The prospect has answered the phone. It’s showtime.

Don’t screw it up.

The first 10 seconds is when most prospecting calls die. The good news is that failure is preventable and almost always a direct result of what the sales rep says.

To illustrate this point, here are two scenarios. Think about how you feel after reading each:

1. The remainder of this chapter will be about heating and air conditioning. We’ll discuss all aspects of how buildings are heated and cooled. I have details of how heating and a/c units are wired and how ductwork is installed in buildings.
2. The remainder of this chapter is specifically about how you can get another week’s worth of paid vacation this year.

What were your reactions?

After the first one, you were probably thinking, “I don’t need to know this, it’s boring, and it does not affect me. I will extract myself from this situation.” Conversely, after reading the second example, you were probably thinking, “That got my attention. I wonder what it is? Tell me more.”

My point? In the first 10 seconds of phone calls, sales reps create the same emotions as those from my two scenarios. Therefore, you want to minimize the feelings from the first scenario and strive for those that the second statement induces. We will begin our discussion of how to be successful with openings by reviewing the words, phrases, and questions I suggest you avoid—those that have a greater chance of evoking resistance than interest.

I have compiled this list based on more than 35 years of business-to-business experience and studying what works and what doesn’t. As part of the customized training I provide companies, I review and fine-tune openings, and have done tens of thousands of them. And, where I have really honed my skills in this area is personally hearing lots of no’s. Indeed, I have taken my beatings as a result of using many of these, so I am well-qualified to discuss them.

First, here are some key points about my “don’t say” list:

• Some people can employ even the most ridiculous techniques and still show some success. It’s usually attributable to their delivery and personality, but most other people would fail miserably with them.
• These suggestions are meant to minimize your chances for resistance. If something has a high probability of failure, why risk it?
• Nothing works all of the time. I’ve had people tell me, “I’ve taken your suggestions, and they don’t work for me.” Well, upon further examination in many cases, they weren’t doing exactly as I suggested, or they were delivering it poorly.

We want to maximize our chance for success, while minimizing the chance of failure. That’s why I present these phrases to avoid.

Most people ashamedly admit, “I say a bunch of those all the time.” That’s part of the learning process. I’m with you. I, too, have made every mistake in the book. The key is learning from our mistakes, seeking and finding a better way, and moving on.

In the next chapter, we will look specifically at what to do in our openings. This chapter focuses on what to avoid.

What to Avoid Saying in the First 10 Seconds of Your Opening to Decision Makers

• What to Avoid Saying in the First 10 Seconds of Your Opening to Decision Makers  “Just” anything. The word just sounds weak and diminishes everything that follows it: “I’m just calling to see if I could ask a few questions.” Just get rid of “just.”
• “Wanted to introduce myself and company to you.” This isn’t a cocktail party. Remember who they care about: themselves, not you. It adds no significance and takes up valuable time.
• Any mention of products or services without an accompanying results statement. As in “I’m with Dunlap Services, a local messenger service. I’d like to talk to you about your messenger needs.” In response, people can very easily say, “We don’t need that” or “We’re satisfied with who we’re using.” Products and services can incite resistance. Results are much tougher to reply negatively to.
• “You sure are hard to reach!” There’s a good reason for this: They are busy and important. And you’ve just wasted a few seconds of their precious time stating the obvious. You’ve also positioned yourself as a salesperson and given them time to formulate their “I’m going to get this guy off the phone” strategy.
• Sounding salesy. This includes anything that reeks of old-school, smarmy, stereotypical salespeople. For instance:
  • “As you know, we are the top provider of …” Whenever I hear “As you know,” I begin thinking of reasons why I wouldn’t know.
  • “I’m sure you would agree …” Tell people this, and they probably won’t agree.
  • “If I could show you a way to get a top five position in the major search engines, you’d want that, wouldn’t you?” Please, promise me you will never say, “If I could show you a way” in an opening. You’re asking someone to make a commitment before they know any of the details.
  • “Are you the person there in charge of …?” As in “Hi, I’m Pat Seller with ABC Company. Are you the person there who would handle the decisions regarding your _____?” You might as well start off the call with “I’m selling something. Are you the person I should be selling it to?”

