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How To Communicate With Prospects On The Phone

Learn how to handle cold calling objections with creative objections and how to qualify prospects on the first call.
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How To Handle Objection On The Phone

A core attribution to a business’s success is to be financially strategic, in other words, if they already have a system going there may be some friction with talking them into trying something new.

You are providing something these people need, resistance is typically caused by natural tendencies to stick with what you know.

It’s going to be very common that you are going to be experiencing a fair share of objections. Objections are not NO’s.
If you get an objection- they haven’t hung up on you yet, so they’re still listening and hoping for you to overcome!

1. Acknowledge – repeat the concern back to them and get confirmation. “So if I understand you correctly, you’re worried about X”
2. Align – Get on their team – “That’s a totally reasonable concern and honestly it’s one of the reasons why our company exists”
3. Assure – Let them know why they can trust you “Honestly a lot of our clients were also worried about X and this is how we improved things for them. I’m certain we can do the same for you”

Objection Handling Examples

“Send Me An Email”

CALLER
…can we find a 30-minute window next week to schedule a meeting?
PROSPECT
Send me an email and I’ll get back to you.
CALLER
Sure thing, what’s the best email to send that to?
PROSPECT
bigboss@thebestcompanyever.com
CALLER
Great, I’ll send you an email and include some times. So I can send over some reasonable times to connect – what day works best?
PROSPECT
Tuesdays and Wednesdays are the best.
CALLER
I have a 10:30 AM and a 2:30 PM available on Wednesday Would either of those work for you?
PROSPECT
2:30
CALLER
Great, I’ll send a calendar invite as a placeholder for you 2:30 on Wednesday the 5th, and if we need to reschedule that won’t be an issue. Also, before I get you off the phone, are there any major pain points within your operations that you feel like would be beneficial to your operations?

“I’m Too Busy”

PROSPECT
I don’t have time to think about this at the moment…
CALLER
I hear what you’re saying, I’m not wanting to waste your time, if we can find a 20 minute block in your calendar we can schedule a meeting for us to discuss more at a time most convenient for you.

“Send Me More Info”

PROSPECT
Sounds interesting but I don’t like setting meetings with cold callers and getting stuck in a call that wastes my time. Could you just send me an email with a little more info?
CALLER
Sure thing, what is your most direct email address- I can absolutely send that info over. While I’m writing that up let me ask you this: {Qualifying Question}
PROSPECT
Answers that question
CALLER
Awesome, thanks for giving me some insight here. I’ve sent that email over, feel free to respond to that email with any questions, and I’ll shoot you a followup call next week to see what you think. Is there any day/time that you’d prefer?

“We Don’t Have Budget”

PROSPECT
I’m not sure that I’m in a position to purchase anything like this at the moment.
CALLER
I completely understand that budget is always a concern especially for a growing company. We work with companies of all shapes and sizes so our team is excellent about working with a variety of different sized budgets.
I still think that we can add some insight and value into your current processes. Our intro calls usually take 15-20 minutes and they are super low pressure. We never expect or push for anyone to make a purchase on the spot, It’s really more of an educational meeting where we can learn a bit more about your current needs and show you how we might be able to help.

“This Sounds Expensive”

PROSPECT
We don’t have a budget for this.
CALLER
I’m sure cost and quality is important to you, given your placement in the company, trust me I don’t want to waste your time. If we can schedule a meeting whenever you’re most available, we can show you all of the benefits we offer for being a part of your team.

“Not Interested”

PROSPECT
We’re not interested, we have everything handled.

CALLER

I understand, and I’m sure you’re getting called all the time from different companies, but do you mind me asking: {Qualifying Question}

“Not Decision Maker”

PROSPECT
Send me an email and I’ll pass it along.
CALLER
That would be great, although if we could demonstrate our values to the decision-maker I feel like that could increase overall value for you. Can you share their contact info?

“Pricing”

PROSPECT
How much is your service / What is your pricing model
CALLER
That’s a good question, and to be honest, my manager would be the best person to go over pricing with you. I do know we tailor fit the scope of our service to your needs and budget. That’s why he wants to set this 15-minute zoom call with you so he can hear a little more of what you’re looking for, and he’s going to be the one to deliver an accurate quote to you. Would you be available on ( day and time) for him to give you a callback and go over this?

“We Do This Internally”

PROSPECT
We have an internal team that handles this.
CALLER
That’s no problem. In reality, most companies we speak with already have an internal team assigned to this. But what we’d like to do is hear what they’re currently doing and see if there’s anything we can do either compliment them or even take them to the next level. And that’s the whole purpose of this call, to see if you had 15 minutes for a quick Zoom conversation just so my manager can hear a little more about what you’re doing on that end? Would you be available on ( day and time) for him to give you a callback and go over this?

“Already Have A Vendor”

PROSPECT
We already outsourced this service to another company.
CALLER
That’s no problem. In reality, most companies we speak with already have an internal team assigned to this. But what we’d like to do is hear what they’re currently doing and see if there’s anything we can do either compliment them or even take them to the next level. And that’s the whole purpose of this call, to see if you had 15 minutes for a quick Zoom conversation just so my manager can hear a little more about what you’re doing on that end? Would you be available on ( day and time) for him to give you a callback and go over this? ERROR

“Can’t Use Our Services Now”

PROSPECT
We have no plans to do anything for the rest of this year / quarter.
CALLER
That’s understandable. Most companies we speak with actually say something similar. They’re putting things on hold until the next year/quarter or until things start trimming out. But that’s also why we want to speak with you is because we know even though this nothing might happen now when things do start to get better can you start reopening little by little, you’ll have us in your back pocket, and if it’s something we can do for you you at least have more information and our pricing. With that said, would you be available for my manager to give you a call back on (Day & Time)?

