10 tips to voicemail success
Posted by Geoff Alexander on Mon, Aug 29, 2011 @ 10:02 AM
I got a nice email from blog subscriber Bob Martin this week, who asked: “Geoff, there are two areas I didn't see addressed as much as I'd like, handling objections and voice mail - what a good voice mail sounds like, do you have any material in those areas?” Thanks for writing, Bob, good questions. This week, I’ll discuss voicemail and next week I’ll address objection handling.
Those of you who’ve taken my inside sales training classes know how much I don’t care for voicemail. Far too many reps feel that leaving a voicemail accomplishes their call objectives, and some managers make the mistake of including left voicemails in call KPIs. What I emphasize is that you’ve got to find someone to talk to (even if it isn’t “the name on the list”), open your call professionally, attempt to qualify or disqualify in 8 minutes or fewer, and discuss your solution linked to the prospect’s business objectives so that he or she will welcome your next call. I don’t let reps leave voicemails when I’m coaching them. Instead, we find someone else to talk with at the prospect company that can help us to qualify the opportunity.
That said, if you’re going to leave a voicemail, consider these Voicemail Best Practices:
1) Don’t leave a message with a human It will rarely get returned.
2) When his or her outgoing message suggests calling another person for assistance, call that person (the referred person could be on the decision team).
3) How often should you leave voicemails and send emails? A good rule of thumb is two voicemails, followed by an email, followed by the final voicemail. Still not successful (and did you remember to Call High)? If you still feel the prospect has value after not getting your calls returned, put it in the tickler for next quarter to try another contact attempt.
4) Make your voicemail succinct: people can be extremely busy, especially as companies are rightsizing in every department. Since they won’t always have time to take your call, make your voicemail short and to the point. 10 to 15 seconds is about right. On a first-time voicemail ask for something that makes business sense and reasonable. A request for a “a quick 2 minute chat” about how your solution could improve his or her bottom line is easier for the prospect to handle than asking for something more time-intensive.
5) State your name, your company, and what your company does in one sentence, and tell your contact what’s in it for him or her by returning your call. Tie it to something you know about the company or org, based on previous discussion, something on the website, or an individual you know in common. Prospects only buy for two reasons: either your solution will make them money, or stop them from losing money. So come up with a true statement that has impact. “We’ve cut accounting costs by 400% for a number of our clients, and I’d like to tell you how we might be able to do that for you, too” is just one example. Asking a prospect to return your call “so I can find out more about your company” will rarely get returned.
6) Mention something you know about the organization that relates to your solution. It should be a reference to something you’ve seen on the website, the fact that a number of others from the organization “have been in touch,” or “you downloaded a whitepaper,” etc.
7) Leave your name phone number twice: at the beginning and end of your message. That way, the prospect won’t have to play it back.
8) Enunciate clearly your name and phone number. Pause between your first and last name. Make a clear distinction between “9” and “1”, two numbers which can sound similar.
9) If you’ve got a challenging name or a heavy foreign accent, consider using your first name only. And be sure to enunciate properly. I can’t tell you how many voicemails I’ve heard where the rep talked so fast that I couldn’t pick out the name or company.
10) Ideally, you should leave a voicemail before noon in the prospect’s time zone if you want to get called back the same day. After that, issues from earlier in the day often demand attention, and your voicemail may become part of the clutter. Try to leave it before noon, and you’ll have a better chance that it will be returned.
So there are 10 tips that you should consider before leaving a voicemail. To be compelling, your voicemail shouldn’t sound generic. It should refer to something specific about the prospect company and how you can help his or her bottom line right now. Add these tips to your Best Practices Playbook.