A creepy door-to-door encounter

Published: Wed, 09/11/24

Updated: Thu, 09/12/24

September 11, 2024

TOGETHER WITH

Good morning sales world. It’s another wonderful day in the world’s second-oldest profession, where we business-oriented maniacs scramble to put food on the table (or a Z06 in the garage?....) In this week’s issue, we’ll take a look at sales texting etiquette, share a Sales Fail about taxidermy, and help out a rep who doesn’t know how to talk about the competition. Enjoy! .

NUMBER OF THE WEEK

66% of buyers want salespeople to contact them by email

Source: LinkedIn

SALES ROUNDUP

Here’s what’s happening in the sales world this week:

A Canadian car salesman was recently arrested for using fraud to buy $1.1m worth of high-end cars from his own dealership. Police say Shelton Mark Gregouire would use stolen identities to take out loans in other people’s names and then ‘buy’ vehicles from the dealership. While the specifics are hazy, they say the victims of identity theft were unaware that loans were being taken out in their names. You can read more about it here.
A Jersey Shore salesman was accused of using a former business client’s credit card to buy and resell items in a more than $200,000 scheme, authorities say. Adam Kleinwaks, 55, was charged with second-degree money laundering and theft by unlawful taking. Kleinwaks is a sales representative for Standard Printing Company. You can read more about his fraud here.

FEATURE

Texting prospects: when, where, how

In today's world, texting has become the norm. It's immediate, personal, and has a higher open rate compared to emails. According to Gartner, text messages have a 98% open rate and 45% response rate, compared to just 20% and 6% respectively for emails. This makes texting an excellent channel for following up on conversations, nurturing leads, and speeding up sales cycles.

But mastering the art of texting in a professional context requires finesse, strategy, and an understanding of etiquette. Here are some tips that will help:

Get permission and start early

Always ask for permission before texting a prospect. Some prospects like to keep a degree of separation and texting is off limits. Keep the ask casual: “I can text you, if that’s easier or if you prefer.” If they say no, don’t push them. Respect boundaries and keep conversations to email and scheduled calls. If they say “yes,” make sure your first message includes your name, company, and a brief summary of what you spoke about on the phone. This way they can scroll back in the conversation and get full context — don’t expect them to save your number.

Be concise and professional

Text messages to prospects should be brief and to the point. Don’t send paragraphs or multiple messages that require them to scroll to read. If you need to convey complex information, put it in an email or give them a call. Texting is a great way to get a quick response from prospects that may have gone cold.

While texting is casual, you’ll want to maintain a professional tone. Use proper capitalization and punctuation. Generally, you’ll want to avoid using slang or emojis. However, if your prospect is sending you emojis or using a casual tone, don’t be afraid to mirror their texting style to build rapport. Use your best judgment and adjust your approach on a case-by-case basis.

Set and respect boundaries

As a rule of thumb, your text message exchanges with prospects shouldn’t look desperate. If you don't receive a response from your prospect, it's okay to follow up, but you should wait a few days and limit it to one or two (at the very most) attempts before trying a different channel.

You should also stick to texting during regular business hours. This not only shows respect for your prospect, it also helps set boundaries for yourself. You don’t want to set an expectation that you’ll be immediately responding to texts at all hours. Feel free to break this rule if your prospect texts you after hours first (at your own discretion of course).

Personalize and provide value

This may seem obvious, but with texting, you don’t want to use templates like you might in email. Automation has its place in sales, but when texting, you should spend the time to personalize your communication to build rapport. Reference previous interactions to make your messages feel tailored and relevant.

Like email, each text should offer something of value to the prospect, whether it's information, insights, or solutions to their problems. It’s fine to use texting as a “just checking in” as a last resort if your prospect has gone radio silent on other channels, but try to avoid doing this, or at least add some value in your check-in texts as well.

Remember, everyone is different

Texting is the most personal channel you’ll have with your prospect. It can be a great part of a multi-channel approach when complimented with email, calls, and in-person meetings (if applicable) to build rapport and keep deals moving forward. But, because of its personal nature, it’s important to get the prospect’s buy-in. Not everyone will be on board — but if both you and they are willing to text, you might even give yourself a competitive advantage.