Someone reading this might ask, “Okay, but we are trying to sell something, and we want to be sure that this is the person we should be talking to, right?” Right. But that is not the way or the time to do it, and we do not want it to seem like we are just trying to sell them something. Here’s why:

• People would rather not talk to salespeople they don’t know. It’s natural, like the way we avoid the salespeople in retail stores who stalk after us and ask, “May I help you?” Again, people like to buy but don’t want to be sold to. A statement like this announces your sales intentions, triggering the defensive posture.
• You have about seven seconds to move a person into a positive, receptive frame of mind on a Smart Call. If you’re not doing that, they’re slipping into a negative mind-set, moving into the “How do I get rid of this salesperson?” mode. The question “Are you the person?” solidifies that before you have even begun to create interest.
• You should already know—before you ever hear their voice—that they are the decision maker for what you sell. You have read the previous chapters about gathering intelligence and social engineering, right?

“Can You Help Me?”

As we discussed in the chapter on assistants, this is a valuable question with people performing that role. With decision makers, however, it’s a horrible technique. It creates resistance. Let’s listen in:

Decision Maker (interrupted from whatever she’s doing—which is most likely not staring at the phone waiting for a sales call): “Pat Kelly here.”

Caller: “Hi Pat, Dale Doofus with Ace Services. Can you help me?”

Decision Maker (wondering “Who is this person, and what does he want? Probably a salesperson.”): “What do you need?”

Caller (now combining a couple of the other mistakes): “Yes, I was just wondering, are you the person there responsible for the secure storage of your paper records?”

Decision Maker: “I am, but we’re all set.”

Let’s dissect what has happened: The caller wasted about 15 seconds arousing the decision maker’s suspicion that he was probably someone calling to sell something and then confirming it. The negative momentum is like a freight train rolling downhill.

And by the way, her job is not to help you! How arrogant is that? Your job is to help her! You need to be able to quickly communicate how you might be able to do that before they have had a chance to move into “Get rid of salesperson” mode. Unless you’re calling for a charity, don’t call to ask for the decision maker’s help.

Don’t Apologize for Wanting to Help Them

Apologizing for taking someone’s time at the beginning of a call diminishes your importance. For example, consider the caller who says, “I know you’re busy, and I’m sorry for interrupting. I’ll take just a few seconds, and here’s why I’m calling.”

Stop. Think about what you’re really offering. You have something of value that will help make this person’s life better—right? If you’re not sold on your importance, then they certainly won’t be. Everyone is busy. If what you have is of value, you earn their time, and they’ll want to speak with you.

Asking for a Decision, or Even Hinting at One

This is the error that has likely caused more calls to end abruptly than any other. Before I show it to you in a sales context, let’s look at it in another perspective:

If a man approaches a woman he does not know in a bar and opens with “Would you like to get married?” he might get slapped or at least be viewed as a jerk.

Similar Questions

• “I’d like to talk about beginning a relationship.”
• “I’m a real interesting guy and would like to set up a time for us to get together. Would 6:00 Friday be good?”

It’s ridiculous, cheesy, and a bit creepy.

Let’s put it in a different context. A sales rep calls and opens with:

• “I’d like to talk about becoming one of your vendors.”
• “I would like to talk about developing a relationship with your company.”
• “We have some great products and would like to come out there and discuss them with you. Would 3:00 Thursday be good?”
• “I’m calling to invite you to a webinar next week.”

And here is the one that has become the most prevalent since the previous edition of this book:

• “I’d like to get on your calendar for a 15-minute conversation.”

You might as well say, “I don’t know you, but could you just give me $200?” Because, asking for time is requesting something more valuable than money.

