4 Simple Strategies to Convert More Inbound Phone Calls to Sales
Many prospective customers will call your business looking for information. Here are a few tips for making the most out of your inbound sales leads.Â
Maybe yours is a physical location and they want to know what you have in inventory before coming to see you. Or maybe your business is a dentist office or fitness center that receives inbound calls from prospective clients. Many times, these inbound phone calls (also known as âphone upsâ) can be terrific opportunities to create new business for your company. Here are some ways to ensure you and your team are making the most of these opportunities.
Here are a few ways to capture more business on your inbound calls
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Ask for name and contact information
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Get the callerâs name, phone number and email address early in your inbound phone call. This way, you can follow up with the prospect if they donât decide to purchase on the first call.
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The most important thing to remember when it comes to asking for contact information is to assume the prospect will give it to you⊠like this:
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Whatâs your name?
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Whatâs the best number to reach you back at?
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Whatâs the best email address for you?
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Not:
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Can I get a phone number for you?
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Can I have your email address?
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Can I have your name please?
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Have a reason to get the contact information.
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Asking for a name is an easy one. Most people will gladly give you their name, even if itâs a fake one.
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Phone number and email address is trickier. Typically, people will be hesitant to give you this information unless thereâs a reason for them to do so. A simple reason, such as, âIâm going to place you on a brief hold while I look that up for you. Just in case we get disconnected, what is the best return phone number for you?â will probably work just fine. Or, depending on the situation, you could create a reason to follow up with the prospect, which might require some of their client information.
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I have some helpful information I can send over to you. Whatâs the best email for you?
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We actually have a great video about what youâre asking for. Could I text it to you?
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These things offer your prospect help in exchange for contact info. This give/take relationship is important for establishing trust. More on getting contact information here.
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Create a reason to follow up
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Letâs say youâre selling a product that requires a lot of research before a decision is made. If a prospect calls your business and is not ready to give you their credit card number on the first phone call, have a prepared reason to follow up with them in a couple days. For example, letâs assume youâre a stove shop and youâre selling high end gas fireplaces, pellet stoves, and the like. If a prospect calls your business to get general information, but isnât ready to make a purchase at that very moment, close the call with the following:
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âWe know this is a big investment. Iâd like to send you an information packet that we have put together with some answers to frequently asked questions, pictures of different models, some example energy cost savings, and some other items. Whatâs the best email address for you?â
No prospect is saying ânoâ to that, I promise you⊠unless theyâre really weird about giving out their email address.  If this is the case, you should offer to text them a link to the information. The best part about this approach? It gives you a reason to follow up in a few days with, âHi Jim, Brad from The Stove Shoppe. Any questions about the info I sent over the other day? Hey I was thinking about you because I just received a phone call from the manufacturer yesterday, and thereâs a new offer available⊠can I tell you about it?â Boom. Youâre going to get more business from this approach.
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Have 5-10 prepared questions
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Ask questions of your own to direct the inbound call toward a purchasing decision. Prospects will often call your business with a bunch of questions for you and, while this is a wonderful display of interest in your product, you should be ready with some questions of your own.
Why ask questions of your own?
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It demonstrates you know your product, and that youâre an authority.  It also gives you a chance to draw attention to questions  your prospect might not have thought of.
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People do lots of shopping online and are sometimes able to learn enough to make a decision without the help of a professional. Getting back to my stove shop example, weâll say the prospect calls in with some general questions about pricing on a particular Jotul stove model. The salesperson should be happy to answer those questions, but should also have questions of her own:
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What are you primarily going to be using the stove for? Heating? Looks?
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What type of heat source are you using?
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How much maintenance are you prepared to handle?
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How big is the room?
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Do you have children who might need to be protected from the stove? (i.e. do you need to purchase a gate as well?)
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It helps you understand the prospectâs real needs, so you can make a recommendation.
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In the stove shop example, a salesperson who is armed with the answers to the questions listed above can better address the prospectâs needs. If the prospect originally called in a model that doesnât suit her needs, the salesperson has the opportunity to make an alternative recommendation if necessary.
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It allows you to direct the conversation and ask for the next step.
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Hereâs how this could be applied in our stove shoppe example:
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Salesperson: âOK Mary, based on what youâve told me it sounds like the Jotul might be a great model for you. Would you like me to go ahead and get the order started?
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Salesperson: âOK Mary, based on what youâve told me, it sounds like the Jotul might be a great model for you. But we should really take a look at your room before getting the order started, just to be sure. When might be a good time for me to send an installer out?â
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Salesperson: âOK Mary, based on what youâve told me, I think the Jotul might be a little big for the space. Since you have kids, youâre going to need a gate around the unit which is going to increase the area by about 10 square feet. The good news is I have a slightly less expensive option that will give you the same heating features in a more compact space. If youâre in front of a computer, I can show you right now.â Or, âI can email you some info on a few other options and follow up later, would that work?â
You get the drift? The salesperson would not have been able to ask for the business or make any recommendations if he had not asked questions and assumed control of the conversation.
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Ask for the business
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My first sales manager, the great Gary McGilvray, had the greatest sales advice Iâve ever heard. One of his truisms was:
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âA sale is a two part process. Â 1) Do everything you need to do in order to ask for the business. Â 2) Can you guess what #2 is, Brad?â
You absolutely must ask for the prospectâs business
Assuming youâve done everything necessary, including
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Answered questions
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Asked questions of your own
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Made recommendations
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Overcome price objections
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Discussed scheduling
then itâs time to take the next step and ask the prospect for their business. Donât skimp on this, because the customer will rarely take this step for you. Itâs more likely that she will tell you she âneeds to think about itâ and hang up⊠which puts you in a perpetual waiting game that should be avoided. Here are a few easy ways to ask for the business.
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If you donât have any other questions, letâs go ahead and get the order started and Iâll get installation scheduled right away.
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When would be the best time for us to come out and get this taken care of for you?
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Would you like to go with model A, or model B?
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Are you going to pay cash or would you like to finance this?
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(If the next step is an appointment, not a sale) Whenâs a good time for us to get together so you can see these in person?
If there is no immediate close to be had, thatâs OK! The next best option is to plan a ânext step.â This helps you position yourself as the person your customer will inevitably do business with, after she has had a chance to think about it. Here are some examples of ânext steps.â
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I understand, this is a huge decision. I actually have some info that will be helpful to you in making the right call. I can send it over to you and we can chat later in the week, after youâve had a chance to review and think it over. Howâs Thursday sound? (set a specific date so it wonât be a surprise when you follow up)
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I totally get where youâre coming from, itâs important to be able to shop around. Why donât I have someone stop by to take a look at the room and give you a written estimate? That way youâll have something concrete to consider. We have someone in the area this week.
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We have some free trial packages you can use just to get a feel for the software before committing. I can get you set up on that, and then we can talk more next week. Howâs that sound?
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If you implement these simple strategies, you will absolutely see your appointment conversion rate skyrocket.
Wondering how your phone performance stacks up? Thinking your team could use some improvement? Contact us for a free trial of âPhone Up Coachâ and start seeing your needle move this week.