CHAPTER 8
Working with Assistants
Notice that I did not call this chapter “How to Get Past, Around, Over, Through, or Under Screeners and Gatekeepers.” Yet that is what a lot of training suggests. I suggest the opposite. I could sum up my stance in a short sentence: Treat the screener as you would the buyer.
I even suggest you quit using the terms “screener” and “gatekeeper.” Those imply something negative, like they are the enemy. In fact, they are the buyer’s aid, and ours as well. I prefer to use the title assistant for these very important professionals.
Actually, our goal is the same as assistant’s: to protect the decision maker’s time and ensure that they are speaking with someone who has potential value.
Gatekeeper and Screener Myths
You may have been exposed to bad information about assistants. Let’s take a look at some of the nonsense that has been taught so we know what not to do.
- “Don’t give them any information. They can’t buy from you.” Wrong. Sometimes they can indeed buy from you, and often, they influence decisions. One thing they can definitely do is make sure that no one will buy from you.
- “Answer their question abruptly, and make a demand of your own. As in ‘I’m with AB Company. Will you connect me please?’” That will intimidate them into putting you through? Right. People generally don’t respond all that favorably to rudeness.
- “Just tell them, ‘It’s a business matter that I need to speak with him personally about.’” You might as well say, “I’m a cheesy, self-important salesperson and I don’t respect you.”
- “If they get too nosy, say, ‘Well, would Ms. Bigg approve of you denying her the opportunity to learn about what we have?’” Not only would she approve but also she would probably give the assistant a raise.
I have to wonder if the people suggesting this stuff have ever actually placed a sales call. In most cases, the assistant has one purpose: to protect the decision maker’s time. Your task, when necessary, is to help the assistant realize you are important enough to earn an audience with the boss.
And don’t you think assistants can instantly spot the shady tactics of callers who try to sleaze through? Don’t fool yourself. They’re masters.
This might come as a surprise to some salespeople, but assistants are much better at getting rid of salespeople than said salespeople are at getting past them.
And the more someone tries to scam them, the more firmly they bolt the airtight door. Some assistants I’ve observed have hung up smugly, saying, “There, take that you son-of-a- _______!” Their perception of a caller’s value diminishes in proportion to the elusiveness of the techniques used by the caller. And the higher up your decision maker is in an organization, the more skilled his or her assistant is at reading the importance of sales callers. So approach the assistant as the professional that she or he is.
Smart Call in Action: Assistant Reality Check
“My wife is a receptionist, and what sales callers usually don’t know is that she makes 90% of the purchasing decisions for the office, and there is only one person with authority over her (the CEO, her direct manager). She gets calls from salespeople who try to belittle her and get up to the decision maker and who don’t realize that she is the decision maker and has more than just gatekeeper ability.”
—Ryan Moore
What to Do
Some prospecting systems and trainers will encourage you to spend as little time as possible talking to assistants. But doing so would cause you to miss opportunities to Smarten up your calls in the process. Think about it: This person is very close to the decision maker and has lots of valuable information. So work with him or her and attempt to establish a friendly rapport.
On a first call to a prospect, I suggest using the social engineering process discussed in Chapter 4.
- Identify yourself and your company.
- Ask for help.
- Use a justification statement.
- Ask questions.
Examples:
- “Hi, I’m Jason Andrews with National Systems. I hope you can help me. I’d like to speak with Ms. Peterson, and to be sure that what I’d discuss is most relevant, there are a couple of questions you could probably answer for me.”
- “Hi, I’m Sandra Stone with Premier Software. I’m looking for some help. I want to be sure I’m in the right spot and I’d like to ask a few questions.”
Then, simply begin asking.
Beginning this way sends the following messages to the assistant:
- You’re not like all of the other time-wasting salespeople who try to bully or slime their way in.
- You actually are helping the assistant do his or her job (by protecting the decision maker’s time).
- The assistant begins to form a relationship with you, which moves you closer to getting her or him to assist you.
Don’t underestimate the importance of that last point. While doing research on a video program for getting to decision makers, I interviewed 50 assistants. In response to the question “How do you determine who gets put through?” the top answer was “People I like.” A reader of my email newsletter, Lisa Strong, wrote this to me:
“I was an Executive Assistant to presidents and business owners of companies for years, and if you irritated me, you had zero chance of speaking with the owner. If I liked you, I would go out of my way to ‘talk up’ your company and made sure your correspondence was in his ‘to read’ file. Many times, when these owners were looking for new products or services, their Executive Assistants were responsible for doing the research and choosing the company that he should see. Therefore, treating whomever answers the phone with respect is in the salesperson’s best interest.”
Be Prepared to Sell the Assistant If You Need To
Be ready if the assistant needs a better reason than the one you provide to put you through. You need to be prepared to matter-of-factly answer the assistant’s probing questions, and your answers mustn’t make her feel as though she’s shadowboxing with you. They must leave her unequivocally fulfilled. She needs to be satisfied that you have something of value for her boss.
Think again about the assistant’s job. What happens when a less-than-ethical salesperson slithers through and wastes the decision maker’s time? He cracks open his door, peeks out, and in an annoyed tone demands, “Why did you let that bozo through?” You need to help her look good in her boss’s eyes. So, when you get the “And what is this in reference to?” question, you need to respond—without hesitation—with your justification. For example, “We specialize in helping parts manufacturers in your industry increase their short-term cash flow while they’re waiting for their longer-term receivables to be paid. I want to ask him a few questions to determine how big of a problem this is for him, and see if it would be worth it for us to speak further.”
At this point, you might say, “In fact, there’s probably some information you could help me with.” And as with voicemail, your question should be very similar to the opening statement you will deliver to the buyer. Most important, do not discuss your product or service; talk about the results. It’s very easy for an assistant to say, “We’re all set” when a salesperson mentions she wants to talk about postage meters. It’s tougher to respond negatively when a rep says she has helped cut down other magazine publishers’ costs of sending out their renewal statements and direct mail letters.
Responding to an Assistant’s Question
I was doing some research for an online marketing campaign, and as often happens, got sidetracked down a rabbit hole. I landed in a forum for website developers. It was mostly geekspeak, but I found a salesperson in the industry who had asked about dealing with the “screener’s” question, “What’s this in reference to?”
A forum member, another techy-type, responded that he has success with “Claire, typically we help chief executives who are frustrated that, although they’ve spent money on a website, it doesn’t generate any leads, it doesn’t lead to any sales, and they feel like they’ve been wasting money. I don’t suppose Mr. Smith has ever mentioned that this is a problem?”
Brilliant! Adapt that using your own problems and benefits.
Here is an example sent in by a Smart Caller. He said he has success with this response when he gets the question from the assistant about the nature of the call: “Well, let me first ask you, does Mr. Ryan get involved in the credit card processing for your stores? Good. Well, depending on how satisfied he is with his online transactions and the fees he’s paying, we might have a few options to speed up transaction time and cut down on extra charges. I’d like to ask him a few questions …"
My friend and sales trainer Tibor Shanto emphasizes keeping your objective in mind when speaking with assistants. Ultimately, you want to talk to the decision maker. He stresses that you should always end by saying, “Is he/she available?” And, if they are not available, Tibor says to then ask to be forwarded to voicemail.
Smart Calling Exercise
Prepare your response to “What is this about?” (Come back after reading Chapter 9.)
Tips for Working with Assistants
Here are some tips you can use to be successful when working with assistants.
Use a Conversational, Yet Confident, Tone of Voice
If you were standing in the lobby of their office, the assistant would first size you up based on your appearance. They do the same with the way you sound, so don’t sound sloppy or unimportant. However, you also want to avoid crossing the line into condescension or cockiness. You can sound confident without appearing pushy or demeaning.
Here are some weak words and phrases to avoid:
- “Is Ms. Powell available, or is she busy?”
- “Is Mr. Stevens in, or is he in a meeting?”
- “May I speak with Donna, or is she doing something important?”
These questions minimize your status and make it easy to give you the brush-off.
Get the Assistant’s Name
Early in the conversation, ask for the assistant’s name. Use it on the call, put it in your notes, and greet the assistant by name on the next call. You will seem to be much less of a stranger on subsequent calls.
