Messaging: You can leave it, if it is the right one. Part 1 – No flashing lights!

Posted on July 8, 2008 by Karl Goldfield.
Categories: Messaging, Sales Training.

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Do not leave this message Leaving a message on a voice mail can waste your lead stack or make you into a top seller in instants.In many of a sales training I argued with the trainers that recommended it and championed the ones that did not. Why? Frankly my style did not translate well to messages. You see, anyone who has worked for, worked with, hired, or frankly met me will confirm that I am chocked full of passion and fire. This enthusiasm is what gets my prospects jumping out of their seats. The problem is, it makes for AWFUL MESSAGES!!!

When leaving messages, you MUST NOT SOUND TOO EXCITED OR DRAMATIC. People checking their voice mail will hit delete or skip faster than you can say your name if they feel you are some hyped up sales person. Oh, and do not start with your name, in fact, before we go on let’s cover some basic rules of voice mail.

Do not say your name until the end of the message
Do not say your company’s name until after you say your name
(For one and two, even at the end of the message, they will not care, so why would they care who you are and what company you work for before you get to the point. In my opinion you have less than 5 seconds to grab someone in a voice mail, spend it wisely.)
State your phone number before your name and company and always reapeat it at the very end.
(My style, “For more, you can reach me at 888-555-1212, again this is Karl at startup sales mentor, at 888-555-1212.”)
Lead with their name and say it OFTEN! People’s favorite thing to hear is their own name, it breed familiarity.
Get to the point, and point to others. Talk about what you have done for someone else. This is what will matter.
Speak to what matters. What matters to C-Level and VP level people is saving time, saving money, making money, and keeping people happy. Forget features, functions, ROI, TCO, they do not care! What matters to managers, lay people, and consumers is that something will make them look, feel, perform, or just simply do better. As Konrath calls it, making a difference.
Do not expect a call back. Expect them to recognize you when you finally get through. This is paramount and really a great way to think about it. If you leave a few messages that are compelling, when you finally get someone they remember. I have made MANY SALES THIS WAY and you can too!

Now back to the point; and yes at the end of the next post I will share examples of my messages.

When you call someone you want to speak in a calm but confident tone. Speak in short clear sentences, and leave the superlatives for when you are talking one on one and they matter. Nothing gets someone to the delete button faster than the scent of manure. Even if you are #1 or the best, or cheapest or fastest, it just does not translate to a message.

If you want to hit the 42 second mark, and yes I recommend that messages are at least 30 seconds if crafted properly, you must, I SAID YOU MUST CONSIDER EVERY 6 SECONDS AS VITAL! Script what you are going to say and say it smooth.

More next time, but for now get that pen, and relax, you are about to make a sale!

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8 comments.

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Tim Rohrer

Comment on July 8th, 2008.

Karl, I think for every sales trainer there is an opinion about how to leave messages. Just today I read a post where the author assured me that I should say my name and my company and my phone number at the very beginning of the message. I’m not sure who is right about that but I am convinced you are 100% correct about saying something compelling and not expecting a call back. Being remembered when one finally gets through should be good enough!

Renee G

Comment on July 9th, 2008.

Hi, Karl. There are many opinions out there, but I really like what you’re saying. I agree with you. Companies receive hundreds of sales calls and you need to differentiate yourself from the rest! They don’t care about who you are or your company name. Agree again! They simply want to know why they should listen to you, and how you can bring value to their business! I’m going to try this approach starting today! Thanks for another great post, Karl!

Ian Brodie

Comment on July 10th, 2008.

Some excellent points Karl. I’m not sure about one though – using their name often.

Maybe it’s a UK cultural thing, or maybe it’s just personal – but if someone uses my name more than once in a conversation it makes me feel uncomfortable and manipulated. I’ve even written to email marketers before and told them that if they want to have any chance of selling to me they need to stop repeating my name every third sentence in their emails. I know it’s computer generated via a variable and not some hand tailored thing made just for me. So it just feels false & manipulative.

Similarly in a conversation, I’ll feel most at ease if you speak to me the way my friends do. My friends never repeat my name in a call after saying Hi Ian. Why would they? We both know who I am!

Maybe it’s just a personal thing, or perhaps we brits are just more reserved and don’t like the personal touch (so lord knows how even more formal cultures like Germany would react!)

Ian

Karl Goldfield

Comment on July 11th, 2008.

Tim,

Thank you and yes there are many opinions, even one book I read recommends, RECOMMENDS, the HAYT (How Are You Today) crime.

My thought is if you are interesting people will ask who you are….this is a winning conversation and now they are the one who is spending time to investigate.

Renee,

I would love to hear back on how it went!

Ian,

I admit, I have little to no experience calling into the UK. What I can tell you is if you notice, then the person is not using your name properly. I too get uncomfortable when someone starts every or every third question with, “Now Karl…”

Think about this, how many times has someone said your name along with other things and you have not been irked. Perhaps there mere trigger will set you into a mode of noticing when it does not bother you….just a thought Ian, just a thought.

Sales Management 2.0

Comment on July 11th, 2008.

Karl,

This is a interesting post, and you outline almost the opposite of what I say except that you have to be calm and interesting.

I teach my team to use a hook and bait technique and to change them on every message so you would say one of the great things about XYZ is…. What that means to you is…

Leaving voice mail is like trolling for fish… Every time I leave a message I leave a different hook and bait hoping to educate my client and hopefully hit a hot button over time.

Even if they don’t call back at least they will know a bit about your product.

Thoughts???

-Brad

Sales Training

Comment on July 14th, 2008.

Karl, that is excellent advice. Your advice to not sound too excited when leaving a message really goes to the importance of being genuine when selling. Whenever a salesperson tries to be something they’re not, it usually falls flat (pumping up your energy is one thing, but being fake is quite another). I’m also on a mission to encourage salespeople to repeat their phone numbers on voicemail messages (and say those numbers s-l-o-w-l-y. I don’t know how many times I have to repeat a voicemail message someone left for me, just so I can get the phone number (the person leaving the message said it only once, and often says it very quickly).

Alan Mokbel

Comment on August 7th, 2008.

Karl,

You’ve said something that I’d like to point out: “my style did not translate well to messages” and I think this is the key for anyone to succeed in sales.

I struggle a lot with cold calling. I don’t like it and don’t care much about being successful at it. So, it could be a skill to learn and excel at (or stress about) or I can focus on my strengths. My strength is in networking and making key partnership with people who already have the contacts.

Like you say: you are passionate and full of life and energy. That’s your style and that’s how you excel. Some other people’s style might be more mellow and could have great success with leaving message.

I think the key to success is to focus on your strength and use them to your benefit.

Alan

Karl Goldfield

Comment on August 10th, 2008.

Brad,

If you went on to the next post, you see that it is a happy medium we are looking for. As Skip puts it, genuine and sincere. The trolling as you call it is what I call a multi touch campaign. You leave 3-4 VM’s and send 3-4 E-mails over the course of 3-4 weeks. Each has a different message and points to a different greatness of your abilities.

Alan,

Work to improve your strengths and always continue to find ways to make that which is not comfortable easier to manage. That is the way to become a sales champion.