PRecently You May Have Received A Cold Call From Someone Using An Old-style Linear Sales Script. You Probably Recognized It As A Cold Call Because The Person Sounded A Bit Robotic And Kept Talking Without Allowing The Conversation To "breathe." PpIf Youve Been Selling For A While, Chances Are Youve Been Asked To Use Sales Scripts Yourself. Consequently, Youve Probably Used Them Because They Were The Only Way You Knew To Start A Cold Calling Conversation. PpHere Are Some Questions You Need To Ask Yourself:pp How Do You Really Feel When You Use A Script?pp How Do Your Potential Clients Feel When They Know Youre Using A Script? (And They Do Know.)pp How Many Sales Are You Losing Because Youre Using A Script?ppWhen People Call Me And Ask How They Can Throw Out Their Scripts And Cold Call The Natural Way, The First Thing I Do Is Ask Them Whether Theyre Willing To Role-play With Me Using Their Script.ppAfter A Few Moments Of Listening, I Gently Stop Them And Tell Them Theyre Sounding Like A Totally Different Person From The One Who Called Me And Talked With Me So Naturally About Their Sales Issues. You Know What They Always Say. "Ari, You Are So Right. When I Use A Script, I Feel As If I Cant Be Myself. I Feel Like A Robot Or An Actor, And Its Awkward And Uncomfortable. Is There Any Way I Can Be Myself Again?"ppHere Are Five Ways To Throw Out Your Linear Selling Script And Be Yourself Again:pp1. Admit That Scripts Make You Sound "Scripted"ppWhen You Begin Your Sales Script, Potential Clients Detect The Very Subtle Change From Your Natural Voice To Your Unnatural Scripted Voice Within Seconds.pp"Fine," You Might Say, "Ill Just Work On Making Myself Sound Natural." However, That In Itself Creates A Conflict. You Cant "work At" Being Natural. Really, You Either Are Or Arent. Pp2. Start Your Cold Call As A Conversation, Not A One-Way PitchppIf Youre Used To Scripts, Youre Probably Wondering, "How The Heck Will I Know What To Say Without A Script?"ppYou Might Want To Ask Yourself Why You Think You Wont Know What To Say, Because The Reason For That Is Important. It Means Youre Basing Your Cold Call On What You Have To Offer, And Not On Whats Important To The Prospect. PpPitching Your Solution As Soon As You Begin A Cold Call Is One Of The Biggest Problems With Linear Sales Scripts. Thats Because You Trigger Sales Pressure By Doing That. This Causes Potential Clients To React With Defensiveness Or Immediate Rejection.pp3. Create Openings Rather Than Forcing A "Yes"ppSelling Scripts Are Designed To Be Linear And Step-by-step So You Can Move Cold Calls In The Direction You Want Them To Go. From The Traditional Cold Calling Point Of View, That Direction Is Toward A "yes." The Belief Is If You Dont Get A "yes" At The Beginning Of The Cold Call, Youre Not "selling." However, Thats The Biggest Problem With Scripts. They Give You Only One Path To Follow.ppIf You Can Start A Conversation That Triggers A "What Do You Mean?" Response From Your Potential Client, Then Youll Find You Can Explain Yourself In A Natural Way. It Creates A Two-way Dialogue, Which In Turn Lets You Learn What You Need To Find Out. You Flow With The Conversation Without Feeling Youre Getting Off-track. Pp4. Tape-Record Yourself Talking With Someone You Know. Then Record Yourself Reading Your Script.ppHave You Ever Heard Yourself Calling A Potential Client And Reading Your Script? The Answer Is Probably Not. Most People Who Use Scripts Think They Sound Natural Because Theyve Never Actually Heard Themselves Before. If You Do This Simple Exercise, Youll Hear The Same Kinds Of Differences I Hear When People Role-play With Me.ppIn Our Day-to-day Relationships, We Simply Want To Get To Know And Communicate With Others. However, When We Go Into Cold Calling Using Scripts, We Have An Agenda, Which Is To Make The Sale. People Sense This Immediately And Put Up Their Guard. Between Our Hidden Agenda And Their Reaction, Theres No Chance To Build Trust Through Communication. Pp5. Set A New Goal For Your Cold CallsppFocus On Simply Opening The Conversation Rather Than Trying To Control It, So That Potential Clients Feel Comfortable Telling You The Truth About Their Situation. We've Been Taught For Too Long That We Have To Control The Process. We Never Stop To Think That Scripts Make It Impossible For Us To Be Flexible In How We Communicate. PpSurrendering Your Use Of A Script Probably Seems Scary. Nevertheless, When You Are Able Do This, You Can Begin To Engage Total Strangers On The Phone In Ways That Feel As Comfortable As Calling A Friend. Yes, Its Possible, And Dont Let Anyone Tell You That Its Not.p
