The Ultimate Sales Machine - Chet Holmes [101]
To paraphrase, the salespeople ’s pitch went something like, “Oh, you thought it was a report that we’d just send over. No, it’s much better than that. If we just sent you a report with hundreds of pages of raw data, you’d probably never read it. So to go the extra mile, we actually hired a graphics firm and had the data converted into a riveting full-color orientation that we present live right in your office. It’s packed with great information and graphics to illustrate points, including bar charts, graphs, and photos. It’s a great experience. And every one we’ve shown it to is impressed. Most of your competitors have either already seen it or are on our list to show it to them. It takes only 38 minutes to see and we have speakers who are going around the country right now presenting it. You don’t even have to travel. You view it right in the comfort of your own office. You can even have it as a lunch and learn. Are you familiar with that term? It’s very popular in business today. You have to eat lunch anyway, so here’s a chance to learn while you eat. We underwrite everything. It costs us plenty, but it won’t cost you a penny. Why do we do this? It’s a PR effort on our part—a way to form more relationships in the manufacturing community and to share information to help us all be more successful. We like to meet folks like you and even learn things from you as we share the data with you. Do you have your calendar handy?”
Note that the salesperson said that a “speaker” would come in and present to you. Again, being a strategist means that you maximize everything including the words you use. The right title for your salespeople can be very strategic. As stated, no one likes to be sold to, so develop non-sales-sounding titles that position the rep better in the prospect’s mind. And besides, who’s to say that your salespeople can’t also be speakers? They can certainly have another function in your company.
For those prospects who do not call you to request the report, you are going to call them. One of the hardest tasks today is to get around the gatekeeper whose job is to guard top executives. Let’s do some training on that right now.
How to Get Around the Gatekeeper and Get Anyone on the Phone
If you’re selling business-to-business, how much is it worth to you to talk your way into a meeting with the most powerful CEOs on the planet? Imagine sitting in front of your dream prospect, who just happens to have the ability to hand over a seven-figure check before you leave his office.
I’ve been able to get around gatekeepers and reach the following executives on the telephone (some are not in these positions anymore, but they were when I got to them):
Michael Eisner at Disney
George Zimmer of the Men’s Wearhouse
David Pottruck, CEO of Charles Schwab
Phil Purcell, CEO of Morgan Stanley
Carl Reichardt, chairman of Wells Fargo Bank
Alan Horn, COO of Warner Bros.
The biggest tip is that your voice has to sound like you’re important. The dead giveaway that you are selling something is when you try to be charming to the assistant. Do not ask her, “How are you today?” That’s the biggest giveaway that you are a salesperson. As I’ve already mentioned, I got the chairman of Wells Fargo Bank on the telephone by calling with a very authoritative voice and saying: “Hi. This is Chet Holmes. Is Carl in?” To my utter delight, he called me back.
Who calls CEOs of the largest companies in the world? Very important people. So if your voice has that tone of authority and you tell the assistant what to do—not ask them—you are very likely to get right through.
The other secret to getting that top executive on the telephone is to send the gatekeeper back as many times as you can, each time giving very little information. Let me show you the difference.
Here’s a weak salesperson:
YOU: Hi. How are you today?
ASSISTANT: Good.
YOU: Is Mr. Smith in?
ASSISTANT: Who’s calling?
YOU: