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Nightingale-Conant presents Orvel Ray Wilson

Guerrilla Tactics for Sales Success

In a world where people are hit with thousands of sales and marketing messages every day, you've got to think differently if you want to break through and get people to buy your product or your service. In other words, you've got to think like a Guerrilla.

Guerrilla selling is all about using unconventional methods, strategies, and tactics to make the sale every time and increase your bottom line. By definition, Guerrilla sales tactics are simple, inexpensive, and adaptable. Sales Guerrillas utilize the ordinary "raw materials" available to everyone in extraordinary ways, to achieve radically different and exponentially better results.

One of the Sales Guerrilla's most potent weapons is time. Time is the currency of a sales career, and anything you can do to maximize the time spent talking to prospects and clients is going to pay immediate dividends. A successful Sales Guerrilla uses a few simple, proven tactics to maximize selling time and edge out competitors.

Call Ahead

Call on the cell phone to let your prospect know that, "I'm on my way, and I'm running a few minutes early; is that OK?" This puts the person on notice that he or she should finish whatever he or she is working on and be prepared for your meeting. Then, ask a favor. "Where is the best place to park? Which door should I use? Can you meet me at security?" This way, you'll be escorted right in, walking right past a lounge full of vendors who are cooling their heels waiting to be seen.

Don't Wait

If you arrive at your appointment on time and are asked to wait, put a limit on how long you're willing to stay. More than 20 minutes is unreasonable. After 10 minutes, take out a business card and write a note on the back, "Sorry, this was obviously not a convenient time for you. I'll call later today to reschedule at a more opportune time." This tells the prospect that you respect that they are busy and that your time is just as valuable as theirs.

Call Early or Call Late

If you're having trouble getting through the switchboard, try calling very early in the morning or late in the day. If someone answers, it's likely to be a VIP.

The Golden Selling Hour

You have a five-times-better chance of reaching your prospect over the phone between the hours of 9:00 and 10:00 a.m. (remember to adjust for time zones) than during any other hour of the day, according to the American Telemarketing Association. Schedule this as a standing appointment. You can do four or five hours' worth of telephone work in one hour if you're in the right place at the right time.

Expect the Sale

Fill out the paperwork in advance, leaving only the quantities and totals open. This saves you and the prospect time, and makes it easy for the person to say yes. If the prospect says no, suggest he or she at least fill out a credit application, clearing the way should you do business in the future. Your expectation of acceptance of your recommendations makes your presentation more persuasive.

Make a Voice Mail Appointment

Leave a message to the effect, "I'll be in your area this afternoon, and I'm planning to stop by at 2:00 p.m. If this is not a good time, leave me a message and I'll be happy to adjust my schedule. If I don't hear from you by lunch-time today, I'll assume that two o'clock is good. Look forward to seeing you then." Now you can quite legitimately walk in and say, "I have a two o'clock appointment with Mr. Prospect. Would you please let him know I'm here?" If it is still an inopportune time, reschedule on the spot. One for the Road

After deciding to quit for the day, make just one more call. It could be a drop-in or a service call on an existing customer. Perhaps it's because you've mentally relaxed for the day, but research shows that you are twice as likely to close this prospect than any other call you will make that day. This tactic alone can increase your longterm sales production by 25 percent.

The best predictor of future sales behavior is current sales behavior. This Guerrilla approach to screening sales applicants gives you an opportunity to observe their sales skills before putting them in front of a prospect. By seeing how well they sell themselves to you, you can predict with remarkable accuracy how effective they will be.

Set Up Voice Mail

Arrange with the phone company to set up a dedicated number that rings into a DDE (direct-dial extension) equipped with voice mail.

Run your classified ad outlining the basic qualifications for the job, but do not mention the name of the company. You do not want people dropping in or mailing you their résumés. Include the language, "to schedule an interview, call (phone number)."

The outbound recording on the voice mail should say, "Due to the overwhelming response to our ad, we have had to automate our screening process. At the tone please leave the following information: your name, your daytime and evening phone numbers, a brief summary of your qualifications, and why you think you would be a good candidate for this job. If your background meets our requirements, you will be contacted for an interview."

Listen to the recorded messages. First, listen to the voice. Is it warm? Friendly? Intelligent? Is this the voice of someone whom you would feel comfortable representing your firm? If so, save the message; if not, delete.

Did They Follow Directions?

Once you have narrowed the field, listen to the messages a second time. How well they followed the directions they were given in the outbound voice mail will be an accurate predictor of how well they will follow your directions in the future. Did they state their name clearly? Did they spell it if the spelling would be in doubt? Did they then give you their contact phone numbers next, and volunteer a best time to call? Did they summarize their skills and experience (benefits) or just read their résumé (features)? Most important, did they close with some sort of call to action; are they "asking for the order"?

If they pass this litmus test, phone them and conduct your first interview by phone, opening with the question, "Tell me about yourself." Confirm that they have the requisite experience by asking questions along the lines of, "Tell me about a situation where you ..." (dealt with some particular challenge or situation they are likely to encounter in your employ.) Watch for them to try to take control of the interview (any good salesperson will) and start asking you questions.

Ask for a Résumé

By now you should be able to make a decision. Is this someone you think you would like to hire? If so, he or she must pass one more test. Ask them, "Could you fax me a copy of your résumé? Yes, right now." You will get one of two answers: either they will stall and apologize and make excuses ("My résumé isn't really current, and I don't have access to a fax machine," etc.) OR they will say, "Sure. I can do that!" THAT'S the response you would want your salespeople to offer a customer in need. Then check the time/date stamp on the fax and calculate how long it took them to get it to you. More than a couple of hours is too long.

You can reasonably ignore the résumé, except for the references. Call the applicant and ask, "Tell me about your experience with Mr. Smith ..." If the references check out, call the applicant and invite him or her in for a face-to-face interview. By now you should have already decided that you would like to hire this person, or don't bother with the interview.

Sell the Position

During the face-to-face interview, your primary objective is to sell them the job and get them excited about the possibility of working for your firm. Give them the tour. Give other key personnel in the office an opportunity to meet them.

Finally, after meeting all the finalists, make an offer to your favorite candidate or candidates.

Learn more about Orvel today!