So you dumped your Fear of Rejection and made a “Serendipity Sales Call”! You presented your recommendations/price to a prospective client and HEAR NOTHING BACK! What do you immediately think?
They have REJECTED me and hired my competition! And of course your subconscious “Paranoid Self Talk” starts up: “I’m a) worthless, b) a loser and/or c) people hate me” etc. And yet, very likely a, b, and c are simply not true! Instead…
You must recognize that the cleaning/restoration services you provide are VERY LOW on your prospect’s Priority List. (Yes, I know this is “hurtful to hear”! 🙂 But isn’t recognizing your “lowly position in the client’s universe” better than the paranoid “I’ve been rejected” feelings above?
Here’s the deal: Very likely you have not “lost the job”… YET! Instead, your prospect is struggling with two “sales prospect emotions”: 1) Apathy and 2) Inertia! Yep- your prospective client hasn’t done ANYTHING yet! So instead of thinking the worst you need to “reach out” to them! Therefore…
Never leave a sales call without “defining the next step”!
How? Just “Sow the Reaching Out Seed” on your first visit:
Prospect: “Let me check with my husband/ boss/ claims manager and I’ll get back to you.” Always reply to their “delaying tactic” with my “Does the way I have this written…?” question HERE. But if they still reply…
Prospect: “I appreciate your recommendations. But I just need to consider my options.”
You: “I understand. You know, Mrs. Jones, I’m going to be ‘off the radar’ for the next few days. Can I reach out to you the middle of next week?”
Prospect: “Well, sure. That would be fine.” (Translated? “I’ll agree to anything just to get back to checking my emails!)
BINGO! You now have “PERMISSION” to contact them again! And this is SO MUCH BETTER than staring at your phone praying for it to ring! 🙂
NOTE #1: I prefer the phrase “Can I reach out to you?” instead of “Can I call you?” This way you can stop in to see them as in, “I was just passing by and remembered we agreed to talk the middle of this week…”
NOTE #2: Deals are closed so much better face-to-face! I added so many jobs to my commercial cleaning routes simply because I reached out to the client and my timid, paranoid competitors didn’t! I added so many jobs to my commercial cleaning routes simply because I reached out to the client and my timid, paranoid competitors didn’t! (Occasionally my prospect would humorously reply, “Fine, Steve! Where do I sign just to get rid of you!”) This worked for me and it WILL work for you… IF YOU DO IT!
Steve