• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

ASSISTANT: May I ask what this call is in reference to?

YOU: I’m calling to talk about my product.

ASSISTANT: I see. Let me take a message.

First question: Who was leading this conversation? The assistant. As long as the assistant is leading, you lose. You must lead the conversation at all times. Let me stress one key thing: never lie. Never give false information. That doesn’t mean you tell the whole truth. You just don’t lie. Ever.

Observe the subtleties here as I show you how to send the gatekeeper back so many times that the CEO finally gets fed up and tells her to put the call through. In fact, have a contest. Let’s see how many times you can send that gatekeeper back to that CEO.

YOU: Hi. This is Bill Johnston. I’m calling for Carl. Is he in?

[Notice that the assistant can’t ask my name, I’ve given it. Important people give their names. And I didn’t ask, “How are you today?”]

ASSISTANT: Can I ask what this call is in reference to?

YOU: Just tell him it’s Bill Johnston.

[The assistant goes to Carl and tells him it’s Bill Johnston. The boss says, “What’s it about?” The assistant says: “He didn’t say. It sounded like he knew you.” The boss tells the assistant to get more information.]

ASSISTANT: I’m sorry. Can you tell me what this is in reference to?

YOU: Did you tell him it’s Bill Johnston?

ASSISTANT: Yes. He didn’t seem to know you.

YOU: Hmm. Just tell him I’m from XYZ Company. That might jog his memory.

Remember to keep a tone of authority. That keeps assistants off-guard. They don’t know if they have any power over you yet. The minute you start sounding like a salesperson, you give them that power and they will wield it well. You must keep them off-balance.

The assistant now goes to the boss again, expecting that he might know you. You didn’t say he would. You said that the name of your company might jog his memory. Ideally, you will have sent a letter in advance with very little information. Even if it gets thrown out, it still gives you the liberty to act like he might remember you, your company name, or the purpose of your call.

The boss says he doesn’t know the name and sends the assistant back to you once again.

ASSISTANT: I’m sorry, Mr. Johnston, but the company name didn’t ring any bells. Can you please tell me what this is in reference to?

YOU: Who am I speaking to?

[You take control of the conversation.]

ASSISTANT: This is his assistant.

YOU: Are you his regular assistant?

ASSISTANT: Yes.

YOU: What’s your name?

ASSISTANT: Shirley.

We want to get as much info as possible from every call. Not only are you taking control, but you are just beginning to work on this dream client and want to keep impeccable records and gain more info from every call that you make.

YOU [tone of authority]: Shirley, if you’ll tell Carl that I’m following up on some correspondence sent to him, that should be enough.

Be clear that a top executive is surely not afraid to take your call. And most are rescuers. They will rescue the assistant and just say: “Put him through. I’ll handle this.” By now, often the CEO comes to the phone just to have the assistant stop coming back to him. He will be gruff, a little impatient. That means that the first words out of your mouth have to be sharp and to the point and sound important. Whatever you do, don’t now turn into a salesperson and ask him, “How are you today?” Salesperson! Maintain your authority. And have a fantastic two-minute opening worked out (like the script ideas provided in this chapter on the educational approach). Be clever, be confident (that’s key), and know that your tone of voice has five times more impact on their perception than the actual words that you use.

Step 6: Present the Executive Briefing

This step has been thoroughly covered in Chapter Four on strategy and Chapter Eight on effective presentations, but here’s a review of the key points to remember about building your core story:

Use market data, not product data.