One of the biggest mistakes I still hear sales reps making is pitching the gatekeeper or receptionist in hopes of them being so impressed that they will put them through to the Decision Maker (DM).Yeah, right.I mean, how often does that happen for you? Truth is, the more you “pitch” the gatekeeper, the more you just identify yourself as a sales person and the more the gatekeeper is alerted to screen you out…
Here’s what you need to know:
The gatekeeper’s job is to route calls. The information they need to route the call is your full name and the name of your company.That’s it.If you use an instructional statement, and are polite, you will be put through without any additional screening.Related:
What Sales Professionals Can Learn From the NFL Here’s your perfect opening:
You: “Hi is {first name} in please?”Gatekeeper: “Can I tell him/her who is calling?”You: “Yes, please tell {first name} that {Your first & last name} with {Your company name} is holding, please.”
If you deliverthat exact line with a smile in your voice, warm and friendly, over 60% of the time they will not only just put you through, they will say, “Hold please.”Don’t believe me? Try it for yourself all this week.Remember, what you don’t want to do when they ask you “who is calling?” is reply with a portion of your pitch:“Yeah, I’m calling with (company name) and what we do is…blah, blah, blah….”That will get you screened out every time.