“No Budget”

PROSPECT
We don’t have a budget for this at the moment.
CALLER
That’s no problem. We tailor fit the scope of our service to your needs and budget. And if you have time, my manager would like to hear a little bit more about what you are doing over there and take that info and deliver a non-obligation quote for you. With that said, would you be available for my manager to give you a call back on (Day & Time)?

“Info Request”

PROSPECT
I prefer you to send an email before any appointment.
CALLER
Okay, no problem, just to confirm, the email we have on file is (email), is that correct? Great. I’ll send this request to my manager in the next few minutes, and I’m sure he’ll get it out to you shortly. And when will be a good time for him to give you a callback and go over everything you just read and answer any questions you may have? Does (Day & Time) work for you?

How To Build Rapport With Busy People

Rapport is a relationship characterized by agreement, mutual understanding, or empathy that makes communication possible or easy. Good rapport isn’t about ‘making best friends’ with the caller, the secret is creating a relaxed phone call where both parties are able to converse freely and comfortably.
​Making someone feel comfortable early in your call gives you an “in” for the conversation, and it makes a great first impression for our client’s company!

Example of Building Rapport With A Prospect

“Hey is this Adam? Perfect, I’m Amanda from Saleshive and I’ve been looking for the person that’s in charge of X for X. Would that be you?”
- When you open with “I’ve been looking for…”, It sounds like there was an effort to find their position within the company, rather than cranking through numbers on a list.
- Use what you know about the prospect or their company to establish a connection. Start your conversation with a clear idea about the other person, particularly when it comes to working.
“Hello, is this Mr. Jones? Perfect, I’m Amanda with Saleshive, I understand that you’re the person in charge of bringing in new business opportunities and ensuring sales quotas are met, is that correct?”
- Rapport doesn’t solely need to be created at the beginning of the call, it can be built throughout the whole call, it’s especially the easiest to build when the call starts to go a little sour.
“I know your time is stretched thin, and I have to admit, I’m super busy myself, that’s exactly why I would like to schedule an appointment for when we can introduce ourselves and explain how we can be a great part of the team at a time more convenient for you.”

An In-Depth Look At Personality Types

Everyone is different. It's important for callers to adjust their tone and responses by personality type.

Analytical

- Focus on providing information relevant to what your business can do for them. Use specific data that shows exact representations of facts to attract attention and stir interest. - These people are informed and detail-oriented, be specific, direct, and confident when delivering your pitch.
- Expect questions and clarifications during the selling process. This indicates that they’re interested in knowing your business more.
- These questions aren’t objections, they are “Need to Knows”

AMIABLE

- Make yourself likable by creating a good impression and recognizing their presence. Making them feel valued helps with building a relationship. Qualifying questions allow them to share their thoughts about a certain product. Address their needs based on answers.
- Pitch a relatable situation for their company to help them to visualize your product to see the benefits.

Assertive

- Don’t spend too much time on the introduction or fluff. Get to the heart of your pitch right away.
- Use their highly competitive nature to your advantage by showing them the ways your product could help them beat their competitors.

Analytical

- Don’t spend too much time on facts and figures. They are more interested in how their buying decisions will affect their business on a human level.
- Ensure them that the sales cycle will include an ongoing relationship. Give case studies that explain how your business made an impact on other organizations.
- Explain what your business can do for them with a possible outcome they may encounter after the purchase. Connect with them and establish a deeper level of relationship by tapping into their emotions.

Explore The SalesHive Cold Calling Guide

If you are looking for more information on outsourcing your calling services, check out our free guide:

PART 1: SALES ROI CALCULATOR FOR B2B COLD CALLING

Before you can improve your cold calling efforts, it’s important to benchmark the ROI of your existing calling efforts. We’ve created a handy calculator that you can use to figure out where you currently stand and then you’ll learn about industry-tested methods to boost your KPIs.

A single SDR working full time can make 8,400 cold calls per month which will result in about 432 conversions per month. More conversations lead to more meetings per month, and more meetings will increase the number of closed deals per month.
View Part 1

PART 2: HOW TO WRITE A B2B COLD CALL SCRIPT THAT WORKS

Cold calls are far from dead– many businesses use this technique in some capacity, though the intention is certainly different from what it was back in the day.

Originally, the technique was solely a sales technique that had a whopping 2% success rate and annoyed an entire generation of consumers. Now, many would think that the technique is dead, but that’s not the case. It has simply evolved in both technique and purpose. Rather than aggressively trying to close a sale in a ten-minute phone conversation, today’s brands can use cold or warm calling to get to know consumers.

View Part 2

PART 3: HOW TO COMMUNICATE WITH PROSPECTS ON THE PHONE

A core attribution to a business’s success is to be financially strategic, in other words, if they already have a system going there may be some friction with talking them into trying something new. You are providing something these people need, resistance is typically caused by natural tendencies to stick with what you know.

It’s going to be very common that you are going to be experiencing a fair share of objections. Objections are not NO’s. If you get an objection- they haven’t hung up on you yet, so they’re still listening and hoping for you to overcome!

View Part 3

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