Hmm, kind of puts it in perspective, doesn’t it? Granted, all of those requests could be the end result, but it is far too early to ask for a decision, or even hint at one, in the opening.

Important point: When your call arrives, prospects are not in the preferred state of mind to hear a request for a decision, or even the insinuation that you are going to ask for a decision of any type. We must first earn the right to someone’s time by piquing curiosity and quickly communicating some possible value. And we must keep earning it throughout our calls (and visits) to make appropriate recommendations when the time is right, and then secure commitments.

Here are more phrases to avoid. This batch diminishes the relationship that you’re trying to build:

• “I’m calling people in your area” and “I was just going through my records.” Oh, like that would make them feel special? They don’t want to be treated as if they’re just one of the names on the list you grabbed that day. People want to feel like they’re the only person you’re calling—and you did so with intention.
• “I’m updating my database.” And why would they be inclined to help you do that?
• “I’m calling to check in with you.” I jokingly refer to this as the probation officer approach. If you don’t have something of value to offer, don’t bother checking in.
• “You and I have not spoken before.” That states the obvious; it’s a waste of words.
• “As you can guess, this is a sales call.” You’ve got to be kidding me! It’s as if the rep is saying, “Okay, I know I don’t have a shot, and you’re probably going to resist—but here goes.” (In Chapter 10, we’ll discuss exceptions to this.)
• “Just wanted to reach out to you.” On top of the “just,” what does reaching out mean—or do—for the listener?
• The baseball opening: “Just wanted to touch base with you.” See the previous example’s comments.
• The “I’ve got too much time on my hands” call: “Thought I’d give you a call to see how it’s going.”
• “Calling to see if you received the email/letter/brochure/package/catalog/price list I sent.” Is the literature going to do the selling for you? If so, why are you needed? Granted, as we discussed, sending something can warm up a call, but do not ask if your prospects received it. It adds no value and, again, gives them time to move into a defensive frame of mind.
• Show and tell. Such as “I want to show you how we could help you” or “I want to tell you how.” Prospects interpret this as “Uh-oh, sales pitch on the way. Raise the defense shields.” Showing and telling insinuates a one-way communication, not the message we want to send.
• “I’m _____ with _____. Are you familiar with us?” You’ll have to explain your company anyway. It’s not to your advantage to do it after they have said, “No.” Plus, you haven’t given them a reason to answer your questions or to care about your company. If they are familiar with you but not a customer, it leads to the beginning of a potentially uncomfortable situation, almost putting the person on the defensive. You do indeed want to find out what they know about you—later. Do not make that the focus of your opening statement. After you’ve generated some interest and curiosity with your brilliant opener, you can say, “By the way, so I’m not being redundant with my questioning, does our company name sound familiar at all to you?”

• “I’m not trying to sell you anything.” Do sales reps who use this line think that their prospects are idiots who believe that? I feel that prospects look at sales reps who use that phrase as liars. Of course, our ultimate intent is to sell—we know it, and they know it. Furthermore, making a statement like this is a waste of time that could be better invested in moving the sales process forward. For users and defenders of this technique, I’ve heard all the arguments for using this, such as it puts the other person at ease, it lets them know you’re not going to give them a pitch, and it positions you as more of an information-gatherer instead of a one-call closer. Whatever.

  We’re going to accomplish the same thing with our interest-creating opening without wasting words. If you begin calls by saying you’re not going to sell anything, then that will usually be your end result.

• “Do you have a few minutes to talk?” Let me clarify this one, since there are some exceptions. What I suggest you avoid is this:

  Prospect: “Stan Jablonski.”

  Sales Rep: “Hi Stan. Andy Koval with Thurston Packaging. Do you have a minute?”

