My company sells lead generation services for the financial services industry, and we had a very good client whom I had never met. I decided to show our appreciation for her in a special way -- I invited her to a Frank Sinatra concert.
It was actually his last appearance in Chicago. I drove to this mystery woman's home and wore a big smile as the door was answered.
A large woman in a black dress stood before me. She was obviously pregnant. I helped her into the passenger door, then began the 45 minute drive downtown.
Then, I asked the infamous question: "So, when is the baby due?" Frosty silence. Through clenched lips, she informed me that she was not pregnant.
The next four hours of that Chicago summer were the longest and coldest of my life.
I apologized feebly, but after that, I could not successfully establish a rapport with this woman.
She refused any gesture of goodwill -- drinks, food, Sinatra CDs. A pick ax could not break the barrier she built between us.
I dropped her off and her business dropped off my balance sheet.
My opening comments are now related to how a woman is feeling. I figure if she's pregnant, I'll hear about it.
The Moral: Hank, this is the No. 1 sales blunder I hear, but yours is a classic -- four hours stuck with this woman! Most salespeople just mumble their way out the prospect's door and go on the next call. Here's a great opening conversation tip, good for both face-to-face and phone calls: Don't ask a question like
"How are you?" It sounds to sales-y, too fake. Just make a statement introducing yourself (I simply say, "Dan Seidman of SalesAutopsy.com"), and they'll likely ask you how you're doing. You thank them for asking, answer their question, then ask them the same thing in return. Don't act like everyone else out there does. Your job is to be memorable, not by killing a sale, but by creating one.
Sales from the Dark Side is compiled by speaker and trainer Dan Seidman. For more tales, visit www.salesautopsy.com.