Connect on LinkedIn
Many top level executives delegate their LinkedIn profiles and activity to their assistants. In addition to reaching out to the decision maker on LinkedIn, consider sending a connection request to the assistant (after you’ve spoken with them and have begun to build a relationship). Be sure to include the possible value for the boss. This out-of-the-ordinary gesture can help you build the relationship to get through to the buyer.
Get Personal Information about the Buyer
After building rapport with the assistant, the next step is to gather personal information about the boss: what hangs in the office, what personal items adorn the desk, personal interests, hobbies, or passions—in short, any valuable information that can help you begin a relationship.
Smart Calling Tip
A question we probably all hear on occasion is “Is this a sales call?” It typically comes from assistants looking to weed out sales reps who will just waste the boss’s time. Here’s a good response:
“I don’t know yet. If there’s a fit for what we have, it might be; otherwise, it’s not. I specialize in working with IT managers, helping them reduce their workload and headaches regarding keeping track of the software they have installed on their machines. I’d like to ask Ms. Collins a few questions to see if we have the basis for further conversation.”
Ask the Assistant about the Decision Maker’s Preferences
Smart Caller Tom Welsh suggests asking assistants how the decision maker likes to be approached and addressed. Some people are offended when you use their first name too early in a relationship; others get uncomfortable when addressed as Mr. or Ms. Some people enjoy a little small talk; others prefer getting straight to the point.
Smart Calling Tip
Charles Knighton shared some best practices that work well for him. He sells commercial real estate investment opportunities and asks these questions of assistants:
- “Are there any topics I should avoid when speaking with him?”
- “Why/why not?”
- “How does he/she like to get their messages?”
Listen for the Names of Others
Any time the assistant—or anyone—mentions the name of someone else in their organization, immediately jot it down. Then, when it is your turn to speak (do not interrupt), ask, “You mentioned ‘Steve.’ What does he do?” Also ask the assistant who the boss reports to. This can help you learn the decision-making hierarchy, helping you ensure that you are talking to the appropriate people in the decision process.
When They Want You to Send Information
When an assistant says, “Send some information on that,” they might be attempting to get you off the phone. Or it could legitimately be the way the prospect does business. I suggest you qualify the intent of the request: “Actually, one of the purposes of my call is to see if it would be worthwhile to provide additional information. That’s why I’d like to speak with him first: to determine what he might have interest in.”
In the cases where the assistant says the decision maker always needs to see material first, be the professional that you are and agree to work with them. Jim Domanski, my good friend and a longtime columnist in my Smart Calling Report training letter (SmartCallingReport.com), has some fine tips on how to effectively work with assistants when sending hard copy information via regular mail.
- Address literature and other support material to the assistant. We have a tendency to address our support documents to the decision maker, even after we have begun working with the assistant. This is demeaning to the assistant, but there’s another reason to send material in this way. The assistant rarely gets the same amount of mail that the decision maker receives. Therefore, a letter or package addressed to the gatekeeper is likely to be opened sooner.
- Handwrite the address instead of using a typed label. And if you can, put it in a plain envelope (rather than one with a company logo). Write your return address in the upper-left corner, but do not include your name or company. It’s an old but effective technique. There is a sense of mystery about a plain, handwritten letter or package. It gets opened first and is quickly remembered.
- Make your support material pretty ugly. The most important thing here is not to be visually appealing but rather to command the assistant’s attention. So use a highlighter on key areas. Write in the margins. Circle important things. Draw arrows to vital facts. Use Post-it flags if you have multiple-page documents. The assistant is busy and is probably not an expert on your product or service. Make his job easier by giving him areas to focus on.
- Forget the formal cover letter and use a Post-it note to accompany your material. Stuffy letters that start “Pursuant to our conversation of September 30th, please find enclosed” stink, to be honest. Attach a sticky note with something like: “Shelly, here’s a brochure on the projector. To make things a little easier for you, I have highlighted some key areas. Looking forward to talking with you on the 6th at 8:15.”
It’s plain, straightforward, nothing fancy. It also clearly states a benefit for the assistant (saves time) and casually reinforces the telephone appointment.
