So, I finished THAT chapter in business life (getting past a Sales Dilemma)….

We all have the bad week.  47 e-mails sent, 9 phone calls, 33 Linked requests, 19 texts to people with whom you know or have made contact, and $100 spent of Social Media advertising.  At the end of the week, the result was a BIG GOOSE EGG with the number of calls you could schedule.  What the heck!?

It is you?  Is it your style?  Is it something you said or did at the initial meeting?

The answers to these and other questions are not all the same, and it is likely that the fault is not all yours, but there is one thing in common; something in the message is not getting through.

So, a few suggestions to get you through this down cycle:

• Change your pitch. Sometimes we can come off too ‘boilerplate”, as if we sent out a broadcast message, with hopes that SOMEONE would respond, but it’s too generic. With all of the calls, e-mail blasts, and mail junk these days, we can all get lost in that mire.  Find a new approach, make it personal, short and attention grabbing, and follow up with your best and most positive approach.

• Pick Up the phone, and PHONE A FRIEND. Not just someone you once met, but someone who will actually take your call and listen.  Ask the friend to give you 3 good names of people THEY KNOW that would be good for you to meet and discuss your services, and ask if they would either 1) send an e-mail to ask these 3 friends for an introduction, or 2) would they call and tell the friends to take your call when you reach out.  You will find that people you REALLY know, or people that KNOW YOUR FRIENDS are not more likely to be a better source of contact and new opportunity than a cold call approach.

• Remove the bad names from your Rolodex, and go on. It is their loss, not yours!!  If a person you want to meet refuses to give you the time, it is more likely that THEY have issues.  I once contacted a company president, and kindly asked for an introduction for good reason. His response was very abrupt: “I don’t have time for people like you.  I have enough people I know in your field, and they take care of me just fine.”.  What did I do? I removed their contact info, and went on with life.  There are simply better people to whom you can reach out.  (Note: about 6 months later, I found out that president was fired by his company, because he treated people very poorly.  Again, his problem, not mine….).

Remember one thing above all: YOU are the best at what you do, and YOU HAVE VALUE to be provided. Live up to that by remaining positive, and keeping the calling effort active, fresh, and alive!

David Alexander is President of Mile Marker Business and Consulting, LLC, a company focused on making your company better, and taking on the real problems at hand.  His 30 years in commercial banking and as a business professional have provided a broad spectrum of expertise in finding real financial and organizational solutions to fit you.  For more information, contact him at [email protected], or visit www.milemarkerbusiness.com.