Since I started prospecting in the world of recruitment I've ditched it. Of course, I'm talking about the 30 second pitch here. And I have to say, I prefer it. It's not the first time I have opened my calls by leading with a question. I did use it in a scenario where the product I was pitching was niche and listing off 3 problems just didn't make sense. I wanted to get straight to the point. What I didn't do back then was think about how leading with a question could be applied to a product/service that solves multiple problems. It is more challenging to navigate a call this way. More challenging but not impossible. There are also some benefits to leading with a question: 1️⃣ - Less people reject the call upfront. 2️⃣ - I get to a conversation much quicker. 3️⃣ - I can disqualify quicker. Pitches can work, of course they can. I've spent years using them but they were never perfect, nothing is. Here are three problems I've noticed: 1️⃣ - Asking for 30 seconds might not seem a big ask but in the context of an unsolicited call, it is. Prospects just want you to get to the point. Who are you and why are you calling? And this is the reason why you hear "Well what's the call about first?" You end up having to go in with a question any way. 2️⃣ - Pitches contain a lot of words. They can be hard to follow and when they don't recognise what you're talking about they will likely switch off. It's easier to craft a well thought out question than it is to craft a 30 second pitch. 3️⃣ - The purpose of a pitch is to open up a conversation and direct the conversation down the right path. Does this prospect recognise any problems that you can help fix? If you can do that be leading with a well crafted opening question, why not do that? - - - If you're not going to ask for 30 seconds, you're opener will need to change. Here are two I've been using. "I'll be upfront this is a sales call, up to you, you can hang up now or I had a few questions for you?" "I'll be upfront this is a sales call, I had a question for you, after that you can decide whether we carry on talking or not, sound fair?"

Good to be back, however with working from home right after the holiday season im struggling to get back into my groove a little bit. Anyone else the same and got any tips theyve been doing personally to get back into things?

Let me set the scene. You can't win an argument. If you win the argument you lose, if you lose the argument you lose. A lose lose scenario. Ouch. Best not to instigate them and best to diffuse them when they might arise then. Now, you might be thinking, if you win an argument, why would you lose? It's a good question, a fair question. The answer? Nobody, and I mean absolutely nobody, likes to be proven wrong. What you do have are a small percentage of people who, despite hate feeling inferior when proven wrong, can deal with it in a mature manner. They can manage their emotions. This isn't common. You probably know this already. When arguments do end often both participants are even more convinced that they were right. Their backs are up. And what started out as an attempt to get the other person to see 'reason', they are now both further apart. Call it ego if you like but the "loser" of the argument now feels inferior. Their pride is dented. All of this of course you can learn in Dale Carnegies book "How to win friends and influence people." There not my words. I just believe them to be true. - - - So what's this got to do with sales? What's this got to do with prospecting? Well if we are in agreement on the subject of arguments, best to avoid them when in conversation with your prospects. To illustrate my point I'll give you a real world example involving my other half. - - - We were driving in the car and my Mrs gets a phone call. She answered. A sales call. I was delighted this was being played through the cars audio. Entertainment at it's finest. I listened intently. On the other end of the phone was a salesman. A salesman who worked for a private wealth company based in London. A fancy company based in Canary Wharf, I quickly learnt. Yes that was part of their "pitch" to my girlfriend. The timing of the call was great, my Mrs had recently sold her flat. For that I thought, well played. I won't bore you with the toing and throwing that took place but it wasn't long before all of my Mrs' patience had depleted. Enough was enough and so she gave him this line...

Hello Everyone, I'm starting with a new company on Monday, which will be my second Sales role. I feel like I'll be back to square one in some ways, as it's a new product and market that I'll be prospecting. Looking to hear about some of the challenges people have faced when moving into a new role/market and what they would suggest to overcome them?

Fix this and you'll fix a lot of other problems. 💬 - "I lack consistency with my cold calling." I hear this a lot, you likely recognise it. It's a problem. You need consistency. You need to have control over how many conversations you're having. That will lead to meetings. They will lead to sales. And make no mistake about it, I've struggled with this in the past but understand this... ...the hardest part with cold calling is turning up. ⏰ Cold calling will always come with a degree of difficulty, that is my belief. Why? It is mentally taxing. Cold calling requires your constant attention and focus. To listen, to understand, to read between the lines, to adapt and respond to each individual situation. It's a monotonous task, repetitive. This only make's it more challenging. The brain also knows this. 🧠 That feeling of, I can't be arsed to call today is your brain trying to persuade you not to do it. The brain wants us to preserve our energy. Despite living in the safest period in the history of the world, our brain hasn't caught up. We're still in survival mode. The brain tells us we need to conserve our energy, who know's when we might need it. There are similarities with going to the gym or going for a run. You've probably already recognised them. The brain tries to talk us out of going. Just the very thought of going for a run leads to thoughts of: I can't be arsed today, I can always do it later, it's raining, I'll do it tomorrow. They're all excuses. You'll notice they are the same excuses we make about cold calling. Perhaps rain aside. ☔️ Ever noticed that when we are in actual danger, that little voice in our head never say's don't run now, we'll do it tomorrow. It doesn't, you don't even think about it, you're in flight mode. You run. So how do we overcome this? Well let's start here. How do you make it easier to go for a run or go to the gym? 🏋🏼‍♂️ The simple answer is you remove the friction. All of the things that get in the way of you not going.