Then follow up by referencing the brochure. You can use the actual words: “Shelly, I’m following up on that brochure. It probably looked pretty ugly, but I wanted to save you some time.” If they opened it, they’ll remember it because it was unusual. (Jim Domanski is President of TeleConcepts Consulting, a telesales consulting and training firm. He’s also the author of Profiting by Phone and Add-on Selling. See www.TeleConceptsConsulting.com.)
Smart Calling Success: Say Thank You
Sales rep Jim DeBender spends some of his sales time visiting customers. He always makes it a point to search out assistants and thank them for their help over the phone. You can just imagine how well received this gesture is. If you have the opportunity to visit customers or prospects, do the same.
Getting Your Messages to the Buyer
If the assistant asks if you’d like to leave a voicemail or have someone paged, respond with, “I could. But what do YOU recommend as the best way to get a message to him?” Or you could ask, “How does she like to get messages?” This will improve your chances of reaching the decision maker efficiently. Some people prefer to speak with the assistant when they call in for messages and therefore attach more importance to the messages left with the assistant. Some people simply hate to use their voicemail and may be lax in calling to check for messages. Again, a message left with the assistant may yield better results. Conversely, the voicemail proponent might religiously retrieve messages. Either way, asking what’s preferred could give you that slight edge.
Smart Calling Exercise
I came up with something called the “two things” technique on the fly while listening to live calls from a training client. They are a marketing company selling to dental practices. Dentists are harder to reach by phone than most people, so we had to find creative ways to create curiosity and desire.
We worked to define two things that are important to the dentists, both related to building their practice. Then the Smart Callers would ask the assistant to write that down as a message and give it to the doctor. For example, “Please tell Doctor Molar I’m calling about two things: 1. More new patients, and 2. No increase in ad spend.”
That increased their callbacks, because the dentists wanted to know how they could do that.
Come up with your two things and give it a try.
Will You Help Me?
Another method for working with assistants—regardless of whether someone has voicemail—is to simply ask, “Will you have a chance to see Ms. Bigg when she comes back?” When they answer affirmatively, continue with “Great. When she picks up my message, would you please tell her personally that I really would like to speak with her today? I have an idea that she might want to know about this.” Because you’re enlisting the assistant’s help—and acknowledging your awareness of his influence over the decision maker—you’re endearing yourself to him a bit more while simultaneously emphasizing the importance of your message.
Another idea is to simply say, “I imagine you handle his/her calendar … when would there be an opening when I could reach him/her?”
Go to the Highest Level
When in doubt about where you should start to locate a decision maker, find the level higher than the one that typically makes the decision for what you sell. The people here can give you good information. Typically, you will be referred down. Then at the next level, you can say, “I was speaking with Karen at Mr. McNabb’s office, and she felt that Pat would be the person I should be speaking with.” It’s important that you don’t imply that Mr. McNabb said that she should buy from you; just let them know that you’ve come from above, and your call will implicitly carry more clout.
Smart Calling Success: A Disarming Approach
Art, here’s the one that works every time. When someone answers the phone, ask: “Are you the most kind, patient person in your office?”
I have used this approach maybe 75 times, now, and only once did someone say no, but even she laughed as she said it and we were able to build rapport in less than 20 seconds.
—Shannon McGurk
Being Hesitant Can Help You Move Forward
I heard this technique on a Smart Call with an assistant.
Assistant: “Bob Jones’s office. This is Kate.”
Rep: “Hey Kate. I’m not sure I should be calling here … hopefully you can tell me.”
Assistant: “Umm, ok.”
Then he proceeded to explain who he was, and the problem he solved (not the product he sold) and asked, “Is that something Bob is responsible for, or does someone else handle that?”
Several things are going on here. The assistant was disarmed a bit when the rep said he wasn’t sure he should be calling there, and then he used the tried and true technique of asking for help. It was now as if they were solving a mystery together.
After describing the problem he solves, he asked the alternate choice question, so he’d get to who he needed even if Bob wasn’t the right person.
Smart Calling Action Steps
What will you commit to do as a result of this chapter?