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MEME OF THE WEEK

Source: Instagram -- Sales Humor

QUIZ

What was the best-selling vehicle in the U.S. in 2023?

A. Ford F-Series
B. Chevy Silverado
C. Nissan Aztec
D. Honda CR-V

SALES FAILS

Each week, we bring you the most cringe-worthy sales moments from across the web. To submit your sales fail story for consideration, click here. (Don't worry, you'll remain completely anonymous).

I had just started out in sales. I was selling solar, knocking on doors. I was in an unassuming neighborhood in the suburbs and this guy said he was thinking about getting solar and invited me in to chat. It was a raised ranch house so I walked up a small flight of stairs to his living room and the place was FULL of taxidermied animals. But it wasn't like deer heads or anything he hunted; it was cats, dogs, rabbits, and mice all over the floor and on the side tables. It was really weird.

Anyway, I went into my pitch and the guy seemed to be listening but he kept darting his eyes around the room looking at the animals like he wanted me to look at them too. I handed him some of the materials that had different package options. He looked at them, then looked at one of the stuffed cats on the ground and said, "What do you think Clyde?" I sat there confused for a second and then the guy started bursting out laughing like the stuffed cat told him a joke or something. At this point I was really creeped out, the hairs on the back of my neck were literally standing up. I wanted to get out of there immediately, but somewhere in my mind I was hoping maybe this guy would actually buy so I suggested we go outside so we could look at his roof and talk over options. He said he changed his mind and actually wasn't interested. I don't know what that guy thought that cat told him, but I was thankful just to get out of there.

Anonymous Location withheld

GRAPH OF THE WEEK

Source: LinkedIn Poll -- September 2024

WORTH A PEEK

Every Atlantan has encountered the “water boys,” who sell water bottles on the side of busy roads — and a new film explores characters set in that reality. The Waterboyz follows Drew, who starts the sales venture with his best friend Dolo. But when the group is targeted by gangs and the police, Drew has to decide between continuing the business and his dream of going to college. You can read more about it here.

ASK THE QUOTA

Want to submit a question and be featured in our advice column? Click here. (Don't worry, you'll remain completely anonymous).

Dear Quota Team

I just started a new sales job. It’s my first time selling software. We’re in a pretty niche industry and contract sizes are over $50k, so there’s usually an RFP process involved with every prospect. It's highly competitive. There’s a handful of other vendors in the industry that we compete with on nearly every RFP.

I've been struggling with how to talk about competitors. I don’t outright trash talk them, but when I’m pitching specific features and benefits that I know we do better on, I do tend to throw in a little jab here and there. Our company has a standard objection handling list specifically for when prospects bring up competitors, but those canned responses seem a bit sensationalized and it feels like they don't always land when talking to prospects. Any advice for how I should navigate the competitor conversations when talking to prospects?

Competitive in Arizona

Dear Competitive,

It's easy to fall into the trap of talking about your competition, but as a salesperson, your #1 job is to solve problems. This should be your main focus. Don't bring up the competition unless they bring it up first.

Never trash talk your competitors. Little jabs are okay, but avoid mentioning them by name. You don't want to sound salty, so just say something like, "this is something we excel at that sets us apart from our competitors." When they do mention competitors, use it as an opportunity to build trust. Don't be afraid to show some humility and mention one thing your competitor does well that you admire. Calling out the shortfalls in your solution directly and giving your competitors their flowers can help build trust with your prospects — they might not believe you if you say that you do EVERYTHING better than your competitors.

Focus on how you can solve problems, sell to your strengths and key differentiators, and don't be afraid to concede on your shortfalls. You'll win more deals if you become the most trustworthy salesperson in the RFP process. Good luck!

Quiz Answer: A. The best selling vehicle in the U.S. in 2023 was the Ford F-Series (you can read the source article here)

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Today's email was written by Ken Kupchik, Erica Furgiuele, Steve Rado, and Emily Hill.

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