Solicitation

Recently, I have had relatively new sales people express concern that they don't want to sound or act like 'solicitors'. When I ask them what they mean, they refer to those telephone solicitors who call you at home at 6:00pm, just in time for dinner or 'used car salesmen' (saleswomen too, presumably).

First of all, I think that sales or solicitation has gotten a tarnished reputation due to telephone solicitors, junk email purveyors and the caricature of 'used car salesmen.' Sales is a noble calling - nothing in this economy happens until a sale is made!

Secondly, I think a distinction needs to be made between 'mass market' solicitation and business to business or B2B. In B2B, we are calling on people who may already need and use what we have to offer. Our product, in this case, our hotel, is a benefit to those businesses that require hotel rooms. They either need the product or they don't -- we can't persuade them to buy hotel rooms if they never have a need for them.

If telephone solicitors never made a sale and no one ever bought a used car, these people wouldn't have jobs. Obviously, someone buys these products from these sales people or they would quit doing business in this manner.

Hotel sales is about developing relationships with our clients and every relationship starts with that initial contact. Here are a few tips to get you going and out the door or on the phone:

- Cold calls are INFORMATION CALLS. The purpose of a cold call on the phone or in person is to find out if they have business for your hotel or not. It is just as important to know who doesn't as it is to know who does.

- Approach the call with confidence! If you are not convinced that your hotel is a good value for the product and rate, you may need to go find another job. Know your competition so that you can believe you have the best deal in town.

- Lighten up and SMILE! If you are tense about making the call your prospects can either see it in your face or hear it in your voice. You can hear a smile. Keep a mirror next to your phone to remind you to smile.

- Assume that they are glad to see or hear from you! You may be pleasantly surprised.

- Use a little finesse to win the assistant over to your side - sell them first.

- Don't expect to see the decision-maker without an appointment! Don't expect to be put through to their direct line on the first try.

Cold calls or information calls are largely a numbers game. The more you make, the better you become at it and the better you become, the more prospects you will uncover.

No one ever died from hearing "NO" and I have never known a sales person to go out on the road to make cold calls who didn't return in one piece. If you keep on doing it, you will find new business. Tom Letourneau, a friend and mentor, once said to me, "Even a blind squirrel finds a nut now and then."

Make no mistake. It is sales people who are capable of making calls and generating revenue that will not only survive in this economy - they will be able to command larger salaries and earn bigger bonuses than the sales person who sits at their desk and takes orders.

About the author.

Carol Verret Consulting and Training provides consulting and training services primarily to hotels and hotel companies with a large portion of their portfolio in the limited feature and moderate service product segments. Be sure to visit our web site at carolverret.com and subscribe to ResultsWoW Sales and Customer Service Newsletter. email: carol

carol@carolverret.com
http://www.carolverret.biz