my wife and me. Needless to say, when the offer came the next morning, I accepted and enjoyed a great experience with the company. A great sales marriage!
Another important element in this decision-making process for sales people is the direction of the company. Sales people look to join organizations that have a solid game plan. They have to be passionate about their company and product to be successful. Yet, I hear from many candidates that the company with whom they interviewed did not share it with them.
I recognize that there is sensitivity toward letting out trade secrets, however, that lack of sharing can cause the sales candidate to be unimpressed with your company. The secretive nature of your company could also send up a red flag of paranoia. If you are really concerned about trade secrets, have the candidate sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). If you are still uncomfortable, design a message to share with the candidates that is compelling, but does not create risk for your organization.
The final element for review by the candidates is the compensation package. They need to understand the mechanics of the compensation plan. Many companies tell candidates the potential earnings based on achieving the goal of the plan (quota). Few take the candidate through the plan as part of the sales talent screening program. "The plan is designed to target your earnings at $150,000, but we'll get into how the program works when you are onboard."
Yeah, that doesn't work for sales people. They need to know in-depth how they make money. The same holds true for benefits. Share the benefits program with candidates during the sales talent screening program. Show them the costs of the program. Provide them with a Human Resources contact so that they can ask questions about the benefits.
The offer stage of the process should be a formality, just like a marriage proposal. Ladies don't expect their significant other to pull a rabbit out of their pocket. They expect a ring. Your sales candidates shouldn't be surprised either. The offer should be consistent with what they have learned about during your screening process. No surprises!
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Lee B. Salz is President of Sales Dodo, LLC and author of “Soar Despite Your Dodo Sales Manager.” He specializes in helping companies and their sales organizations adapt and thrive in the ever-changing world of business. Lee is available for keynote speaking, business consulting, and sales training. He can be reached via email at lsalz@salesdodo.com, his website at www.salesdodo.com or by phone at 763.416.4321.
Apr 15, 2008 | General
Great Talent Is Everyone's Game to Win
Google, Yahoo and Other Digital Behemoths Can Suck Star Hires Right Out From Under You -- Unless You Fight Back. Here's HowBy Dale Buss
"They're 800-pound gorillas that can outspend you and out-recruit you and be all over the place, whereas you only have a finite amount of resources," says Aaron Batte, partner in Faction Media, a Denver-based digital agency.
But whether you're client or agency, big or small, there are actually ways you can compete with these giant suction machines and keep your digitally deft candidates and employees from being pulled away.
Instead of some inevitable victim of the industry's quantum physics, think of yourself as a David to Google's Goliath. David had only a slingshot and five smooth stones to go up against the Philistine. But you can mix and match from these 10 ideas:
1. TELL YOUR OWN STORY
Many small digital-marketing firms are growing faster than the industry giants -- and have a bigger upside. "It will be a lot easier for us to double than for Google or Yahoo," says Patrick McKenna, CEO of DMi Partners, an interactive shop in Philadelphia.
That usually spells opportunity for staffers at outfits such as ePrize, an advergaming agency in Pleasant Ridge, Mich. that grew 40% last year. "It's difficult to have an impact at Microsoft as employee No. 111,000," says CEO Josh Linkner. "We're the category killer in the industry, but we're small enough for people to feel they can make a difference."
Perceiving such opportunities can be the crucial employer determinant for many digitally capable young marketers.
2. EMPHASIZE YOUR STRENGTHS
For agencies, that may mean touting the broad exposure to clients and applications that digital mavens can enjoy. "I'm basically doing banner ads for four of the biggest music companies in the country," says Laura O'Connell, a 24-year-old business analyst for Gupta Media, a tiny outfit in Cambridge, Mass. "Every day there's a new project coming up."
Mike Devereux, executive director-digital marketing for General Motors, promotes "the attractiveness of being a digital marketer" at a large brand. "It's very different than being a subject-matter expert in search. What we're selling is sexy, because you literally get to change the way marketing works."
3. EXPLORE THE MARGINS
Excuse yourself from the talent wars and duck into less-crowded conduits. "Instead of just trying to steal from other agencies, we go to universities a lot and look for data and analytics experts, especially professors and people getting Ph.D.s," says Mark Miller, president of RMG Connect, an online-customer-acquisition outfit headquartered in New York with about 300 employees scattered across the United States and even more overseas.
And nothing intrigues talented and capable people, digital or otherwise, like the recommendation of a friend or peer. For example, Cambridge, Mass.-based Sapient relies on employee referrals for 39% of its hires.