  Let me ask you: If you were a decision maker who received a call like this, what would go through your mind? You don’t recognize this person or company, you are up to your neck in your work and just happened to pick up the interrupting ringing phone, and you’re asked if you have a minute? The typical reaction is “Not really” or “Quick, what do you have?” Not the frame of mind we want them in.

  This does not suggest, however, that you shouldn’t respect their time. How you do so is a matter of your personal choice; however, this approach isn’t it. As with some of the other phrases to avoid, I have the better alternative in the next chapter.

Being Assumptive in the Opening and Using Declarative Statements

Do not tell prospects what you will do in your opening. Don’t tell them that you can save them money. Do not state that you will help them increase sales. Avoid saying that they will lower their costs and increase their profits.

Am I stark-raving, lost-my-sales-mind crazy?

No. You want to avoid using definitive, declarative statements in the first few sentences of your calls. Why? Because even though you probably do believe you could make them money, save them money, or cut costs, and you probably could, what’s important is that they might not believe that. All of those statements make the assumption that something is wrong with their business. Again, maybe something is, but let’s turn the tables. Put yourself on the receiving end of this: If someone you don’t know or respect gives you unsolicited advice and tells you that you’re doing something wrong, naturally you resent it and become defensive. The same is true on the phone with prospects; they don’t want to hear your assumptions about the problems in their organization. If you make those kinds of bold statements early—before they have bought into the concept that you might indeed be able to deliver some value—you run the risk of creating resistance.

For example, take this opening: “Mr. Prospect, we are a credit card processing company and can save you money on your card processing fees.” Let’s say the prospect has invested lots of time in studying the various alternatives for card processing, tested a few different companies, and maybe even presented a seminar on how to select the best processor at his industry’s national conference. If he gets cold-called and hears a sales rep make this definitive statement, here’s what’s probably going through his mind: “Who is this bozo, and how can he make that claim without knowing anything about me? I’m getting rid of him.” He’s not ready to hear such a bold statement yet, so he’s likely to doubt its validity, and might even be offended by it.

The dilemma here is that we do want them thinking about the possible value we will hint at, and we want them to feel that since there might be some truth to what we say, they want to hear more. That’s why later I’m going to show you how to soften your claim in your Possible Value Proposition (PVP) in the opening by using weasel words. (Don’t be alarmed—they are much better than the title suggests!)

Reacting to Unusual Names

Dale Carnegie is credited with saying that the sweetest sound a person can hear is his own name. It’s true, for the most part—when used appropriately by the right person at the right time. Conversely, in some cases, a person’s name can be a turn-off.

I am still floored by people’s ignorance in regard to hearing a difficult-to-pronounce or unusual name on phone calls. In talking to sales or service people on calls where I was the customer, after spelling my name, I’ve heard such idiotic comments as:

• “Oh, that’s a weird one.”
• “That’s a strange name.”

And some people just burst out laughing. What do these dolts think? That I’m going to say, “Yeah, I know”? I personally don’t stay up nights fretting over my unusual name. (It’s pronounced Sob’-check.) I’m used to it. Hey, to top it off, my first name is Art. Think of how many times I heard “Art Fart” while growing up, or “I bet Art is your favorite Sub-JECT (yuck yuck).” People can be such morons.

But the name issue is a very tender area for some people, and it says a lot about the person making the comment. I don’t mind if, after saying or spelling my name, a fellow Pole makes a commiserating comment like “I’ve got you beat. My name is Wojtkewkowski.” Otherwise, it’s really out of place to make inappropriate comments.

If someone with an unusual name takes the lead and pokes fun at it himself after spelling it, it’s certainly okay to react in some way. I make a point to spell my name, SO-BC-ZAK. Then I say, “I used to start out with ‘SOB,’ but too many people commented on how descriptive that was.” That breaks the ice and elicits some laughter and small talk. The safe rule: Absent their self-deprecating comment, say nothing.

I once took a call from a guy who recited very slowly his name: “Buddy Bunne.” And he pronounced it BUN-EE. I admit, I bit my lip and paused, and you could almost feel him bracing for the wise-guy response. “And your address, Buddy?” I continued.

