The Follow-Up Call Questions
When you start following up on your leads, you’ll find that the second you get a potential customer on the phone they will drill you for information. It doesn’t matter what type of product or service you are selling, if a potential customer is truly interested they will ask you all sorts of questions, but remember that every time two humans meet, one is always selling the other. And how do you know who’s doing the selling? It’s the person asking the questions. You need to make sure that’s you and there are a few things you can do to manage this.
Stay in Control
First, as we covered in the chapter on communication, you should always be standing when you make the call. When you stand, you control the conversation. You will be unstoppable. Second, every time the customer asks you a question, you acknowledge the question. “That’s a great question. And we’re going to get to that.”
For example, if you are selling real estate and you are asked about starting prices, you could answer with “That’s a terrific question. Thank you for asking that, because we’re going to get into that. Now, when you bought your first home, what was most important to you?” This is going to start pulling them in the right direction and get them thinking about what’s important to them. They are going to come back at you with more questions, probably about the pricing, and at that point it’s probably okay to give them a range, but remember to stay in control and come back at them with your questions.
Ask for a Meeting
I suggest asking one or two more questions. That’s enough. Then they’ll be ready to end the call. Before that happens, though, you need to schedule an in-person meeting. Ask them, “Is Monday or Tuesday better for you? Tuesday? Terrific.” Are mornings or afternoons more convenient for you?” Afternoons? Excellent. Would 2 o’clock or 3:30 work better for you on Tuesday?”
It’s always important to make sure you’re the one asking them questions and that you’re immediately trying to get another appointment. It also important to give only two options when you’re scheduling appointments. Never give anyone more than two options. If you simply ask what day of the week they would like to meet the number of options will overwhelm them. Don’t confuse your customers with more than two options.
Watch as I discuss the importance of offering customers just two options when booking meetings:
If they try to throw you off again with more questions, steer them back to the meeting:
“That’s a great question and that’s why I’m so excited that we’re going to be meeting. Now, did you think that weekends are preferable for you?” You’re sending them right back to the appointment.
Follow Up Call the Next Day
If this strategy doesn’t work and you’re unable to book an appointment, you have a couple of options. First, you could send them all of the product information. This isn’t a great option though because there’s no reason for them to get back to you. The second option is to send them something that doesn’t have much information. A great idea is to send them to your website, because they’re likely going to find that anyway. This will also give you an opportunity to call them back the next day and follow up again.
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The Million Dollar Minute: The secrets of how we sold 367 condos in 90 minutes, and how you can too!
