Trouble Connecting?

If you can’t reach certain prospects, and they never return your repeated calls, what can you do? For starters, use referrals. “We were doing business with one paper mill location that had given us the names of people to contact at 10 of their other locations,” explains Jennifer Reimer, inside sales manager/East for Essilor Laboratories in Green Bay, WI, which sells prescription safety eyeglasses. “One location had a gatekeeper who never allowed our calls to reach the right person. We asked our current customer to have the right person at the difficult location call us. We got the call and the business.”

Reimer is not alone. According to United Parcel Service sales representative Janet Dixon, the prospect doesn’t know you and sees no benefit to returning your call. You are just another vendor. Prospects may fear change and prefer to stick with a present supplier. Her solution is to use creativity to get prospects to want to call her. After learning as much as possible about prospects and their company, Dixon networks with businesspeople who have a possible connection with them. She asks her contacts to refer her to the prospect – and this opens doors. The UPS rep recalls two success stories.

“Last year, we had a prospect who wouldn’t take my calls, but our UPS service provider [driver] had serviced that company for many years and was like part of their family. He knew my prospect personally and persuaded her to accept my call. I got an appointment and won her business.

“In March 2000, I started servicing Natchez, MS. My first local customer invited me to a Chamber of Commerce business networking event the same day I met her. There, I met a decision maker who had never returned my calls.

“My new customer, Diana, introduced me to the owner of the decision maker’s company. The owner OK’d my appointment with his office manager/decision maker and UPS won their business.”

Dixon also builds good relationships with gatekeepers who take calls and transfer them to the right people. “I’m always courteous to the receptionist. It’s important to be friendly, let them hear me smile, call them by name and treat them as if they are special. If I have called several times, I may stop at the office and leave a company trinket [cup or pencil] with our company’s logo. While my reason for going is to attempt to get an appointment, this is an opportunity to build a friendly relationship with the receptionist responsible for transferring calls.

“Then, instead of saying, ‘Janet Dixon from UPS is on the line,’ in a monotone or negative way, she will remember me, become my ally and say in a convincing way, ‘Janet from UPS is on the line.'”

Reimer finds that asking for a person just by title results in her being sent to voice mail. However, voice mail also can be an effective resource. “Most voice mails include a person’s name and title,” Reimer explains. “The next time we call, my rep asks for that individual by name. It sounds more legitimate than merely asking for someone by title. It’s as if we either know them or know who they are.”

Reimer advises her reps to avoid leaving vague voice mail messages. “Be as specific as possible. If you got the lead from someone who knows that person, mention your contact’s name immediately. Your prospect will probably trust that person and call you back.” Reimer’s reps say they are calling about prescription glasses, mention special offers or prices that might benefit their prospects, and leave their phone numbers very slowly.

While Essilor serves a specific market, UPS serves a variety of businesses. For that reason, Dixon uses vague messages that sound as though she has a benefit to offer. For example, “Cindy, I’ve been trying to reach you, but we’ve been playing phone tag. I have some very valuable information that could be beneficial to your company. Please call or email me. I’ll be working in this area next week. Would it be convenient for me to stop by next Wednesday at 2 p.m.?”

Both Dixon and Reimer say a positive attitude and persistence are important. You may have just caught your prospect at a bad time. Dixon keeps a “future prospects” file, and calls them every three months. During that time the decision maker may change. She remembers signing a large contract with a computer company after unsuccessfully trying to reach a decision maker for three years. “An inside friend said that company made purchase decisions every February,” Dixon says. “For three years, every February, I called a decision maker who never returned my calls. But in 2000, that person moved to another department. The new decision maker took my call, gave me an appointment and gave us a $100,000-per-year contract.”