Does Your Sales Team Need To Clean Out Their Closet?
As you know from my last blog, I pride myself on being a certified shopaholic. To get rid of the closet clutter associated with buying new clothes, I like to take time every season to go through what I currently own and “purge” the articles of clothing that no longer work for me. Your style is one of the first things people see when they meet you so keeping your appearance as fresh and up to date as possible is very important.
Generally in teleprospecting, the first thing people hear from you is your messaging. Similarly with fashion, it comes to a point when what you think is working for you with your voicemails and emails realistically are not. It is important to constantly rework your messaging and tweak the wording to ensure your message is being delivered effectively. As your personal fashion is constantly evolving over time, so should your messaging.
If these three things have become obvious, then it is time to purge your closet, or in this case recraft your current messaging.
If it doesn’t fit get rid of it: There are many things hanging in a person’s closet that do not fit them anymore. Whether the clothes are too big or too small, used to fit great or never really did (we have all made these purchases as “inspiration”), these are the clothes that should be donated to someone who can actually get use out of them. Similarly with messaging, sometimes we craft great voicemails and emails that no longer convey the message that we need. A set of messages you have previously created may specifically target a certain industry vertical. Nine times out of ten, when you switch up your list the messages no longer fit. It is a good habit to read through what you have previously written and ask yourself “if i was prospect xyz would this voicemail resonate with my business operations.” If the answer is no, it is time to tweak the wording so that it fits into the industry.
Just because it looks good on a friend does not necessarily mean it is right for you: How many times have we seen one of our friends in a great outfit and thought to ourselves “omg, I need that” only to come home and realize it looks awful on you. I will not lie; I have a few of those purchases hanging in my closet. From listening in on some of my colleague’s voicemails and seeing the emails that have worked from them, I have tried to acquire some of their scripting. Sometimes this works out great and improves my response rate, but other times it is not a natural fit for my dialogue. After encompassing these lines or phrases into your messaging it is always good to go back and ask yourself is this something that sounds natural coming from me?
If you haven't gotten any compliments, it may not look that great: The best test to see if the new dress you just picked up looks as good on you as you thought it does is by seeing if you get any compliments. Similarly, the best test to see how effective your messaging is will be by evaluating your response rate. If the numbers are low, then I hate to tell you it is not as good as you think it is. It is the time to rework your current messaging.
Just as cleaning out your closet gives you a refreshed, new outlook on your style, the same is true for redrafting your messaging. It is not always fun in the beginning, but in the end will yield positive results. Just remember, fashions evolve with time just as your messaging should.