4. STORKE THE HOME FIRES
America's silicon enclaves aren't the only places digital talent resides. Resource Interactive, a 250-person agency in Columbus, Ohio, skims graduates from Ohio State University and other major schools nearby, and now is taking advantage of a slowing economy. "A company like ours that's in a growth mode is a shining star in a less-growing area," says CEO Nancy Kramer.
Many digital talents simply love home cooking. "My family is here, and my husband has a great career in Michigan, too," says Susan Walton, the 43-year-old digital manager of GM's Saturn brand. "The fact that my kids are in a city with their grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins is really important to me."
5. DON'T BECOME THE GREATER FOOL
Avoid the temptation of settling for the first person who knows what "SEO" stands for. For such reasons, many in the digital job market already have inflated salaries and titles. "There just aren't a lot of senior-level talents who can actually drive client relationships and projects," says Amanda Schonfeld, recruiting manager for Sapient.
Spark Communications performs vigorous vetting to make sure it's getting people who are entrepreneurial as well as digitally capable. They must demonstrate a "cross-functional understanding" and the ability to be "comfortable in an adaptive environment," says Ken Zasky, president of the Chicago-based unit of Starcom MediaVest Group.
6. TEACH THEM YOURSELF
DMi Partners, for instance, searches for employees who have the propensity to learn and then runs them through a proprietary skill-development curriculum. "That way, you're building their knowledge base in a way that's aligned with your company vs. assimilating their existing knowledge base," Mr. McKenna says. "It's expensive and time-consuming, but it's more lucrative in the long run."
Prasida Newman spurred Avenue A/Razorfish to make a two-year commitment to a leadership-development program at LinkShare. She rotates every six months or so through a new department of the New York-based affiliate-marketing firm. "They're investing in me," says the 30-year-old Ms. Newman says, "so I'm investing in them."
7. CREATE A COMPELLING CULTURE
Everyone wants to do this, but you must move beyond weekly massages and lip service about caring and sharing. Mr. Linkner maintains that ex-Google and ex-Microsoft employees join ePrize and recognize its "rich culture based on passion and creativity and trust."
What are the components? Vast opportunities to expand skill sets and profit financially from the $50 million company's success. Real permission to challenge authority. Quick exits for people who don't get it. Monthly half-day sessions with Mr. Linkner for those who join the 350-employee organization. There's even an internally published book about the ePrize culture.
8. TAP INTO OTHER PASSIONS
Some employers chase digital talent by appealing to avocational interests. San Francisco-based Sportgenic, for example, must compete for employees with Google's mother ship nearby. So the agency -- formerly known as Active Athletes -- relies on its unique niche: building online relationships between brands and sports enthusiasts. A large percentage of its 33 employees are triathletes, kayakers, volleyball players and others dedicated to sports and recreation.
"They get to come and work on stuff that they really can get excited about," says Robert Tas, founder and CEO. Mr. Tas further endears Sportgenic to the employee base by offering what he calls "little perks, such as gym memberships and paying their race-entry fees that reinforce their lifestyle and their commitment to their passion."
9. PROVIDE BENEFITS THAT DELIGHT
Competition for digital talent has risen to such a level that a robust salary, more-than-generous benefits, and tasty and healthy food in the snack room have become mere table stakes. So firms must up the ante or get creative.
That's why, for example, Gogi Gupta, founder of Gupta Media, has done things such as purchase a PlayStation 3 system for one employee's second anniversary. Spark recently provided a "technology allowance" to each of its 100 employees. Amounts varied by level, but Mr. Zasky says that everyone was supposed to use it "to up your game in the digital space." And Faction springs quarterly gifts on its staff that have ranged from new video iPods to a season's ski pass to the Winter Park resort.
10. GIVE THEM A DOG IN THE HUNT
Profit-sharing of one sort or another has become almost a staple demand of digital talent, whether it's in the form of an actual cut of profits, "phantom" options in a likely stock sale or other instruments.
Sarkissian Mason has been willing to go even further. The New York interactive agency created a distinct unit and stock options around an e-tailing initiative called Shopnik that will reward participants over a three-year period if the venture is sold.
"I have a lot of people with 10 to 12 years in the industry who want some skin in the game, not just salary," said CEO Patrick Sarkissian. "The product itself has come out so much stronger because people cared about it at a different level. It was their baby."
Mar 18, 2008 | General