Here’s a secret: People with unusual names know their name is different. Some good-natured folks just blow off comments with humor. But others view their name as sensitively as they would if they had a third ear protruding from their head. You wouldn’t comment on that, so why take a chance of offending someone?

How Are You Today? Use It or Not?

A sales rep called me and said, “Hi, this is Jane Davis with Technology Associates. How are you doing today?”

“Jane, I’m just doing fantastic,” I replied.

She jumped back in as the last syllable was leaving my lips: “I’m doing fine, thank you, the reason I’m calling is …”

Of course, I really didn’t pay attention to anything else she said.

This topic certainly isn’t one of a high-level sales process nature; however, I do find that it stimulates lots of interest and discussion in seminars and online discussions. My friend and fellow author-trainer Jim Domanski first referred to it as the HAYT question: “How are you today?”

Here’s my official stance on the issue of small talk at the beginning of the call.

Use it if you are comfortable. Informal surveys in training workshops consistently show that 30% of you are all for using it, 30% wouldn’t use it unless forced to at gunpoint, and 40% will use it based on the situation. It depends on your personality and preference. I’ve heard reps who could use it with the gruffest of prospects and turn them into melted butter. There are others who are so against it that they could never get a positive response since it sounds forced.

Personally, I relate it to a quarterback at the line of scrimmage, improvising based on what the defense throws at him. If someone answers with a jovial, upbeat tone of voice, and I’m reading a good vibe, I’ll introduce myself and say, “Sounds like you’re having a great morning!”

If they sound like they were forced to pick up the phone while being waterboarded, I will quickly get into the value statement.

Use something different. Let’s face it: “How are you today?” is pretty much a throwaway question. Its main purpose is to break the ice and ease some tension. It’s customary. If you were in a prospect’s office, there would be the obligatory comments about the photos on the desk and the moose head on the wall. But the phone is a more formal communication medium; therefore, it’s not as easy to insert small talk. That doesn’t diminish the need for it or its possible positive effect—or the negative, for that matter, like the previous example.

So, I suggest saying something different to avoid sounding like every other caller. For example,

• “How’s your Tuesday so far?”
• “How’s the day treating you?”
• “Happy Tuesday!”
• “How have you been?”

Smart Caller Scott Airmont asks, “How’s the world treating you today?”

Or, TELL them they are having a good day:

• “You sound like you’re having a good day.”
• “Hi Mary, sounds like you are having a good Thursday … I’m looking for David please …”
• “Mike, hope your morning is going well … I’m Pat Seller …”
• “Good morning Dale, hope you are doing great … I’m Karen Davis …”

Full disclosure here: I had a client where the reps would be brutally honest based on what they heard in the other person’s voice when they answered, even if it was negative. For example, “Kathy, sounds like things are not going your way this morning.”

I almost leaped out of my chair when I first heard that. But the more calls I heard, the more I realized that people reacted and started talking, giving information about themselves. I’m still not sure if I am ready to try it, but I’m just reporting what I observed.

Put feeling in it. You can easily spot the “How are you today?” that is monotone and mechanical, and it does more harm than good. Your tone of voice makes the difference. Keep this in mind: People often place more meaning on your tone than on your words. Ask the question as if you mean it!

Listen to the answer and react accordingly. Obviously, the rep in my example wasn’t listening to my response. She expected a certain answer, waited until I finished making sounds (almost), and then continued with what she was conditioned to say regardless of my response. An argument against using any type of HAYT question is that the people on the other end of the line might tell you how exactly how badly their day is going. That is not a bad thing. React accordingly and ask them about it. Empathize. At least you’re in a conversation now. And you’re listening to them.

Use the HAYT question if you are comfortable doing so, but please keep these ideas in mind (See Episode 9 of my podcast, TheArtofSales.com).